1. Tell us a little bit about yourself (who you are/what you do/where you’re from, etc.).
My name is Alessandra, I’m a model and a big fashionista, inspired by the beauty of design,
colors and styles. I live in Germany, have a lot of ideas and stuff in my mind, and see too
many special and stylish things. So I wanna share these things I love with other fashion
addicted people. My blog HowToBeInStyle is an inspiring blog about fashion, beauty and
everything you need to be in style.
Born in Germany fashion, design and music have been fascinating me since being a child.
Always searching for the best style ever I browsed millions of magazines and had a mind of
my own concerning what I want to wear also as a little girl.
I love painting, taking pictures, making handcrafted jewelry or decorating. Among my
creative talent I’m crazy about people, communication between people and psychological
relationships. So I went to university and earned my master degree in communication
science, marketing and psychology.
Motion especially dancing complete the balance between body, mind and soul. Since I was
a child I love dancing in the living room. I love colors, action and the nature and I am happy
about the variety of personalities which I meet. So I love working as a model, because I’m
completely into fashion, art and design.
2. How would you define your style?
First of all it’s important to have fun and don’t take yourself too serious.
Style evolves from your own authentic personality and the beauty of your soul.
Sure I’m obsessed by fashion trends but I’m more fashionista than fashion victim. A victim
means to be a slave of fashion. It’s so important to have a personal style, to try different
things and combinations to create something new. Even if it falls through the cracks. I love
to surprise … in any way. So I really love disruptions, the contrast between for example the
romantic, feminine, elegant style on one hand and an edgy, grungy, dark and mysterious
look on the other hand. I love to combine flowers and skulls, old and new things, different
materials and patterns. And I really like to play with fashion depending on my daily mood.
With fashion I try to show the different parts in me like the lady, the rockstar, the fairy, the
romantic girl, the pirate bride, the girl from ancient times, the tough business woman and
more. It’s not like playing different roles, but being authentic. I want to feel comfortable with
style and a cool, sophisticated look. So I love all this all-in-one stuff with a hint of trashmeets-
chic. It reflects my gamut of emotions and personality traits. Sometimes I feel like a
woman who isn’t part of this century, but part of a preceding one. Such as my handwriting. I
love contrasts – in me – in time. Being melancholic and romantic and at the same time
interested in everything new. Love to combine vintage materials like lace with modern stuff
like for example a cool casual shorts. The contrast between flowers as part of life and skulls
as part of death has something inspiring to me. Contrasts make things less serious and
more exciting. Don’t dare to think you know me just because you recognize my look of the
moment. It’s just my mood of the moment, one part of me, one sign of my soul.
3. How did you find your sense of style?
My passion for fashion has been intensified working as a model. Chloé, Yves Saint Laurent,
Christian Lacroix, Cartier, Karl Lagerfeld, Laurèl, Ralph Lauren, Wella, Porsche, Nissan are
some of the labels and clients I worked for.
The older I got the more people asked me about the stuff I wear, they loved my style and
manner of mixing things together. And I got more and more brave to wear the things I really
love, to give different styles a try. I knew, if I feel comfortable and good in the things I wear,
my style will be authentic and inspiring. My inner and outer appearance will fit together and
convince.
4. What inspired you to start a style blog? What motivates you to keep blogging?
I’ve just mentioned that I’ve been painting a lot in my life, but nowadays I’m often just too
lazy to get all my painting stuff on a table after a hard working day. In the course of time I
got more and more used to image editing and started to try different things with it instead of
painting and also as a replacement for this kind of art. I’m autodidact in a lot of things. If I
really want to learn something, I try as long until it works. I started writing articles about
psychological topics and fashion for web and magazines. I’ve read about big fashion
bloggers around the world. They inspired me. After publishing the first fashion article in a
magazine I decided to inspire others creating a fashion and style blog. Everything I write,
the collages I make, the whole fashion blog HowToBeInStyle I do on my own. I usually blog
one or two times a week after work. Sometimes it takes hours and I don’t realize my hurting
neck, eyes and knees (Yes, I mostly create a new post sitting cross-legged on the couch
the laptop on my knees) until the new blog post is finished. The more positive and grateful
feedback I get the more satisfaction and fun I get blogging.
5. How did you choose the name of your blog?
As always things suddenly come into my mind without any reason. And I think the name
says it all and is easy to remember.
6. What was the best comment you ever received from a reader?
Every kind, cute and wonderful comment of my lovely followers and readers, I have inspired
means a lot to me and motivates me keep blogging. I love to surprise, to inspire or give
food for thought and smiling.
7. Who/what inspires you?
Nearly everything inspires me, for example the nature with its huge colors of a sunset,
flowers or animals, fashion as seen during my work as a model, in magazines, on the web,
in movies and on the streets. My grandma is a big painter and I think I got something of her
talent not only to see, but to see so much more details, shades, differences between
patterns, structures and emotions. Visiting my grandparents was so inspiring. It was an ode
to style and elegance from my glamorous grandmas’ awesome flower and 60s dresses,
well matching antique jewelry to her gorgeous decorations with flowers and old luxurious
things from ancient times, treasures from around the world. Every time I felt like making a
journey through time and I discovered more and more beautiful things. Yes, and I felt a little
bit like a princess in a palace. Also today I admire my grandmas’ keen sense of style. Her
daughter, my beautiful mother showed me for example how to decorate a table, to cook
exotic meals and how to dress for a breath-taking look. As I was a little girl we’ve been
sitting on the living room floor very often, while she was designing some clothes she had
seen in a designer shop before. Yes, my mum also is an autodidact and created the pattern
on her own and sewed the coolest and most difficult designer clothes I’ve ever seen. I loved
just watching her doing this. Unfortunately I never took the chance to learn sewing, because
I always have been interested in so many different things that I have to focus on only a few
to do them right, to finish them. Even today I always have the feeling that I don’t have
enough time to learn all the things I would like to. Due to my parents I’m very open minded
about other cultures. Traveling abroad, like trips to Miami, the Caribbean, Paris, London,
Milan and more inspire me so much. I watch people, things they wear, they eat, they do,
they love to broaden my mind and to get new ideas. Photography, art, design, also interior
design and illustrations especially fashion illustrations also inspire me. This also can be
tattoo artists like Chris Garver, Ami James, Kat Von D or Comic Artists like the big ones of
the Marvel Comics. I’ve just reconvene painting, try to make the first illustrations. If I’m
happy with the result I’ll show you. Being a perfectionist it will take a long time.
8. What are your favourite pieces in your wardrobe?
My favourite pieces change, but I love to wear clothes and jewelry from all my trips, things
which are unique. I also love clothes which match with different styles. Because you know I
love to mix. At the moment, I love colored jeans, maxi skirts, cool tanks, lace, colored soft
leather, flower women dresses, nude shirts, high waists, color blocking, 20s and 60s style, festival
and hippie style, a complete white look, neon colored hot pants and shorts with a simple
shirt and a cool necklace. I collect special and old rosaries from around the world and skull
jewelry. I also love huge golden colored jewelry like my new coral necklace as seen in my
blog HowToBeInStyle and I’m always completely into high heels especially plateau suede
sandals and wedges.
9. What is your top fashion tip?
Be yourself, create your own style, feel yourself and show your inner beauty.
10. What advice do you have for new bloggers or people considering starting a blog?
Do the things you love with your full power and passion – then you will acquit yourself well
and inspire others. That’s my philosophy. Just blog because you love blogging. Then it will
work.
11. What importance do social networks have for you?
Oh that really is a long story. But I try to make it a short one. As a communication scientist
as I am, social networks fascinate me. My specialist field is constructivism, the construction
of subjective reality. Virtual reality as it exists in social networks is a new kind of reality
which influences our social life extremely. In our society nearly exists no reality without
virtual reality anymore. But in my opinion face to face communication is the real life, the
only chance to practice your social intelligence completely. Real friends, real
communication, real love and real life that’s what we need. I’ve tried facebook for two years
for acquisition as a model. But it took so much time to be reachable anytime that I
deactivated my account. I don’t really enjoy blogging if nobody reads it. So I decided to try
twitter to publish my blog posts. In Germany only less people use twitter. This was the
chance to get an honest feedback of my followers, who aren’t people I really know. It
doesn’t take much time to get a lot of very interested, fashion addicted followers and also
cooperation proposals. I never thought, that my fashion and style blog would get so many
fans in such a short time. Without social networks you won’t get the traffic you desire.
12. Your first thought in the morning?
As a night person I’m so unbelievable tired, but it’s a new day with the chance to get new
inspiration, to make new experiences, to meet interesting people, to learn, to broaden your
mind and to grow. So get up!
13. What is your favourite thing to do when not blogging?
I love being with my family and friends, enjoying nature, getting inspired wherever I am,
being creative by taking pictures, decorating and cooking, reading especially psychological
and philosophical literature, listening to music and doing some workout and dancing to
complete the balance between body, mind and soul. I’m very interested in alternative and
traditional chinese medicine. So I try to learn as much as I can about it.
14. For you, what is the world’s most fashionable city?
Cities like Berlin, London, Paris and New York influence the fashion scene, but every
person can do the same. A lot of street styles everywhere are very fashionable and
inspiring. This also can be a little town in nowhere.
Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is
happening. Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. (Chanel)
15. How would you describe fashion in the city where you live?
As every big city it is influenced by fashion from around the world. Most german people
except the very young ones or people who work in fashion business are not adventurous
concerning fashion. They don’t want to attract to much attention. They are more
conservative concerning colors and the mixture of materials and patterns.
16. What message do you hope to send to your readers?
The most important thing is to be yourself no matter what you do. Pretending to be
someone else or copycatting someone means loosing yourself.
Be open-minded about other cultures and opinions. Inspiration can be everywhere.
Knowledge is in every person you meet. Think positive and never stop learning. Passion
and love means life. Real Beauty comes from the inside. Fulfill yourself with love and
knowledge to give it to others.
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