Interview with a Creative Muse: Abby Ingwersen from Lace & Lilacs
In the next instalment of our Interview with a Creative Muse series, we've spoken to the multi-talented Abby Ingwersen from blog Lace and Lilacs.
When the 17-year-old isn't writing for her blog, she is also capturing images for her photography business, assisting with design, and running a podcast (among many other things!)
We hope you find her answers below as inspirational and insightful as we did!
Q: When did your passion for both photography and writing first blossom?
A: I suppose my love for writing came about first… I can’t seem to pinpoint the specific age when I began journaling and storytelling; I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. When I was younger I scrawled dozens and dozens of half-finished fairytales and fictional stories into various long forgotten composition books. Eventually I lost interest in creating make-believe worlds, and became obsessed with detailing my day-to-day life and thoughts in lovely diaries with patterned or embossed covers. After ‘misplacing’ a few of these journals, however, I realized that blogging would be a permanent way to record my feelings and ideas, and launched Lace & Lilacs as an outlet of sorts.
Photography, on the other hand, is a far more recent - and far greater - love of mine. While I do enjoy writing, there is something oh-so-magical about pictures, and capturing precious moments on camera. I began shooting simply to showcase the travel destinations, recipes, etc. that I was documenting through writing on my blog. As time passed, the photography aspect of Lace & Lilacs started to appeal to me more than the writing component, and I recently decided to pursue the art form professionally.
Q: When did you begin your website, Lace & Lilacs, and what inspired you to do so?
A: I created Lace & Lilacs when I was fourteen, as a baking blog, specifically (and oddly enough). At the time I was reading a number of baking websites religiously, and thought I might just give that particular genre a go myself. I’d yet to discover my love for photography at this point, and was eagerly dipping my toes into a little bit of this and that - baking and blogging, obviously included, among other things.
It wasn’t long before I branched out into travel blogging, and within a few months, lifestyle writing and photography in general. Launching Lace & Lilacs was truly a spur-of-the-moment decision that may just pave the way to a future career. I couldn’t be more pleased with how everything has turned out.
Q: How would you describe yourself in just 3 words?
A: Determined. Pensive. Sincere.
Q: We understand you also have a Lace & Lilacs podcast - How exciting! Can you please tell us a little more about this?
A: Ooh, why yes, I do have a podcast! My wonderful new British/Australian friend Lucy-Claire and I launched the Lace & Lilacs podcast just several weeks ago. In each weekly installment we discuss a unique topic for about half an hour, and share a little bit of everything and anything lovely with our listeners. Though our first couple of episodes focused on primarily blogging, we’re quite excited to record shows on style, beauty, and travel over the coming months.
Q: What does an average day in the life of Abby look like?
A: At the moment I’m preparing to move abroad for college, so life has been fairly hectic and lacking in routine. I personally dislike this, as I generally thrive on routine, but here is what most days are like:
In the mornings I spend a great deal of time on my laptop, writing, editing photographs, responding to e-mails, collecting inspirational photographs on Pinterest, and commenting on the various blogs I read regularly. After all that screen time, I usually take a walk around my neighborhood. I’m a Southern Californian and have been all my life, so will occasionally trek to the seashore or pier near my home. Summer afternoons consist of ice cold soft drinks, Netflix, outings to the beach side theatre, or trips to outdoor shopping malls with family or friends. I write a great deal throughout the summer, too, since I detest shooting in the sweltering weather. I prefer fall and winter over spring and summer, by far.
Q: Lastly, what do you hope to achieve with your work in the not-too-distant future; Do you have any exciting, upcoming plans that you would like to share with us?
A: Oh, I do have an upcoming event to share - I am moving to Paris, France in a few weeks to begin attending a four year art college. I’ll be studying for a photography degree, of course! I am so very fortunate to have this opportunity, and am anxious to arrive in the stunning city and begin photographing everything in sight. At the moment, however, I do not speak French, which makes me immensely nervous, but my Spanish is decent, and I have been meeting weekly with a French tutor for several months now. Wish me luck, lovelies!As far as Lace & Lilacs is concerned, I’ve recently begun sharing favorite outfits of mine, and will continue to do so in the future. Readers can also expect many Paris-related posts (hurrah!), along with new podcast episodes each week.
If you are interested in contacting me, feel free to! I absolutely love hearing from readers and listeners alike. Shoot me a message at abbyj199713@yahoo.com, follow me on Instagram (@lacelilacblog) or Pinterest (@lacelilacblog), maybe even subscribe to The Lace & Lilacs Podcast via iTunes?
To the wonderful folks at Whim - Thank you so much for having me! xoxo
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We want to thank Abby for taking the time to answer our questions, and we encourage you to check out her blog and photography portfolio. You can also follow Lace & Lilacs on Facebook. Enjoy!