An Interview with Clara From luce-dale.com
Sources: luce-dale.com
Claradevi Handriatmadja is an Indonesian fashion blogger who has reached dizzying heights of fame since beginning her blog in 2009.
She states that her blog, luce-dale.com, is her "life journal" and describes herself as an "Indonesian girl who loves vintage fashion and everything whimsical / quirky / dreamy."
Scout around other famous blogs or websites such as Pinterest, Tumblr and Lookbook, and you're sure to stumble across multiple photographs of Clara - the lover of vintage clothing and accessories with a modern twist is the fashion inspiration of many, and she has even caught the attention of publications such as teenVOGUE, Fashlady Magazine, B*Girl Indonesia and Hers Magazine.
The lovely Clara was more than happy to be interviewed for Whim Online Magazine, and you'll find her insights on fashion, vintage, and her blogging career an absolute pleasure to read!
Q: When did you first begin blogging and why?
A: I started blogging by mid 2009 to share my photography projects. Somehow most of my visitors came from the vintage fashion bloggers community in the US, and by becoming their friends I learned to start posting my daily outfit musings... Blogging has been like writing a journal for me, to keep track with my own experiences in the past and to be part of the whole blogging community that continually inspire one another. I think it's lovely and mentally healthy to keep on doing this "sharing-actions" because it fulfills your need to communicate both with yourself and others!
Q: What opportunities has blogging allowed you to achieve so far?
A: I was awarded as the best Indonesian fashion-blog by the official Indonesian Bloggers Community in 2011 and travel to many places for working together with my sponsors. I think those are way beyond my expectation! Most importantly, I meet lots of new people and make friends with either fellow bloggers and readers. To see how people could create such real bonds from virtual-routines might be one of the most amazing experiences, too.
Q: What do you love most about fashion?
A: I love the people, especially. To see how fashion is being taken into human's emotions and turned into pieces of reproduced values/stories is my kind of favorite pleasure. I also love that fashion is an art platform where we can see infinite creativity and limitless possibility. It makes fashion accessible for every kind of person in this universe.
Q: I notice that your style mixes vintage pieces with modern brands such as Pepa Loves, Topshop etc. Do you have any advice on how to mix vintage and modern clothing and accessories?
A: I think the easiest way is to notice what brands carry vintage-fashion characters. I can easily mix any vintage found with Topshop or Pepa Loves, for example, because they are known for their classic and vintage-inspired styles. Brands like Orla Kiely and Dear Creatures, Twenty-Seven Names and even Forever New, they have certain classic styles that we can easily blend with our authentic vintage items!
The second thing to remember is to pick some parts of your wardrobe to be consistently vintage (most of the time). For me it's mostly [a] bag. I can wear anything as long as I mix them with my super granny-looking bag and that's how I got the persistent vintage look. Some other bloggers stick with either the clothes part, shoes part, or hairstyles part. By keeping those parts as vintage as possible, you can match them with any modern themes and you'd still get the strong vintage vibe!
Q: Describe an average day in the life of Clara...
A: My days are started with a cup of hot tea, fresh milk, or any sweet drink. Then I spend my time dealing with my projects - it can be writing scripts for movie projects, sketching clothes pattern for my soon-to-launch vintage-inspired fashion brand, making flower-embellished accessories for Inspired By Luce, reading books or going out for coffeeshop-hunts with my friends. The evening will be spent for my ballet and French class, or movie and music hangouts (I have a band) on weekends! In between, I take my outfit pictures and post them on the blog :)