Simon Sinek is an author, motivational speaker and leadership guru. His interview on the dangers of social media addiction amongst millennials is an eye opening and very informative video for our generation. He explains how  social media and mobile phone use releases the same chemicals in the brain as smoking, drinking and gambling; therefore showing that it is in its own right an addiction. He goes on to explain the effects this will have on us as people throughout our lives.

From a personal perspective I definitely think that social media is becoming more and more dangerous and addictive every day. I have often felt the need to aimlessly check my phone over and over again, clicking through all my favourite apps and scrolling away time. It is a distraction from every other aspect of our daily lives from work to personal. It impacts EVERYTHING. Relationships, self confidence, happiness, the list goes on.

Growing up in the world of social media isn’t easy, from the Ask.fm days where people would send in anonymous questions to now the age of Instagram, one thing hasn’t changed. We are constantly looking for approval from others. Whether it be a compliment in our inbox, a like on our picture or a match on a dating site from a random stranger, we always seek to be liked (literally and digitally). Constantly comparing ourselves to others, perfect photoshopped models or the youtuber with the perfect life. perfect. perfect. perfect. We all know its fake, no one is perfect, yet we still believe we are less than others because social media makes us think it.

As a generation we have been raised in the age of growing social media platforms and it has always been a part of the way we socialise and communicate. From secondary school, the majority of friendships and relationships have been formed through snapchat, facebook and instagram. The world at our fingertips at such a young fragile age is definitely always a good thing. We have been exposed to things we shouldn’t be seeing, shouldn’t be knowing, yet from this knowledge stems an understanding of the world.

Its not all bad of course, there are positives that we all know and like convince ourselves they outweigh the negatives. But in reality, we all know deep down that social media seriously harms our mental health.

Margaret Zhang is a photographer, director, writer and stylist, born in Australia. She created her website in 2009 and since then has established herself and worked with many big name brands including YEEZY, Louis Vuitton, Swarovski, and Gucci. Zhang focuses greatly on travel, style, motion and has recently ventured into videography where she created her most personal project, a short film titled “Theres No Space Left in C# Minor.” This project explores her first great love, the piano, and to express exactly how she sees sound around her. I personally love this project as it is very personal to her and beautifully directed to evoke emotion and passion from the viewer.

Margaret Zhang has both a Bachelor commerce and law which allows her to understand the business of the industry and gives her an advantage as an emerging blogger, consultant and online marketeer. This really inspires me as it shows that social media and blogging can be a viable and fruitful career; I think the way she conducts herself and her business opportunities is very savvy and motivating.

She writes about her personal experiences within her work and home life, showing an interesting insight into the industry. I personally love the style of her blog and her instagram; she uses bright block colours and all her pictures work cohesively together and juxtapose yet complement each other. Furthermore, I think the way she articulates and writes her thoughts and opinions into blog posts is very inspiring and her sophisticated style of writing is what aim to be in the future.

I think her style is very edgy and unique which makes her very interesting as she doesn’t follow mainstream trends. I love how she combines her Australian culture with her Chinese family background. Her outfits have hints of both cultures and traditions that creates a perfect complementary contrast.

 

Renting clothes is predicted to be more popular than buying them within the next 10 years. I personally know that every time I have an event coming up or a big night out planned, the temptation to buy a new outfit starts creeping in. Being a 19 year old uni student who goes out regularly this is not a viable option for me anymore, buying a new outfit every week and then never or rarely wearing it again seems unreasonable and unnecesary. Therefore, the option of renting garments for a short time period would be perfect; saving money and having an array of new outfit pictures for instagram… What more could you want?

Of course there are still certain pieces I would prefer to own such as jeans, shoes, and jumpers, but for the occasional bodysuit or dress I would definitely consider renting to save money and wardrobe space. Alternatively, I would love the opportunity to rent out luxury and high end pieces such as designer handbags and accessories. At this point in my life owning a designer bag is not an option for me when I have rent to pay and a student lifestyle to uphold, therefore a the possibility of renting would be perfect to give me the opportunity to still have the high end pieces that I want for special events without breaking the bank. I think a lot of other people in similar positions to me would also appreciate the chance to explore new brands that they usually wouldn’t be able to afford.

However, high end designers may not agree with rental as they like to keep their brand exclusive and don’t want to appeal to the mass market. Therefore, renting would allow more people to easily access their products which might negatively effect the exclusivity and special experience of owning one of their luxury pieces.

I personally, definitely think that renting is the future for fashion, it doesn’t have to replace buying but merely compliment it giving consumers the best of both worlds.

 

 

 

 

As a consumer I am very self-assured, I know what I like and what I don’t like. I like to shop both online and in store as I think they offer different benefits. Primarily I buy online from affordable sites such as Misguided and PrettyLittleThing for convenience and because they have all the current trends instantly. I enjoy the fast delivery and the thrill of waiting for a new package to arrive every day! Like everything though, the virtual method has its downs too, finding the right sizes can be difficult and returning items is annoying, especially if like me, you live in a small remote town in Devon!

However, I do also love to shop in store to get the experience of trying on clothes and seeing how they fit, also saving money on delivery costs is always a bonus. I like to be able to feel the quality of the fabrics and see the true representation of the garment, rather than having it modelled by a perfect 6foot goddess online. Shopping has always been a fun activity for me, ever since I was young girl my mum would take me to nearest city for a big day out and i would save all of my pocket money for weeks on end. We still regularly have our shopping trips now and the only thing that has changed is I drive us now not her!

As much as I love shopping in store it also has it’s negatives, for example during sale season, big name brands become more like jumble sales and sifting through the junk to find a good deal is hardly worth the energy. My pet peeve is falling in love with a piece and then not being able to find your size amongst the sales chaos.

Currently, I love the neon trend, especially bright lime green paired with an all black outfit. I like to stand out from the crowd but without looking like I am trying too hard to be unique. For me fashion is about looking as put together as possible with minimum effort. I love oversized hoodies and puffer coats especially in this weather!

I wanted to start this blog with a quick fact file about me, i thought this would be the easiest way to get to know me. Hope you enjoy!

Name: Georgia Langman.

Age: 19. Born September 27th 1999.

Location: Born and raised in Devon but recently moved to Cardiff.

Interests: I have always been interested in fashion, design, and creativity. I also am greatly interested in Spanish culture as I studied the language in detail during secondary school and even took part in a Spanish Exchange programme. I am a keen foodie and love trying new restaurants, (especially the desserts).

Education: Currently studying Fashion Marketing and Retail Design at USW in Cardiff.

Childhood: I had the best childhood, it was just my parents and my older brother and I, we went on a family holiday every summer and did all the typical things like visits to Disneyland, and annual trips to Manchester so my brother and dad could watch Manchester United play football whilst me and my mum went shopping. My childhood memories are all positive and I am very grateful for that.

Likes: Cats, all animals in general, good food, Christmas, faux fur, going out, TV, shopping, social media.

Dislikes: Fish, rude people, real fur, being late, TOWIE, loud eaters, coffee, overpricing, being patronised.

Life update: I have recently moved to Cardiff to study fashion marketing and retail design at university which is what I have wanted to do since I was a child. Moving away from Devon was a big change for me as it is a safe bubble in the country side. All my family live in a small town called Kingsbridge and leaving them was the hardest part (especially saying goodbye to my 2 cats), however, fashion is what I want to do for my career so I know this was the right decision for me.

Personal Style: I would describe my personal style as feminine yet edgy, casual but put together and most importantly comfortable and confident. I like to stand out and have different, unique clothing pieces without looking like I’m trying too hard.

My Blog: I want this blog to be a positive, style influenced page where my readers can come along with me on my new independent living, university journey.