“Chic & Nice with a Bit of African Spice!”

“Chic & Nice with a Bit of African Spice!”

Hey fashionistas!! I am excited about this post because I will be  introducing you to a new blogger friend of mine Joy of Afrostylicity as well as discuss how we should get to know your fellow local bloggers!  Those of you who are bloggers know how good it feels to have a blogger friend to connect with and meet up with the blogging community from time to time! I have made it a goal to meet up with different bloggers locally to really get to know my fellow blogger and not just know them from a viritual standpoint like through Instagram. So Joy and I decided to meet up for a fun shoot with the fabulous photographer Lusias Manning of Luisas Secret! I met Joy at a blogger meetup a few months back! I immediately loved her fashion style and as I got to know her and I knew I definitely wanted to connect and keep in touch! We have the same sense of style and both love COLOR! You have to check out her Instagram feed and you will see what I mean!  She will also be one of the influencers at StyleCon Dallas September 23rd with me! So if you are going you will be able to meet her in person!

Making New Friends in the Blogging Community

We made it a goal to be sure we meet up soon after that meetup and do a fun shoot and so VOILA! Here we are! We collaborated with Melange Mode who makes beautiful African print pieces that are major showstoppers-ruffles, capes, jumpsuits, you name it! For a DISCOUNT use my code FFFIERCE! The quality of the material is great the color in person is very vibrant – just how I like it! We love ruffles and color and we both have an African background so we thought this will be the perfect shoot! We did our shoot at the Crescent Hotel and it was perfect! We talked about blogging, being a blogger in Dallas, Reward Style, shared our successes and learning curves and just really listened to each other. I actually didnt know how much we had in common! It is so needed when you a blogger – to talk “blog”.  Only another blogger can understand the excitement of the phrase “I got a collab!” What heck is collab? my non blogger friends say and then they are like Oh that’s nice and not as enthusiastic as a blogger would be because it came be so hard being a small or medium size blogger. We need to be able to express ourselves in blogger terminology from time to time. 

I feel that it is important to try to meet with  your blogging community at least once a month if your schedule allows it. yes we all are in some sort of social media group where we chat but face to face conversation is so much better and meaningful. So without further adieu.. Let’s get to know a little bit about Joy!

Meet Joy of Afrostylicity

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1. How long have you been a blogger? What drove you to blogging? What niche of blogging do you subscribe to?

I created Afrostylicity in May 2016, so a little over 14 months. I’ve always loved expressing myself through writing and sharing my style looks via images. Blogging was therefore a seamless undertaking through which I could share my style, travel and overall lifestyle tips. I classify myself as a fashion, lifestyle and travel blogger.

2. You have a unique blog name, what is the history behind it?

I am an African, and consider myself an Afropolitan woman, hence the “Afro” part. The “stylicity” part stems from my goal of exuding style at all times.

3. How would you describe your personal style?

What inspires your sense of style? I would say I have a unique sense of style. I love to pair pieces contrasting pieces and create one-of-a-kind looks. Bold prints and vibrant colors are my absolute favorite to style as they make a statement without you uttering a single word.

4. What is your favorite current trend and why?

Ruffles and off-shoulder looks are hands down my favorite trend! What’s not to love? Off-shoulder looks are fun, flirty, and just the right amount of sassy and spicy. Ruffles are attention-grabbing and are guaranteed to make a head-turning statement. A combination of both is a style force to be reckoned with!

There is a sad truth about blogging and that is feeling like you cannot connect with the blogging community. Blogging world can be very competitive and cliquey and it came be hard to really get to know bloggers of all different levels sometimes. The fear of being the next big thing, the fear of sharing tips and giving advice and they end up being bigger than you. I have said it many times and I will say it again…there is enough influencer work go around for everyone to have a cut of it!

Bloggers should be able to freely speak with each other and cheer each other on without jealousies. Bloggers should be able to freely ask other bloggers to meet up for coffee without the fear of being turned down. Bloggers should be able to ask for advice and receive good & honest advice in return that they can actually put them on an action plan not “just have good content & post twice a day”. One thing that tends to happen that I have noticed are bloggers like to stick to their own cliques. Noone wants to widen out. Everyone only sees your follower count vs your content and your personal style. If you don’t meet some people’s standards as far as numbers, you will probably never get to know them. I mean can we all just be FWENDS ?!? Haha Anyone who has gotten to know me knows that I will share what I know. I have received many dms over the past year from bloggers asking for advice and I will share. I don’t mind meeting up from time to time. Just know in general, I have a busy schedule so if I cannot make a meet-up, please don’t take it personal.

I recently read a post on a social media group about cliques in the blogging community in particular Dallas and was surprised of the many comments that people have made about cliques in Dallas. Bloggers who moved from other states who thought where they were from was bad but stated Dallas was by far the worst about being cliquey. Now this post is not make anyone feel bad or discouraged, but I hope it opens up everyone to widen out and be open to meet with other bloggers. Be open to collaborate with others even if your bff blogger friends are not participating or were invited.

Use code FFFIERCE for a discount at Melange Mode

So I hope everyone makes it goal to meet other bloggers in their blogging community and get to know other local bloggers and make a new BB or Blogstie aka Blogger Bestie- I just made that up yal (Hashtag it! LOLOL). It may take some courage for some to come out of their comfort zone and ask but it will be so fun! Keep it simple – coffee & tea is always nice! I am so happy I got to meet up with Afrostylicity and share a little bit about her on the blog.  I hope you reach out to her and get to know her to. She is super sweet, great personality and a fab style and loves to travel too! If you are not already following her, definitely do! You will not be disappointed!

Stay fresh & FIERCELY you while you widen out and meet new people!

P.S. Let’s meet up on Instagram, Facebook , Twitter & Pinterest

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