Reading The Signs X Jjanga Weir

I love to travel, curate fresh fashion, and advocate for body positivity during and in between photoshoots.

Originally I was born in Seoul, South Korea and my hometown is Andong! We moved to the U.S. when I was young and landed in Georgia. 

I’ve been dreaming of moving to the west coast for most of my life but because I became a single mother at such a young age and had to take care of my family, I never got the chance until now! I got signed in LA and really all the signs pointed to making this move.

My daily life is actually fairly simple! I love to wake up early, typically around 6am, drink my caramel macchiato with oat milk, journal my thoughts and dreams. Our kids usually wake up around 7-8 so it gives me time to relax before the mini chaos ensues. I love doing yoga in the morning, as well, because it helps get my headspace in the right spot for the day ahead. 
During the day I’m just running errands if needed, while listening to my favorite podcasts or playing with the kids and pups! Since we just moved, I think we are going to do a lot of exploring to see what our new environment holds! I end my days with a skincare routine (I’m so happy I finally pinned it down to get my best results), a nice warm shower, and cuddle my pups and babies. 

One of my biggest passions is creative expression and showing other people that you can be as successful as you want without changing who you are. 

Well, haha, I don’t talk about this too often but I graduated high school when I was 16 and went to college early. I was always a bookworm—I grew up poor and quite dorky so books were my safe place. 

I think it’s incredibly important to be able to have an education. I do think this country could work better on diversifying how things are taught instead of forcing so many different types of people into one type of educational system. Not everybody learns the same way and unfortunately they really only teach for one type of learner so many others are left struggling, made to think they’re not as intelligent.

After I had my children, my body completely changed. As a Korean woman I am much larger than most and I got negative comments on how large I was getting. I knew I couldn’t be the only one, I also knew that I didn’t want my daughter to grow up ever thinking she’s not enough based on her body. It’s what really got me started as a body positivity advocate – to show on social media how larger bodies are beautiful, mommy bellies are normal, and cellulite or stretch marks are just part of life and don’t need to be removed.

I broke into the industry during the pandemic—being stuck inside I wanted to figure out what I actually wanted with my life. I was working a job that I was so exhausted (mentally and physically) from prior to modeling. So I decided I’m going to go after it! At 29, I was nervous because I was past the age most people even still model, but I knew that nothing was going to stop me. I fully believed in myself and refused to not show up for myself, either. I started doing photoshoots with local photographers and posted on social media, it caught the eye of agencies, and it started to happen so quickly! I love all of it really. I think I was always meant for the limelight, the cameras, and just overall presenting! I’m so comfortable in front of them and I also love acting so it just all feels natural to me.

I think Marcella is doing an amazing job currently. Really the key for any company is diversity—true diversity, not just for business sake, but to allow other body types and PoC to have a space is so important. 

Any oversized button down t-shirt. I’m obsessed with them and it instantly makes an outfit chic when I’m in a rush!

My style has evolved so much recently and I think one constant for me is that I love simplicity with bold accessories. I love to be able to change an outfit I wear just by using and wearing different accessories. I’ve also been working really hard on making sure I’m not over consuming and following trends just to follow—I want to be able to wear something for longer than just one photo on social media. 

My personal stamp is always going to be vintage jewelry, specifically from the late 80-90’s era. I love chunky and dainty pieces and also vintage scarves, as well!

That’s a difficult one haha because I am obsessed with it entirely. I think my all-time favorite would be the Morena Dress. As soon as I put it on I instantly felt sexy—it’s just so hip hugging and I feel bold! I love when a piece of clothing can make you feel something. 

I think once I stopped sweating what my body’s silhouette would look "best" in, I started to play more with shapes and I loved it! I love showing people that you can wear more than just what’s meant to look good on your body type. Play with colors more—I think people do get caught often in playing it safe and staying neutral. I love a bold pink dress!