Finding your Personal Style in the Chaos of Social Media

Social media is a very interesting world. In 2014 when I graduated from college, it was only really Instagram that reigned supreme. But even so, there were no stories, no reels, and no photo dumps. So I really had the opportunity to search for and discover my personal sense of style, and make many mistakes (it happens), without being overly influenced by my peers. Let me start from the beginning....

Growing up I had absolutely no idea what my personal style was. I went to a private school and wore a uniform from preschool to 12th grade, so it wasn’t until college that I finally started experimenting with fashion. The only brands my bank account could afford in the little town of Ready, Pennsylvania where my college was were Wet Seal, Boscovs, and of course my favorite, T.J.Maxx. I'd very very rarely get an uber special piece, like a Betsey Johnson dress from my parents for a special occasion, and even then most were purchased through eBay- shout out to eBay for making fashion girlies on a budgets' dreams come true.

Anywhoooo, as I played around, made mistakes, and worked on finding what I truly liked, what looked good on me, and most importantly, what made me feel good, I was able to do so 1. without the whole world watching and 2. without seeing videos day in and day out about trends, the latest hot item, and a bunch of people all wearing the same thing.

Has social media ruined personal style???????

MAYBE?

I DON'T KNOW.

We now live in a world where every single day we wake up, open our phones, and can watch videos for hours of hauls, get ready with mes, and stunningly beautiful women attending the same events and - maybe all wearing the same thing. So it's really hard to be unique, be an individual in a world full of carbon copies. By carbon copies I mean, everyone wearing the same thing, doing their hair the same, even posting the same videos. It’s all a bit exhausting, isn’t it? My heart hurts a little for the next generation of fashion hopefuls - I only hope they can be brave enough to be different. To not fit in. To not just wear the latest trend. I always always say, being "cool" is overrated. I don’t want to be cool, I don’t want to be pretty, I want to make you feel something. I want to make you feel confident enough to be yourself, even when the whole world is telling you not to be.

So how do you stay true to yourself? How do you find your style with so much information around you 24/7? Something I always ask myself is, "do I actually like it, or do I only like it because everyone else likes it?" As you move forward with finding your style, you play around, take risks, and you’ll start to learn what you really like. That’s what personal style is, it’s only for you and no one else. If it makes you feel good and it makes sense to you, that’s all that matters.

A long time ago when I first started posting on social media and receiving my first few hate comments, that’s when I realized that my style isn’t for everyone, and that is ok. I repeat not everyone is going to like your style and that is ok. That’s one of the reasons I love fashion so much, because there is no right or wrong. Fashion is subjective, it’s all about opinion, so just because someone doesn’t like my outfit, that doesn’t mean that it’s wrong and just because 20,000 people like another outfit that you don’t, that doesn’t mean that that is right. I guess what I’m trying to get at with this month’s blog post is that to find your own personal style in the age of social media, you need to be resilient. And believe me, you may get lost from time to time, caught up in what’s cool and caught up in what everyone else likes and that is ok, it happens.

This season for example, I’ve seen ballet flats EVERYWHERE - and I’m not mad about it. That’s one trend I can definitely get behind. Comfort meets cute, what could be better? But as is with any trend, I always try my best to put my own unique spin on it. Putting a Caroline touch on it, so it doesn’t just feel like a carbon copy of everyone else. My main point with this is that you can follow trends, just do it in your way, do what feels right, what feels good to you.

I actually just bought three pairs of flats, I’ll share them below, that I am super excited to style in my own way. What have you been wearing, seeing, following, doing this month that makes you feel inspired? As I type this I am simultaneously packing (or avoiding packing) for a super exciting trip. I’ll be away for about two weeks - the longest I’ve gone away since high school. First, I am off to St. Tropez for a work trip - I’ve always wanted to go to St, Tropez and I am going with a brand I love love love, so I know it’ll be a fabulous time. Then right after, I am flying to Italy for a family vacation! We are actually going to Sicily and I am going to meet some of my cousins who live there - so cool!! I can’t believe it. It’ll be a much needed and nice time away from New York and the chaos. Aside from spending time with family and friends, I am really excited to be inspired by a few new cities. To see what the people are wearing there, how they are getting dressed. It’s always one of my favorite things to do, to bring a little something back with me wherever I go. Maybe it’ll be a new way to tuck my shirt, wear a headband - I don’t know, but I’m hoping for something different and something that’ll inspire me.

I’ll be back right in time for Met Gala Monday, you know I couldn’t miss it, and I am attending a few fun events around the Gala. So until then, I’ll be away, but will speak soon!

Shop some of my current obsessions!