Online/offline selves

I've been a busy bee these past few weeks, I thought I'd share a little bit of what I've been working on. In addition to doing my assistantship/internship/school, I've also been in graduation mode and have tried to be proactive in updating my online portfolio (which is here if you're curious). I know I've discussed blogging privacy and my hesitations with linking my online self with my personal identity, but I think I am finally at a point where I'm comfortable merging the two. Part of it is because it's so important in the adpr/social media industry to have an online presence, and part of it is because I no longer feel like I have to hide or make light of my hobbies from people in my real life. I've introduced my online self to my real-life friends -- so now online friends, here is a peek at my offline identity. I don't really think there is too much of a distinction with online/offline identities anymore because of social media. 

P.S. If you want more talk on blogging identity, the comments on this past post are pretty insightful. 

Real self vs. Blog self

So lately more people in my graduate program are finding out about my blog. I'm in a program where social media skills are a huge asset to classwork and to professional experience, and sometimes we talk about blogging in class, so sometimes I mention my blog and my experiences in the fashion blogging community. When I started graduate school, I originally thought I'd keep this hobby under wraps -- after all, it seems to be a common theme in fashion blogging to be discreet with real-life companions because fashion can sometimes be seen as too trivial or shallow or narcissistic in professional settings (okay, maybe these were most of my fears about sharing within my academic circle, all fears that I'm slowly trying to quell).

Blogging has become a big deal in my program and in the industry, and we talk quite a bit about personal branding and online identities in class, and it's interesting because the blogosphere always deals with these themes. 

My real, tangible identity and blog identity are merging as more of my professors and fellow graduate classmates find out about this blog. I'm not quite sure how I feel about it -- it's a bit relieving to finally feel like I can open up about my hobby, but a bit unnerving that I now know more of my audience in real life. It's also made me hyper-conscious of these identities I've balanced for the last couple years, and whether it's possible to really portray more reality on a blog, and whether identity really matters.

I guess what I'm trying to say is: If you're my classmate or my professor, hi, welcome. I take photos of my outfits in front of pretty landscapes and sometimes wonder (navel-gaze) too much about  existential blogging identity issues.

I've written before about online identity and online relationships, but I wonder how many of you have dealt with sharing your blog experiences with your real-life friends/family/work? If you have shared with others in your real life, what made you choose to do so?

credits- sweater, skirt: talbots | shirt: arizona jeans co, thrifted | boots: tj maxx | watch: waltham, vintage, heirloom.

P.S. Speaking of online behavior, my class is researching social media. If you have a few moments to take our short survey, we'd love your insights!

A blog history through headers

When I was re-designing my blog last week, I went deep into my archives to revisit old photos and headers to get some inspiration for the new look. I thought it'd be fun to share the old headers here, and show how the aesthetics of this blog have changed since I began blogging in 2009. And away we go:

june 2012 - present: 

This is the newest iteration that you see above. When I was re-designing this site, I really reflected on the name, 'Sidewalk Chic,' and how I wanted my tagline to reflect my three main themes: personal style, photography (not just landscape anymore), and a deep love for my town. I used a photo from downtown Athens that I took for another project, and converted it to a paint style in Photoshop. The header has had a trickle-down effect on the rest of the blog, as its color scheme is reflected in links and headlines. I used Futura Condensed Medium as my font, which has been a favorite for years because of its bold, neat minimalism. I may tinker with the layout a bit more on this one: while I like the tagline "personal style & the great outdoors," I'm not sure about the placement of outdoors just yet. I did construct the tagline to look like a band name on a flyer.

february 2012 - june 2012:

This header is the first one where I used both Photoshop and InDesign to create it. As you can see, Futura is represented here for the first time (and it probably won't be the last). A photo of one of the parks I visit is represented in the font's background and in the swirls. I used blue and green in the fonts to match the landscape photo, but I didn't think the color scheme was bold enough for me, since they didn't match the many saturated tones I often wear.

february 2011 - january 2012:

This header is the longest one that's been on the blog because I thought it captured what this blog was about: personal style and the outdoors. This was a very basic design -- in fact, the font used was from the free photo program Picnik. I eventually got tired of seeing my face at the top of my site everyday, hence the change.

november 2011 - january 2012:

Before this blog was re-branded and renamed as "Sidewalk Chic" to better reflect my interests, it was known as "Sidewalk Chalk." My sister and I began it in October 2009 to share our daily outfits and things we loved from childhood. In early 2010, the blog was under my sole control so I played around with its design as I tried to figure out what I  wanted to blog about. This is the first header since I made the name change; I really liked the fall leaves. 

october 2010:

Here is the last header before the name change. I really felt my header needed to reflect this site's photography, and so much of it was based around showing me in a landscape setting. I wasn't completely sold on it because it was too large and I felt I was too prominently displayed in the header. Notice the free picnik fonts again. Picnik is the main program used for the early headers' designs.

may 2010 - september 2010: 

This is the first header that was used after my sister stopped blogging to focus on her other interests, so I felt it really needed to reflect my sole authorship and style. The photo was taken at the farm park near my old home in Gwinnett, and it's the first time a landscape is prominently featured. Jeremiah took the photo, back when I actually had him take my photos (I started doing self-photography in June 2010). 

december 2009 - april 2010: 

 Ahh, feet photos -- so ubiquitous in fashion blogging! This is a photo of my sister Nikki (right) and me (left) because we wanted to show that our beloved "Sidewalk Chalk" was about our personal styles (and was not related to art supplies -- a common problem we ran into in search engines). We were still neophytes at fashion blogging and photography -- look at that camera strap visible on the right! I couldn't find a copy of our header with the font we used, but I believe it was a chalk-looking design on the sidewalk.

october 2009 - november 2009:

And here we come to the end -- or in this case, the very beginning of this blog. My sister actually designed this header through Picnik with a photo she took herself at a park. It was designed with a Polaroid border, which was a popular Picnik feature at the time. I will always be grateful to my sister for starting this site and for getting me into blogging in the first place.

Finally, just to further demonstrate how this blog has changed over time, I thought I'd share these word clouds! With Wordle, I was able to capture and showcase the most-used words.

Here's one from June 2010 made by my friend Val:

And here's one from June 2012:

And there you have it -- a history of my blog's design. I believe it's all an ongoing process and I'm sure that I'll have more to share of these headers in the future. 

Have you ever re-designed your site, and why? What kinds of layouts and techniques did you use?

Online friendships & when favorite blogs end

The passage of time is a funny thing in the blog world, and you can meter it through different means: the number of followers you have, or perhaps the number of posts you've written.

For me, if I need to look at a good measuring stick of my 2.5 years of fashion blogging, I only need to look at my blogroll to be reminded of how far I've come -- and who I've met along the way. 

My blogroll is littered with links of dead blogs, and I mourn for them.

No, none of these bloggers have kicked the bucket, but they have passed on -- blogging, that is -- to pursue larger personal ambitions. Don't get me wrong -- I commend and respect them for doing what was best for their lives as they pursued other things. But I still miss their daily online presence in my dashboard.

There was Sara, of Orchids in Buttonholes, whose witty prose and well-chosen wardrobe made me envy her writer life in New York City. Clare, of Between Laundry Days, who championed simplicity in laidback outfits as she braved Chicago winters. And Tania, of What Would a Nerd Wear, whose self-proclaimed "vanilla" academic style was pitch-perfect advice as I too began to navigate the tricky sartorial waters in graduate school. 

Their styles pulled me in as a reader, but I stayed for their stories about everyday life -- whether it related to travel plans or career switches, reading recommendations or recipes, I was along for the ride. And with comments and emails, it felt like a dialogue -- and later, a blog friendship -- began to emerge with each of them over the years. 

I mentioned to a non-blogging friend recently that I was sad about What Would a Nerd Wear's end, and she couldn't understand my emotions over someone I had never met. 

And I understand that confusion. To someone who doesn't blog or engage with an online community, it can seem silly, creepy and downright voyeuristic to read about another's life so thoroughly. It can also seem like intrusive and demanding behavior from readers, especially for those who feel they have ownership over reading a blog, as if a blogger may "owe" an audience life updates or explanations.

And to others, it can seem pointless to follow a blogger -- whose online image may be curated, positioned and edited so as to not reveal its real-life imperfections. In one of my media classes, we've debated whether anyone can really portray a true depiction of themselves online (the jury's still out). Even further, it can seem like frivolous grief, to lament over an online identity of a blogger who is still alive and well -- and is functioning without the constant gaze or comments of readers and followers. 

Whether the bloggers I follow put up a realistic depiction of themselves is not the point, and unless I ever run into them in real life, I may never really know their full stories, and that's okay. 

But what I do know is this: Over hundreds of comments, posts and emails exchanged over the years, a long distance friendship of sorts emerges between bloggers and their readers. When you count up the hours devoted to such communication, it's a lot. In many ways, it's surely possible to feel that you know a blogger you follow better than you know some of your real-life friends and family, or at least on a different depth level.

This is not a desperate plea for Sara or Clare or Tania or any other bloggers who have quit to start back up again. Nor is it meant to be a guilt trip to conflict with their decision to end blogging. But I suppose this opens up to a larger commentary on how our increasingly-technological society creates an over-reliance on online identities, and how that can fragment communication and relationships, and even reality itself. Or even further, perhaps it's existential grounds for exploring the lifespan of a blog.

I don't have a clear answer to any of these musings. 

I do know, though, that my blogroll is littered with the dead, as I miss people who were not quite strangers, but not quite real-life companions, either.

And the Internet is a little lonelier without them.

Have any of your favorite blogs ended, and what were your reactions? 

Social media got me -- let's be Facebook pals

After much personal debate, I've decided to create a Facebook page for the blog. You'll now be able to get as much Sidewalk Chic goodness in between your status updates! And I'll be posting lots of blog extras on there, including more photography, so check it out.

I know I've been against starting a Facebook page for the blog before due to privacy issues (read my first discussions on it here). But after the last few weeks of visiting with friends and family, I've realized I want to integrate more of my personal and public aspects of my life. And I guess I've realized that for me, there isn't as much to be wary of anymore now that more people from my personal life know about this little corner of the Web.

So, find me on Facebook, if you wish. And if you're a friend/family member/acquaintance wandering onto here for the first time -- hello, and welcome! Here is my super (not-so-secret) blogging life.

Away

I suppose I owe you all an apology and an explanation, after being away for almost a whole week. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed lately because of my increased work schedule and a few social events (friends' wedding parties, graduations, holidays, etc.) going on that have required me to be out of town. Not to mention my insane allergies and trying to avoid the outdoors more than usual. 

There will be a 'Friday Finds' post this week (related to the Royal Wedding!) and I'll be back up with outfit posts starting Monday. I've missed you guys and can't wait to get back to some normalcy again. Thanks for being wonderful and patient, and see you soon. 

Posing near graves: fashion blogging and taste

Ever since I've moved to Athens, I've been excited about the possibilities of new, interesting photo locations. For my style blogging self, this town is a photogenic dream: it's got deep Southern history and a highly-respected music scene.

Two of the places that I've been interested in taking outfit photos are two of the oldest in the area: cemeteries near the University of Georgia's campus which contain the remains of some early citizens who helped shape this city. But when I went to one cemetery yesterday morning for some photos, I was struck by an ethical dilemma: is it inappropriate to take style-related photos in a place for the dead, like a cemetery?

To be clear, the cemetery I went to was centuries old and is part of the National Register for Historical Places; its main time of use was between 1810-1850s. And though this particular one has long been touted as a beautiful place, it made me wonder whether it would be any different from taking photos in a more modern cemetery, where the dead have been gone for less time. My time at this cemetery concluded after a flustered 10 minutes, which resulted in a hurried set of photos (the one up top was the best one of the bunch, sadly). In my desire to be unobtrusive, I took all the photos near the stone wall that encompasses the cemetery, literally showing my hesitation to cross any lines.

My personal experience may be the instigator for my sensitivity. I've lost many loved ones in my life, the closest of whom was my father a few years ago. Taking photos in a cemetery made me wonder if I would be comfortable doing style shoots near his grave, or if, in an older graveyard, I would be comfortable doing the same near my great-great grandfather's. Would it bother me if another fashion blogger did the same? It's a tricky situation when you apply the personal, but the idea of artistic expression in a place of mourning persists.

It's a squeamishness that reminds me of my summer in New York a couple years ago, where my internship required a daily walking commute right by the World Trade Center site. For three months, I walked by the construction, and observed many kinds of tourists. The most striking were the visitors who took smiling photos in front of the ashy remnants, as nearby street vendors hawked 9/11 memorabilia in the form of t-shirts, mugs and magnets. Not every visitor behaved in this way, but it did make the site a dichotomy of sorts -- a juxtaposition of a hallowed ghost town and a circus, a place in which mourning became a Facebook profile photo, a tourist location, a business. Though it's on a smaller scale, that photographic behavior could be applied to blogger photo shoots in cemeteries; the living is pushed to the forefront, while the dead often provide a backdrop to the action.

This isn't some final judgment to say that style bloggers who have done cemetery-related photos committed some terrible blasphemy. In fact, some of the works I've seen inspired my photo shoot attempt. Cemeteries have long been a theme in art and literature, and it's no wonder why. There's beauty to be found in the crumbling of old headstones; the calligraphy of epitaphs; the religious themes in statues; the uniformity of neat rows of plots and bouquets. The location has many elements of Romanticism, Gothicism and has enough of an atmosphere of pensiveness, that it's understandable why many have been drawn to it.

Interpretation, much like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder, and so I'm wondering what you all think about taking style photos in cemeteries. What kind of context would be involved to deem it appropriate/inappropriate to you? Should there be a distinction between older, historic cemeteries and more modern ones (and let's define "modern" as its occupants being dead 60 years or less)? And do you think there are places that should be deemed off-limits for photo locations in style blogs?