Fashion For and By the Masses

What do you think of fashion bloggers? Are you inspired by them or do you find them revolting? Do you think fashion should be left to the "experts" of the magazine or retail world or should bloggers dictate what's coming down the pike?

I definitely have mixed feelings about the subject. I think about the "credentials" of these bloggers -- who are they? What have they contributed to the world of fashion that makes them a credible source? Why should I listen to them? Why should I care?

But then I really think about who the "credible" fashion journalists are and why they are the ones who get to dictate trends and tell us what's in and what's out. Is there some pedigree of knowledge that these "journalists" have that the bloggers don't? Looking inward, what special "degree" did I have that allowed me to be at the fore front of fashion for so many years?

I'm glad I left the "regulated" fashion industry when I did. I'm not sure if I'd be super annoyed by these bloggers being at every fashion show, every industry event, being touted as "icons" of the style world. It sounds quite curmudgeonly of me, I know. Would it be jealousy? Perhaps. Or is it more about "let us do our jobs and you go back to what you do...and what is it again that you do for a living?"

I think, plain and simple, that there are some great master marketers out there in the blogosphere. Some have style, some don't. Some are great writers, some aren't. Some are legitimate, some are poseurs. And it's up to each person to decide whether you want to spend time on their site(s).

Which brings me to my subject which made me think about all this. Rumi Neely. She is a slender, pretty part-Asian style blogger who started Fashion Toast a few years ago. Now it is part of a larger blog called NowManifest which incorporates the more popular individual blogs of a few folks onto one shiny site.

I am not a style blogger follower. I just logged onto Fashion Toast for the first time a couple days ago. I had never heard of this Rumi person but quickly learned about her by looking through her blogs and reading up on her background. The thing I was drawn to was just how these fashion bloggers create such "editorialized" shoots of themselves. It's rather conceited, no? But it sure does work. And boy, what I love is how she markets it all. I'm impressed that she sells the clothes she has worn on her ShopToast site (such as the Topshop harness blazer pictured above). Or how about these Chloe Sevigny-Opening Ceremony sandals pictured on the right. If you're a size 6.5/7.

So what do you think? Are style bloggers the wave of the future? Do we care what the magazines say anymore? I've got to admit, I know a lot of the real fashion editors out there and many have the style quotient of a....how do I say this nicely....

source of both photos