The Story of a Girl

Once upon a time, there was a shy, introverted, fashion ignorant girl. She didn't do anything remotely brave or adventurous and her wardrobe was much more concerned with being comfortable than anything. She wasn't quite sure she'd ever figure the whole girly thing out but secretly she yearned for pretty dresses and princess tiaras and rhinestone jewelry.

On day, she discovered a fabulous new world on the internet. Pretty girls wearing pretty clothes from by gone eras. She admired their outfits. She daydreamed about their hats. She wondered if she could ever get her hair like that. She stood in the makeup aisle pondering red lipstick shades but never quite mustering the courage to pick a shade. She wanted to be like them but knew she couldn't. They were fabulous in some way that she could never be.

Then it happened. This girl found The Blogger. The Blogger was fabulous just like the other girls she had seen but The Blogger was real in a way that resonated in her soul. Maybe The Blogger's nose was too small or her ears a bit too big. Maybe her hair was a bit too wild or her laugh was a bit too loud to be called pretty. Whatever it was, The Blogger wasn't afraid to show her less than perfect side on the internet.

And the girl looked at The Blogger and saw herself. She began to think, maybe I can be like The Blogger. She bought that tube of red lipstick and she wore it....outside of the house! She started wearing skirts more often and tried to figure out how to get a good night's rest with a head full of pin curls. And one day, she even decided to start her own blog.

This girl knew that she wasn't as great as all of the other bloggers out there but she had fun and was even starting to get a few followers. She continued on this way for a while and each day she grew braver, wearing more fabulous dress, winging her eyeliner out more and more and trying more complex hairstyles. And so life went on until, one day, something changed.

A reader commented on her blog telling her how inspiring she was and that the reader had even started on her own vintage fashion journey. And that's when she realized something amazing. She had become The Blogger, not the one who had inspired her long ago but a new blogger who inspired people just like she had been inspired. She, who had been the most ordinary of girls, had become something she'd never thought she'd be, someone who could ignite a passion for vintage in others and give them the courage to step out of their box and become a different girl.

Instead of being stunned by this new found position, she felt braver and bolder. She tried even more different and new things because she wanted to show others that they could do them too. After all, she had! And just look at where she started out!

If you are reading this blog, parts of this story are probably familiar to you. It's all familiar to me because this is my story as well as the story of many, many bloggers out there. Some of us always had this innate sense of style and love of old things but many of us started out just as ordinary girls.

Maybe you are that girl at the beginning of the story, too scared and shy to try something new. Maybe you've found your The Blogger and are just starting to try wearing vintage. (Mine was the lovely Casey.) Maybe you've been wearing vintage for a while and considering starting a blog. Where ever you are, I have a message for you.

You can do it.

After all, I did it. And I was a shy girl who lived in jeans, wore almost no makeup and never could figure out what to do with her hair.