When we were young, apart from all the wonderful and valuable things that our elders taught us, we were also fed a whole lot of biased views and concepts. And one of them was that one should not be too involved with ones looks, clothes or spend too much time in front of the mirror. These were things that earned you the label “vain” or “shallow”. And though most of us did try our best to follow these principles and moved on to different areas of work, the tendencies remained. No matter how much we tried to portray ourselves as plain janes to the world, deep within, a lot of us were closet Carrie Bradshaws.
How many of you girls out there can cross your heart and say that you’ve never done the following: enjoyed shopping for clothes, dressing up, matching shoes and bags with your clothes, open the wardrobe door every other day and think “I have nothing to wear”, wish to lose weight (or gain), like to look beautiful in photos, never happy with your hair and the only reason you went for a family function was to dress up like a tart?
I wish I had this epiphany a few years earlier but I have come to the conclusion that it's time to come out of the closet! And this has come about because of some brilliant people out there who have elevated their sartorial obsessions into their life’s work! These inspiring individuals are called Fashion Bloggers. They have changed the face of fashion and the perception of fashionistas in the eyes of the world. They have transcended all labels.
I came across the first of these blogs some years ago, it was called What Katy Wore and since then I’ve been hooked. Katy has stopped blogging a few months back but I think you should check out her blog. It's one of the first generation fashion blogs. Everyday since then, I have been pontificating about starting my own and delaying it for reasons I just mentioned, scared of being labeled! But not anymore!
These people mix and match the stuff that they have in their wardrobe and create interesting new looks and then photograph themselves and share it with the rest of the world. It’s like creating new designs and patterns with clothes and accessories and sometimes this is achieved with ordinary and cheap thrifted stuff. You don’t have to spend millions to become fashionable, all you need is the perception and you I can create amazing fashion out of ordinary everyday stuff. I wanted to highlight a few of my favourite blogs in this post. So, here goes:
lazymanxcat
thehiddenbutton
republicofchic
stilettosdiary
stylishbynature
wearabout
These people take their fashion seriously and dedicate a lot of time and effort to their blogs which is why a new kind of social media has come to life. Have you come across Lookbook, Stylepile, Pose, Chicisimo or Chictopia yet? These are just like facebook where you can add friends, send messages and have a profile but only if you have a new outfit or look to show off every other day! It’s really a proof of the fact that fashion is now serious business. So the next time somebody walks in on you while you’re posing in front of the mirror for an imaginary photo shoot, don’t get embarrassed, better still, take it to the next level and join Lookbook or Stylepile and become a self proclaimed fashionista!
As for me, I've already started off in that direction. This could also be a great way to promote my jewelry! Here's my first attempt to photograph myself with the help of a tripod and self timer. The clothes which I am wearing are nothing special, just a few unmatched items from my wardrobe. This attempt was basically to understand the light conditions on my terrace and the placement of the camera. As for the poses and expressions, I really have to work on that!
Salwar: Fabindia, Shirt: Husband's, Tank top: Street stall on Khao San Road, Necklace: Made by me
