Are You Being Played By The Fashion Influencer?

Influencer Styling: How does it affect the life of a common man?

Before the whole Influencer trend hit center stage, magazines and television celebrities ruled us all with their stellar looks and fashionable, style-savvy tips for the common man. And now, with the present age it looks like fashion influencers have given us more than we ever required when it comes to dishing out top-notch looks and make-up regimes.

Evidently, India has been affected greatly with the entire trend especially since the time Influencers took to Facebook and Instagram. From their early conservative, traditional-ish looks to more edgy and ‘glam worthy styles, we all have resorted to taking tips from these fashion moguls at some point in our lives. Influencer styling has completely changed our lives because of its effortless methods, easy on-the-go tutorials, step-by-step mini guides to perfect your look and it gets better with more technological advancements. You can basically get the know-how of an influencer’s life with the tap of a button! — But being able to influence for style change and influencing purchase decisions are two different aspects all together. Thus, the question arises are you being played by the fashion influencer?

Style like me , the message influencers put across PIN IT

Do we know our worth?

Certain fashion week attendees wearing an extravagant dress for a casual occasion, or shining head to toe in expensive jewelry may often be overcompensating for a deep-rooted self-doubt of their personality or body image. Here, experimental designs and shapes seen on the runway may start to appear on the streets, in efforts to mask other aspects of their personality or garner attention. Those who wear particularly expensive watches or brands could also be spending beyond their means. This is somewhat akin to a Napoleon Complex, that is when height-based insecurity, financial insecurities force rash spending decisions and flashy purchases.

These insecurities are usually imposed upon us by each other. One’s detractors are often motivated by the same self-doubt they inspire. For example, a lack of expression or passion in someone’s life leads to envy, and therefore to balance out this negative emotion they attempt to discourage or discredit those looking/dressing differently. The fear of being seen as anything different in society will lead to the suppression of empathy — which unfortunately results in the oppression of expression. This is commonly known as psychological projection — the process by which unwanted feelings are projected onto others.

These feelings are major driving factors which influence purchase and styling decisions and can be easily played upon by the influencer?

Confidence is very important PIN IT

Influencer culture takes some of the worst parts of modern life: the importance of physical beauty, competition, consumerism, and monetizes them.

There have always been and will always be people of influence, but social media influencers aren’t the same as their predecessors. They’re typically not artists or public figures or philosophers, though many are very creative. They’re gorgeous people who do gorgeous things. Beautiful people with beautiful problems. They’re what we all wish we were, yet no one can truly attain. It’s easy to be caught up in influencer marketing; external validation is delicious. But the problem is that it’s an influence that’s predicated entirely on external factors. We’re already a youth-obsessed beauty-obsessed culture, and now being professionally liked by the 18–35 year old crowd is a career choice!

They wear, They pose, They sell PIN IT

The New Age Influencer tip we all need: Sustainable Fashion

Eco-fashion or sustainable fashion influencers may have the same goal of advocating responsible fashion, but there are differences in how they work, depending on focus, location, and skills. They would write about eco-fashion alternatives for your wardrobe and present ways to live a life with less impact on the planet, and therefore, more happiness in your everyday life.

Of course, there are influencers that dedicate their platform to showing their audience more sustainability. One of the influencers out there on social media — Emma Ross, actually co-founded #plasticfreeparent which is a social campaign on Instagram encouraging her followers to go plastic free. She shares blog posts in her unique ways to easily incorporate sustainable living into everyday life.

It is, however, hard to expect fashion influencers who make their living by showing their followers the latest trends and how to style them to completely stop their buying habits.

Sustainable fashion brands are becoming more well known. Blogger favorite, Reformation put sustainability at the core of everything they do. They work covetable sustainable, vintage and dead-stock fabrics into every collection reusing and eliminating waste where possible. This is all listed in the product description, so their consumers are educated from the offset. Not only do Reformation recycle 75% of their waste, they also source 100% of their energy from wind power suppliers.

Influencers also promote sustainable fashion PIN IT

Top Influencer styling tips

Here we have the best-known styling tips from the top fashion influencers:

• Drape yourself with layers of jewelry, be it delicate gold chains or just a stack of rings. Don’t be afraid to shine and add a little bling to your ensemble!
• It’s time to get creative in your own closet and mix unusual pieces. Try your athleisure wide leg track pant with a high heel. Or layer your lightweight boho dress over your jeans. Styling is all about constantly rearranging your wardrobe favorites.
• The key to really pulling off an outfit is a showstopping pair of sunglasses. From aviators to the old Hollywood cat eye, bold and bright colored frames are dominating the streets of Instagram.
• Take whatever jacket you’re feeling and drape it over your shoulders. BOOM. That’s it! This is another go-to silhouette when you’re feeling like you need an extra boost of chic to a more basic outfit.
• The streets are hat heavy, and everything from conductor hats to dad hats are being worn to cover up those bad hair days. Hats can really be worn in every season and in every shape.
• To get yourself looking like a style innovator, you have to accessorize — and to accessorize, it requires a drop dead, look-at-me, stunner bag. You can find some gorgeous, one-of-a-kind bags for a really good price if you hunt for them. And it doesn’t have to be expensive!
• The final and most important tip of looking like a fashion influencer is straight up CONFIDENCE! Styling should be based on what you like to wear, and what makes you feel the best in your own skin.

Style according to your body type and comfort PIN IT

From the IKF Desk on Are you being played by the fashion influencer?

To be clear, we don’t think social media in a vacuum is the problem, nor do we place the blame entirely on the people who enter these contracts. We strongly impose on the companies that understand consumerism and the insecurities that they themselves have planted into cultural zeitgeist to make sales. It’s the same aspirational marketing deeply rooted in the assumption of competition and the assumption of scarce resources (even if those resources are attention, love, beauty, or a caring partner) that brands have been doing for decades. Now, it’s sent to us over a medium that theoretically should have supported community, but instead furthers anxieties over comparison and competition.

Influencers have the power to change the world for the better. And we believe with rise of sustainable fashion, more and more ethical influencers would be given a platform to raise their voice on certain present scenarios that affect our lives in a huge way.

Source: https://www.iknockfashion.com/are-you-being-played-by-the-fashion-influencer/