You might have noticed that Dorky Chick in Lipstick has been undergoing some changes. This is assuming you used to read my blog with the old look and also that you have eyes. I know neither, but for those of you just joining me today “Hello, my name is Caroline and this is how my blog looks. Take a seat and spit out your gum.”

Oh wait, I’m not a salty bus driver? Moving on.

Let me tell you about the “rebrand”, or rather, #rebrand. It looks like this:

and

With a little consultation from some of my most cherished gal pals, (one of which is a graphic designer– hey girl thanks again!) I sorted through quite a few versions before I came up with something I thought had all the right junk in all the right places. I wanted lipstick colors without the red Target dart. I wanted something simple to build on that also had a signature detail. I wanted feel like I had a stamp of my voice.

Rebranding my blog was like playing dress up with my website… and we all know how I feel about dress up 🙂

It was more than a visual makeover that I was seeking. I needed to change my “about” section as well, because, frankly, I’m about much more than I led on in the beginning, or certainly than I knew I could be. So here is the short version which is  followed by the long version.  If the question was “why ‘Dorky Chick in Lipstick’?” this is how I would respond.

“Dorky Chick in Lipstick” is a safe place for fashion and laughter to coexist.

It is a living fashion journal that is stripped of anything that comes without personal progress. It celebrates the wannabe. It giggles through the clumsiness of being a twenty-something. It is my diary out loud.

If you are curious, read on. (long version)

“Dorky Chick in Lipstick” is more than a persona. It is an experiment.

It began in early 2013. I had restless fingers, a lot to say, and passion for fashion that I had neglected for more “responsible” things like paying bills and going to college. It was a solid track, but I was losing touch with my favorite art forms: writing and fashion. I needed an outlet. I started a blog.

As I looked at the fashion world to see where I might fit in, I was inspired, but I didn’t see a place for myself. I felt like I was in a lunchroom of fashion bloggers with no seat. I admired them all, but I didn’t quite see taking pictures of myself standing against brick walls in cute clothes or writing how-to’s on being a modern-day Martha Stewart as platforms where I could really speak my mind. I don’t run with a posse of fashion-obsessed women who I could recreate Sex and the City with, nor do I want to scavenge every stinky thrift shop in Portland for a writing prompt. Each blogger seemed so pulled together and clear with their voice and their style. I, on the other hand, was wearing yoga pants, and the only voice that I could hear in my head was making wise cracks and giggling.

I realized what I needed was a safe space: one where I could have both fashion and laughter.

I didn’t want to make $1500 style guides or be a slave to my instagram feed, and I couldn’t help but feel like there were others like me, who felt fashion existed only for those on “the other side”. Then I realized how silly that sounded; it is up to us to decide how we live in our clothes. 

It is okay to wear lipstick and still be totally and impossibly dorky.

“Dorky Chick in Lipstick” is an experiment in demystifying what lies between fashion fabulosity and wherever we think we come from. It isn’t a fancy blog. I am not a photographer, graphic designer, website creator, a professional personality, or professional stylist, but I at least want to give it a try.

So come along. Yoga pants are welcome here. I’m telling the true, living story of a girl who wants to live expressively and laugh much. She loves to be a lady in lipstick, but her insides are giggling and making funny faces.

She is me, and I am welcoming you with flailing arms.

*end*

Cheers, friends! To progress, pink circles, and faking it until we make it.

XO,

C