Fashion Forward: The new fashion blogosphere

The fashion realm consists of a wide range of style stars, including musicians, actors, socialites and everyday people. However, celebrity fashion—on the red carpet and in casual ensembles—has started to incorporate ideas, reviews and advice from fashion-savvy non-celebrities.

Blogging has opened up a whole new world of style stars that have taken the fashion world by storm, and fashion elites are wisely welcoming their insights. So what’s the big deal about blogging? It isn’t rocket science, but it can be more powerful than advice from fashion professionals. Bloggers have made a remarkable impact in the fashion world, representing taste that can voice popular opinion with just a single post.

Julia Frakes of the “Bunny Bisous” blog was in high school when Paper Magazine recruited her to cover fashion shows. Since then, the University of Scranton psychology student has gained prominence in the fashion world as a blogger, writer and model—eventually contributing to a handful of different fashion publications. Frakes’ sweet style is a combination of whimsical Americana and young, fresh contemporary fashion.

Aside from her individual style, her insight shines remarkably through her writing, and her most recent blog, juliabunny.tumblr.com, documents personal tidbits about what she finds interesting. The blog reflects her style in every way—a sweet appeal with cute images of bunnies and soft hues. Frakes’ inspiration is multi-faceted, drawing from history, politics, psychology and art history. It’s fascinating how her views on the liberal arts all tie back to fashion.

Bipasha Ling, aka “Bip Ling,” is England’s most stylish fashion blogger-turned-disc jockey-model combination. The look of her blog, www.bipling.com, echoes her fun, outgoing style. It’s a visual blog of bright, vibrant colors, where she documents her outfits and accessories in creative ways, utilizing animation and cut-up images. Ling’s aesthetic has an ’80s feel with a fresh, modern edge, pops of color and funky statement pieces. The music enthusiast interned for Rough Trade Records when she was 14 years old and draws fashion inspiration from bands like The Cure and The Libertines. Other inspirations include her fashion illustrator mother, artist Andy Warhol, Care Bears and the fashion house Comme Des Garçons.


Tavi Gevinson, one of the country’s most renowned fashion bloggers, gained prestige back when she was a “tiny 13-year-old dork that [sat] inside all day wearing awkward jackets and pretty hats”— that’s how she describes herself in her blog, “The Style Rookie.” Now a sophomore in high school, Gevinson is the founder and editor-in-chief of www.rookiemag.com, a website with remarkable articles that combine feminism and fashion. The ’90s aficionado channels her style from the grunge era—often referencing icons like Courtney Love, “The Virgin Suicides” or former “Pavement” lead singer Stephen Malkmus—with a dose of witch-vibe fashion. Though her fans include high-profiles like Zooey Deschanel, TV personality Alexa Chung and fashion design houses like Rodarte, Christian Dior and Chanel, the now-15-year-old claims on her blog that she’s just a normal teenager from Chicago.

It wasn’t too long ago that the fashion world was an extremely exclusive community. Since then, the blogging phenomenon has created an outlet for young people to get involved. Limiting myself to the thoughts of professional stylists and designers doesn’t cut it for me. The beauty of blogging is that there is no middleman—it’s the blogger and the opinion, and a beautiful, personal expression of style.