Why a fashion blog?

So… basically the question is…why on earth should I have a fashion blog? What qualifies me and who will care what I have to say? These are the question running through my head as I write this. So I thought if I just started to write things down maybe I would figure it out… or not…I guess I will find out.

Maybe if I tell you a little about me, this will make more sense. Here it is as far as I’ve figured out so far. 

I live just outside Toronto in Canada. I’m 31 and I believe I’m just starting to figure out my personal fashion style. It’s been more of something I’ve grown into then just had. I haven’t always loved fashion. When I was younger (early 20s) I didn’t really care about what was fashionable and if I was was wearing the coolest new thing. I wanted to be comfortable and that was my number one concern. That being said, my family has always been very fashion forward. Both of my grandmothers were always dressed to the nine and loved the fashion industry. My mom was the same. She worked in the publishing world and modeled before taking on her biggest job of raising my sister and I. My sister went to school for fashion and started her own woman’s clothing line in her early 20s. She has a real eye for fashion and it showed in her designs. Her company did very well for 3 seasons. She has taken a hiatus while having her first child and a second on the way. Her love of fashion has always been a big part of her life and still is. I have a cousin who runs a fantastic women’s boutique in Toronto. And another cousin who is a fashion designer that has done very well. She is expanding her company into leather coats which is really cool. So basically… I’ve been around lots of fashion influences in my life.

I’ll be honest here… In my early 20s, I really just cared about the next party. I spent my money on having a good time. That’s what I felt was important, so I spent my money on it. School ended and it was time to get a job. I had to learn to dress a little better. Here is a picture of me in 2010. I know… its not good, but…its better then what I wore in collage let me tell you. I also got married in 2010 to my college girlfriend. It was becoming apparent it was time to grow up.

In 2011, I had reached my highest weight, 210 pounds. I felt gross and its hard to care about what your wearing when you just feel lousy about yourself. I was also drinking more then I care to admit. I decided it was time for a big change. I entered a rehab facility to deal with the drinking. Little did I know this would be the beginning of a brand new me.

I wanted to look and feel better (the way I used to). So I committed to working out, eating well and of course, no booze. Took about 9 months but I lost 65 pounds. I felt great! But none of my clothes fit anymore. It was time to reinvent my style.

My wife and I started to travel more. We spent a lot of time in California. I began to learn a lot about my style while we were there. I loved the way people dressed in LA. They all looked comfortable but well put together at the same time. This seemed like it would work for me. Of course, I still wanted to be comfortable. Here I am in 2011 on a trip to LA.

I learned that I wanted my style to reflect me. This became even more important to me because I was changing so much as a person. I started to read magazines and going online. I wanted to educate myself about the fashion industry. I didn’t want to be a genius or anything, but I wanted to be knowledgeable. I didn’t rush out and buy everything I liked. I just started to figure out what I liked.

For me, there are two item in my daily outfits that I just LOVE. Pants and shoes. I literally can’t get enough. So I started building my wardrobe where I felt most comfortable. Buying pants and shoes. I shopped a lot online. I used flash sites like “hautelook” or “gilt”. I was able to get a little more bang for my buck going this route as well. I find the sites are great, as long as you know your size in the brands you purchase. I was really enjoying how I felt and looked in clothes that fit the new me. Here I am in late 2011

Since 2011, I’ve taken a real interest in fashion. But mostly I’ve learned about my style. Someones person style should reflect who they are as a person. It doesn’t mean you need to have the most expensive and newest things. It means you have to have pieces in your wardrobe that you WANT to wear. Here I am in 2012. I’m enjoying putting together outfits and feeling good about them. (PS I still have the cardigan and i love it)

Jumping ahead a bit. In 2014 my wife got pregnant with our little miracle baby. We decided to spent the winter in LA (4 months). We could work and get away from the cold all at the same time. It was probably the best 4 months of my life. There were so many places and stores to explore and learn. I was soaking it all in. Some days, I just went to department stores and walked around. Never any intention of buying, just looking at what was new. Then I found smaller boutique shops and started learning about lesser known designers. This was where I became obsessed. This was the day i learned Christian Louboutin made men’s shoes and they had a store. I didn’t buy these but it was my first dip in the Louboutin pool. Bottom line I learned to break out of my comfort zone. Check out these leopard slipons, i did buy them.

This past summer I decided to start and Instagram page. I hated posting pictures of new fashion stuff on my personal page because it felt a little like I was bragging or something. So I stared @trendstepper. It was meant to just be a fun way to anonymously post cool fashion pics. I won’t lie… once I started, I all the sudden had an urge to get more followers. But I had no idea how to really work Instagram. So I learned. It was slow. I think it took about a month or so to get 100 followers. But I did.. and my wife even baked me a cake, lol. Always supportive she is.

I’ve been having so much fun on my Instagram page posting pictures, interacting with other fashion lovers, learning about new designers, new styles and so much more.

Instagram has given me a platform to post pictures. But I think I would like to talk a little more about fashion styles and designers. This brings me back full circle to the reason I’m writing this, in case you forgot in my long winded story. Why should I have a fashion blog? I guess it’s because I can… ?? No that’s a bad answer. Let me try again. I think it because I want to write about things that I’m not able to on Instagram. I want to talk about trends, fashion tips, new designer and whatever else comes up. I believe to actually call this a blog people will actually have to read what I write. I’m still not so sure people will… but I can be hopefull. In the meantime, I enjoyed writing my first post. Maybe see each other again?

Kyle