As I mentioned in my previous post, I am currently studying Fashion Communication and Promotion. Like the industry, the course is very much fast pace, and we've already been set various of pieces of work to do outside of contact hours. A recent "homework"(almost seems strange saying that as i've only lived here two weeks) that was set, was to upload regularly on our blogs, the first couple of posts being set by our tutors.
After Monday's seminar, we were asked to research 3 blogs we've never seen or heard of before. As a keen "blog reader" and watcher (youtube vlogs) I was excited to find some new blogs to add to my collection. This gives me an excuse to spend more hours than I already do, in bed on weekends reading them.
There are so many fashion blogs to choose from, I was almost unsure of where to start looking. I checked out a website given to us in the same seminar which included a list of the top 50 fashion blogs along with recommendations given to me by people on my course. I went on every site and noted the ones which had a good first impression. A strong visual impact on the viewer is one of the most important features in such a creative industry. Although everyone has their own taste, it is definitely easy to tell which blogs would impress most people.
You will notice a general pattern in the 3 blogs I chose to write about. They are all very basic, stripped back with simple layout and clear organisation. This is just my taste, I find them easier to read and navigate. They almost give me a sense of satisfaction because they look so neat, neat freak I know, but the last thing you want is a complicated blog where it takes you longer to find a post than read one.
And here's the bit you've been waiting for...
Park & Cube is a lifestyle blog which covers a range of topics including fashion, beauty, food and travel. The blog was founded in November of 2008 by Shini Park, who graduated from Central Saint Martins and now works as a graphic designer, photographer and digital consultant, all along side running Park & Cube, impressed already?!
The images used in this blog particularly stand out to me, all being coordinated with each other and edited to an extremely high standard. Despite working 3 different roles in the industry, Shini Park manages to regularly upload posts onto the blog at least once a week, this is exactly what frequent readers want to see.
Mademoiselle Robot similarly focuses on fashion and lifestyle. I like to read blogs which cover a range of topics, it means I can explore the writers personality and opinions on different topics. Mademoiselle Robot started a year before Park & Cube in November of 2007. The founder and writer of the blog is Laetitia Wajnapel, born and raised in Paris.
Mademoiselle Robot is written brilliantly, constantly interacting with the reader and keeping them interested with comical puns and statements. Even from the bio I was instantly drawn in as she starts with "Hi! How are you?!", I already feel like we're friends. One of the main features which attracts me to blogs is when I have a similar personality to the writer, this is definitely something I've noticed with Mademoiselle Robot as her personality really comes across in her blog!
Last and definitely not least is Fashion Me Now (FMN) written by freelance writer and brand consultant Lucy Williams. With 6 years of experience in the industry, Lucy has got a lot to talk about. Like the others, this blog is based on fashion, beauty, travel and general lifestyle.
In the same way as Park & Cube, FMN has a similar taste, clear layout using natural colours, usually dark in the blog itself and most images. The blog is much more informative and a lot less humorous than Mademoiselle Robot however a lot of the FMN posts contain less writing than most blogs, allowing the images to be the main aspect to the blog with just short captions explaining them.
Although I have found ways to categorise them similarly, all 3 blogs are very different in their own way, well... apart from the town they all currently live in!
Be sure to check them out!
