An occasional series of interviews with members from the online fashion community.
Why did you start Glitterball ?
I started Glitterball in April 2007 initially as a
MySpace blog because I wanted to do something creative and expand my journalism skills (I was a first year journalism student when I started Glitterball). I also wanted to make something that wasn't available on the market because I was bored of the magazines I was reading and I wanted something fresh. Glitterball then developed into a zine I printed myself in 2008, but it was difficult to promote and be adventurous with it because it was in black and white. In April 2009 I decided to expand it into an online publication, enabling me to attract a worldwide audience, primarily in Europe and North America, and bring colour to the pages.
Do you make money from it, or do you think you ever will, and if so, how?
Unfortunately at the moment I don't. I hope in the future to do so by making it a monthly printed publication, but I don't know how to start setting up a business.
What are your favourite shops, online and on the street?
My style constantly changes, one day I'll reference Gossip Girl and Ralph Lauren with school style blazers, grey skirts and head bands and the next I'll wear a glamour grunge lace dress a la Courtney Love or Kat Bjelland. I would say my style is mixture of cute, preppy and grunge, mixed with Parisian...I do love berets and breton stripes. I like to pick up clothes and accessories when I holiday in Europe; I'm half Slovene on my mum's side so I admire European style a lot. Lisbon has great markets where I pick up scarves, brazilets and handmade jewellery.
There aren't that many unique shops near me, except for one in Fulwell where I live - there is a great vintage one on Sea Road. I have to stop myself from going in too often or I will buy everything! I do like high street shops like
Zara and
Topshop but I put my own spin on what I wear from there so I keep my style unique. Often the same high street stores have more variety abroad, for example Zara sells things in Lisbon and Porto that I've never seen over here. I also love designer collaborations with high street stores because it means you can get limited edition clothing by great designers: most recently I bought a lot from the Pearl Lowe for
Peacocks collection (she makes the cutest dresses) and the
Henry Holland for Debenhams range. Portobello Market in Notting Hill is fantastic for independent jewellery designers; one stall,
Junk Jewels, sells delicate charm bracelets and necklaces. Whenever I'm in London at the weekend that's where you'll find me!
Charles of London sells quirky tops and dresses; I bought a fantastic David Bowie dress from them a few years ago which I love. I sometimes buy necklaces from independent designers on MySpace. I bought a wonderful 'J'adore' pink necklace from
Raffles Bizarre Jewellery.
French Sole sell the most comfortable ballet flats. I have two pairs and I love them!
Favourite fashion websites / magazines / blogs?
I recently came across this website after Daisy Lowe mentioned in a piece she was doing for Vogue:
Spanish Moss Vintage. It's a great online site for cute dresses and vintage finds. I admire
Handbag.com because it is always up to date with entertainment and hair, fashion and beauty trends; I particularly love the
Week In Style section.
I don't read that many blogs, although I do like
The Sartorialist and
Go Fug Yourself. Go Fug Yourself laments bad style choices but a lot of the time I like the outfits even though I'm not supposed to!
Got any website / blogging tips?
Just be yourself. A girl once asked me to look at her blog and asked if she should change anything about it, but I couldn't make any criticisms because I think the way a blog is written and presented is a reflection on the person who created it. I once read that successful editors put their own personality into their magazine and I think the same applies for websites and blogs. Being original is key.
http://www.wix.com/glitterballmagazine/Glitterball-magazine
http://issuu.com/glitterballmagazine
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=74171051843
http://www.myspace.com/glitterballmagazine
http://twitter.com/GlitterballMag
You can read more Q&As with online fashion peeps
here
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