Blogs, the new fashion Bibles

A quirky jacket paired with a strikingly contrasting dress, a vintage fabric from mom’s wardrobe teamed with a couture piece.
Geeky glasses, bohemian accessories and in-your-face-attitude. Meet the all new avatar of a young, stylish Indian — a fashion blogger. Giving competition to super skinny models in sky-high stilettos and airbrushed celebrities, who grace fashion glossies are a new army of uber chic youngsters, who are making fashionistas across the country sit up and take notice with their online style files.They dress up in their stylish best, get clicked, write about where they bought their trendy finds and post it on their blogs for the world to take lessons from. This global trend may have hit India fashionably late, but it now has a cult following here, thanks to social media.
the ‘real’ deal
Anushka Hajela, of the popular fashion blog, “Bombay Bubble”, says it’s all about connecting with the aam janta. “Since we are real women with similar bodies, insecurities and budgets just like every other woman, they relate to us more than they would to a skinny model in an editorial. They want to wear the trends we do and shop at the stores we do because in their minds, if regular girls like us can do it, why can’t they?” she exclaims.
And there are no strict rules. If you are adventurous, anything goes. “One should never be a fashion snob, so I mix vintage with street shopping, thrift, high street and high-end to get the look I want. For the blog, I always try to keep colors bright, fun and attractive. If I'm wearing a particular trend, I try to show my readers a way to break out of the box.”
The big picture
And the appetite for all the tips and tricks doled out by these fashion bloggers is huge. Kavya Bali, a model, blogger and designer, whose style chronicle, “Be Me”, is the first fashion blog in Hyderabad, says, “Inspired by other bloggers, I started my own, through which I reveal my personal style and also my fashion ideas. But I could never imagine that within three months, I’d have 8,000 views from across the globe. People love to take a cue from peers on everyday style. I just pick up the clothes I already have in my wardrobe, mix and match them, play around with accessories and shoes and come up with something original.”
Plus, it gives a big boost to your fashion career. “If you want to be anything from a fashion PR to a stylist or writer, blogging is your best bet. Since I design my own clothes, it’s a great platform to showcase my creations,” adds Kavya.
Not for the bucks
Imsurenla Longkumer, who describes herself on her blog, “As I Like It”, as a “Full time business student. Shoe whore. Online shopaholic. Occasional musician” says bloggers from around the globe have completely changed the fashion scenario.
However, Imsurenla blogs out of love and not with the hope of ever making money out of it. “I would say that blogging is more of a hobby and a vent for my creativity. Thinking of it as a career would take the fun out of it, although I know of a few international bloggers who blog to earn and enjoy doing it. It would be a great career option if it were in Europe, but as of now, I don’t think it’s worthwhile here in India. The combination of both blogging and being a stylist seems more fruitful as a career than just blogging itself,” she says.
Anushka Hajela adds, “I do collaborate with brands on occasions, but it’s important to choose wisely to avoid coming across as a ‘brand whore’ — somebody who advertises a lot of different brands in exchange for gifts/money, but has no loyalty to any in particular. And if your blog is extremely famous, you could set up advertising on it to generate some revenue. However, you cannot expect too much.”
Everyday fashion
Photographer Manou whose blog Wearabout documents street fashion doesn’t just
feature models and young fashionistas. Staying away from the ‘gyaan’ about fashion, it seeks style in the way everyday people dress. “For me, it’s simple. I’m only documenting fashion the way I see it. It’s left to people to form their own opinions. I’m never particularly looking for high fashion or high street. For me it’s all about good aesthetics. I am not dictating anything on the blog. I’m not saying this looks nice or this doesn’t. I personally don’t believe in rules, because fashion works differently for each individual,” says this NIFT graduate.
Talking about making a career in fashion blogging, he says, “Fashion blogging is certainly a lucrative career option. You could be a photographer, writer, stylist, curator of sorts. Running a fashion blog is somewhat like running a fashion magazine. I’ve collaborated with two brands so far and the response in general has been good.”
priya.ramachandran@timesgroup.com