10 Fashion Bloggers That Made It Big
Andrew Thornton Quick Links
The world of fashion is a crazy, beautiful and ever-so-stylish place. It is filled with a lot of talent and a lot of competition, on the runway and off. A few savvy girls -and guys- capitalized on the rise of fashion online, turning their personal style and fashion photography into their careers. With a slew of competition in the fashion blogging world, the following 10 sartorially inclined individuals carved out a market for themselves online and made it big in the fashion world, one perfectly accessorized outfit at a time.
Blair Eadie of Atlantic-Pacific
Blair Eadie is a merchandiser by day and fashion blogger by night, working as the Director of Accessories for Tory Burch in New York City. So, it’s clear this style blogger knows a thing or two about fashion. Her blog, Atlantic-Pacific, garners an impressive 1.8 million page views per month. Her style is classic, simple and fun with a twist and her blogging sense is pretty similar. With straight-up no-frills outfit posts, she lets her style speak for itself, and she’s been doing pretty well at it; she’s modeled for CoverGirl and has curated a collection for Bauble Bar.
Jane Aldridge of Sea of Shoes
Only in her early twenties, Jane Aldridge is already the queen of shoes. She began blogging at just 15, when she started Sea of Shoes in 2007. Though she’s been notoriously known for her bratty attitude –which she denies– due to a 2012 interview run in Texas Monthly, her blog is still one of the most popular out there. Unlike other bloggers, though, she has no desire to move to New York City (she currently resides in Dallas) and has never attended a fashion show. But that certainly doesn't mean she isn't decked out in Chanel; after all, an appearance by Aldridge is reported to run a good $20,000 and you won’t get a sponsored post on her site for under five grand.
Jessica Stein of Tuula Vintage
One of Australia’s best dressed is twenty-three year old Jessica Stein, the girl behind Tuula Vintage. Her stunning photography and sleek style is why she’s so popular. And if you ever wanted to live vicariously through a fashion blogger, Stein’s the one. She’s constantly jetting off from her home base in sunny Sydney to Paris, Milan or London, all while looking exceptionally fashionable and put-together. She’s not a stranger to big-name collaborations, either, having worked with River Island and Cotton On, to name a few. Plus it doesn't hurt that the girl is gorgeous; tall, blonde and beautiful, resembling a young Heidi Klum.
Chiara Ferragni of The Blonde Salad
It’s a 25-year-old Italian-born fashion-obsessed woman behind the ever-popular style blog, The Blonde Salad. Not only does her website bring in one million page views a month, she’s modeled for Guess and has worked with the best in the business, from Louis Vuitton and Chanel to Dior and Max Mara. Ferragni’s also collaborated with Steve Madden and designed a nine-shoe collection. Oh, plus she also has her own eponymous shoe line. Not too shabby.
Aimee Song of Song of Style
Aimme Song is an interior designer from California, but at only 25 years old, she’s also mastered the web with her ultra-popular fashion blog, Song of Style. Song began blogging in 2008 and brings in four million page views a month, working with brands like 7 For All Mankind, Piperlime, Luisa Via Roma and Schutz shoes. Plus, she’s even been the face of a Botkier advertising campaign. Her 1.3 million Instagram followers can vouch for her enviably laid-back, super-cool-yet-chic style.
Bryan Grey Yambao of Bryan Boy
Arguably one of the first fashion bloggers to make it big (and bring in major money from his site), Bryan Boy started in 2004, long before anyone else on this list. Hailing from Manila, Yambao rakes in a reported four million page view a month. So, does it really come as a surprise that Marc Jacobs named a handbag after him (or that he sits front row at his shows)? He’s been a judge on America’s Next Top Model and has signed with Hollywood-based talent agency CAA. If that wasn’t enough, he’s also been featured in Vogue as one of nine bloggers credited with “making a global industry sit up and take notice.”
Rumi Neely of Fashion Toast
Rumi Neely (Bryan Boy’s apparent BFF) is another one of the world’s first fashion bloggers, having created Fashion Toast in 2008. What started as an eBay vintage shop quickly became a style diary of outfit posts and enviable fashion. Thanks to her blog, Neely’s had the opportunity to work with Forever 21 where she modeled for a campaign, Rebecca Minkoff, Free People, accessories line Dannijo and more. She’s won Best Personal Style Blog and Blogger of the Year at the Bloglovin’ awards and has been featured in countless magazines. And, like pretty much every blogger on this list, she’s a fashion week staple.
Kelly Framel of The Glamourai
It was in 2008 (clearly the golden year to start a blog) that Kelly Framel began The Glamourai, a personal style blog done right. Named as one of the 10 best in New York City, this Austin-born, Brooklyn-based blogger has done styling for and collaborations with some major brands like Forever 21 and Club Monaco, and she’s modeled for Coach, too. Now, The Galmourai’s content is a little bit of everything: fashion, beauty and décor.
Scott Schuman of The Sartorialist
With his work featured in GQ and Vogue, Scott Schuman takes the fashion blog to a whole new level. Schuman began photographing the style of real people he saw on the street and posting them to his blog with short captions. His street style sensibility quickly caught on and became a fashion staple as he began to do commissioned work for Burberry, DKNY and more. His images were turned into an anthology in 2009 that has sold over 100,000 copies. Plus, his work is part of the permanent collections of the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography. Not too bad for a guy with a camera, a good eye, a penchant for fashion and a blog, of course.
Emily Schuman of Cupcakes & Cashmere
Emily Schuman created her DIY, food and of course, fashion blog back in 2008, when the blogging world wasn’t as exponential as it now is. Some of you might even remember seeing her on MTV’s The Hills season 1 as Schuman worked at Teen Vogue during filming. She began her blog as a way to mix food and fashion, two things she loved, and document it online, working on her site after work hours and on weekends. At the time, there wasn’t too much out there mixing food and fashion, and Schuman’s unique approach to blogging quickly took off. She’s since turned her blog into a full-time career, works with some of the largest brands in the industry, sits front row at New York Fashion Week (not to mention her backstage passes) and in 2012, even launched her first book. Needless to say, Cupcakes & Cashmere has definitely made it big.
Leandra Medine of The Man Repeller
The Man Reppeler was launched in 2010 by Leandra Medine and, as a New York native, it’s fair to say fashion is in her blood. Medine started the blog as a hobby, with its roots beginning at a visit to Topshop with a friend. "We were laughing at how everything was so man-repelling: acid-washed harem pants and enormous shoulder pads, and I just said, ‘That’s it! That’s the blog,’” And so The Man Repeller was born. The concept of Medine’s blog isn’t necessarily about man repelling, but rather about dressing for oneself and feeling comfortable, whether your clothes are totally off-putting to men or not. Medine’s humour and personal style have made her blog one of the biggest in the industry (plus it helped that just three days after it launched, her site got featured on Refinery 29). She’s since worked with countless designers, is almost always dressed in covetable clothing and, of course, sits front row at fashion weeks with her other blogger friends and magazine editors. Can we trade places?
