Bryan and I
Bryan and Aspasia (Marie Claire’s editor) leading the workshop
Talya and I
Thrifted denim shirt, Lee Cooper denim mini skirt, thrifted embroidered blazer, necklaces from Mozambique and Mr Price, patent Mary Jane Wedges by Aldo.
This past Friday I attended the exclusive brunch workshop with Bryan from bryanboy.com at Tjing Tjing in Cape Town [yes, I won the competition… thank you Sunglass Hut and Marie Claire]. After some delicious canapés, chocolate éclairs, crumpets, countless strawberries and muesli, about 20 of us pulled up a chair and gathered in a circle and engaged in an intimate question/answer session with Bryan about the bloggersphere.
I try not to do posts with too much writing because I know people don’t like to read and prefer to glance at pretty pictures instead. But if you consider yourself an aspiring blogger, you may find some of the points he made quite valuable.
I found it quite interesting how Bryan’s blog was never intended to be a fashion blog, but rather a travel blog that documented him and his experiences in different places. It just started as a diary. Unintentionally, his over-the-top way of dressing attracted more attention than his destinations did. When I asked him what his take on everyday style is he answered,
“I love the idea of using fashion to be a different character every day. I don’t have a set way of dressing. Last year I often wore heels this high, and now I’m into my sneakers. Fashion has a way of bringing happiness to people, to both those wearing it and those seeing it. I don’t know if you guys have ever seen my huge fox-fur headpiece? I love wearing it down the streets of New York, it definitely makes people smile or be shocked. I think that’s quite a fun joy to bring.”
I love that he touched on how bloggers like myself use their page as a platform to further their careers, whereas others just blog for the sake of blogging, and adopt an air of critical authority. The other day he wrote a really interesting article on traditional fashion reportage versus blogging, called Coffee Runners Are The Future Of Fashion, which sums up a lot of what he said during the workshop. A must-read which can be found here.
If you look at my first picture you may think I was playing “Strangle the Celebrity With Excitement”, but really I wasn’t. Bryan is genuinely an affectionate, friendly and down-to-earth guy who enjoys the “fluff” of the industry but never takes it seriously. So while some may deem him as narcissistic in front of the camera, he’s often really goofing off with whoever is posing next to him. We had a funny-face photo sesh with my camera but those are just too bad to share. I gave him a general wave goodbye and out of his own he came forth with a hug and a “kiss kiss” like old friends. I’m sure he doesn’t even remember my name, but what a lovely chap.
It has been the most physically/mentally/emotionally taxing week so I’m quite behind on posts, but my Eid look posts will be coming soon. Because obviously there was more than one outfit.
xx
