See Myself Online

01 May See Myself Online

There’s been all this talk online that there is too much diversity on TV.

The few scripted dramas that are centered around the lives of brown people are, now, considered #tewmuch.

I like seeing my image on TV.

And it makes me think about the kind of content and images that I crave online.

I have a bookmarked folder full of blogs that reflect my personal goals. The people behind the sites are doing something I aspire to do. And reading good writing makes me a better writer.

It’s kind of like that series on The Cut, ‘I Like This B*tch’s Life.’

When I first started blogging, I wanted to read girls who wrote actual stories about the things that they were wearing. The way Tia Williams would weave beauty products through her stories at Shake Your Beauty. And then, I was obsessed with girls who blogged full-time. Now, I’m always on the hunt for bloggers who use their sites to chronicle their experiences authentically.  I’m so sick of beige, safe sites.

Remember that scene in The Game a looong time ago, when Girl Melanie was making hospital rounds and one of her patients was an older woman, Ruby, who told her, ‘don’t be a side-part under kind of girl?’

Basically telling her, “It’s okay to stand out. Do what feels right to you, not what other people expect from you. Who cares what people thing, DO YOU!”

I’m growing up and the site is too. I guess this is just my long-winded way of saying thank you. I write these things for myself in my bed, on the train, sitting at work, and it’s just nice to see that I’m not alone.

Thank you.

I seem like I’m rambling but in the past month, more people have reached out and told me that my site has improved, so has my writing, and the photos are much better. And it makes me feel really good.

A lot of the things that I’ve written about this year feel a little too personal. Like I’m veering into oversharing territory.  Like I need to put it in my neglected journal and shut up.

But I think that may be part of the problem. A lot of us seem to be suffering silently.

We’re all craving real stories, real images, real people that look like us. I think the success of those shows proves it.

Wearing: Zara Anorak (similar)//Glamorous Crop Top (similar, RIP Piperlime)// J. Brand Jeans// Rebecca Minkoff Hollis Oxfords//Marc by Marc Jacobs Fran Tote// gloMinerals Suede Matte Crayon in Sorbet// Covergirl Intensify Me! Liquid Eyeliner// CoverGirl SuperSizer Mascara

Shop The Look:

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And when I read girls whose sites I’ve bookmarked, it gives me the courage to be who I really am. Whoever that may be at the time.

Online.

Because, right now, my life is not a perfectly-staged Instagram photo.

But when is it ever, really?

In actuality, it’s cluttered, crowded, and confusing. Not unlike Times Square. But as annoying as that stretch of New York is… it can be quite breathtaking. Calming, even, if you just stand still and take it all in.

Points for doing just that with the wings of my eyeliner even (and straight! Thanks, Covergirl!).

p.s You know what I recently started adding to my bookmarked blogs folder? Working women (though, mostly in fashion) who maintain their own social presence outside of their work life. Tell me! Who do you like to read online?

Photos by Yasmein James