How to not look like a Blogshop Clone
by Amelia Teng, NUS
With the proliferous rise of online shopping websites, otherwise known as blogshops, young girls (and women) are faced with an abundant and colourful array of choice when it comes to shopping for clothes.
Just do a simple search on Blogshoppin', and you'll find a never-ending list of local blogshops, each eager to promote their "brand" and all claiming to be passionate about bringing affordable and trendy ladies' fashion to the masses. Blogshoppin' alone lists a grand total of 3041 blogshops on their website, and this number is unlikely to dwindle any time soon.
I can understand why girls in particular are so drawn to it. After all, one thing leads to another and the next thing you know, you're buying a summer dress because it's so cheap and a similar dress at Topshop costs triple the price. And it's all so fast - click to confirm your purchase via email, a few extra clicks to do an online transfer, and you just wait for the postman to deliver your items to you in a couple of days.
But convenience and affordability cannot be excuses for looking... the same. It's alright when you accidentally wear a dress the same colour as your friend's, but somehow it's harder to let it pass when I see so many garbed in clothing that always in one way or another look so suspiciously familiar. The same prints, colours, cuttings - they're on campus, on public transport, on the streets, in town - they're EVERYWHERE. I keep imagining that I'm seeing the same person too many times in a day, and that I need to get my vision (which is perfect, by the way) double-checked, but now I'm certain: my eyes are telling the truth, and the truth is, simply, too many girls are wearing the same clothes. I'm an occasional online shopper myself, so it would be hypocritical of me to condemn those who do their regular shopping online. But I suspect there are ways to not look like the typical blogshop girl on the street.
I run the risk of sounding discriminatory and unfair, but I'll do it anyway.
First, avoid buying from people who set up websites at the spur of the moment, trying to make a quick buck with mass-produced apparel that they get from City Plaza. It's easy to tell, because if you have some spare time to do a little blogshop surfing, you'll find that numerous 'blogshops' sell the same few pieces of apparel, all jumping on the bandwagon of the supposed 'latest fashion trends', and getting their apparel from the same pool of suppliers. How these 'trends' are conceived, I'm not sure.
Most of the time, these blogshops try to make a profit by selling their items in the $24-$29 range, and usually postage charges of an extra $1.50 fall on the buyer. What makes it worse is that these same items can sometimes be found in Bugis Village or Far East Plaza at lower prices. My take is, don't be too quick to squeal at the inexpensive prices you think you've stumbled upon. Cross-check other blogshops to see if the dress you're eyeing is going to make you look like a replica of all the girls who have already bought the same piece.
Second, if you insist on buying from blogshops, then visit those which don't just talk about their self-manufactured pieces or limited selections, but also offer a unique variety of apparel that will not make you look like you are the latest clone to emerge from our state-of-the-art A*star Lab.
There is a small pool of seasoned blogshops which have achieved success through self-designing their items, excellent customer service, beautifying their pictures, hiring fresh-faced models etc. These are the places that people often flock to regularly to fulfill their shopping needs, and understandably so, because they have put in tremendous effort into not just designing their own apparel, but also building a reputation and brand name that enables them to stand out from the saturated market of blogshops. But don't simply buy their merchandise blindly because they are popular, open to your eyes to the designs, the colours, the prints, the materials, the cutting, and don't be swept into their whirlwind of popularity so fast.
After spending some time blogshop-hopping, here are some outfits and designs I've gathered and placed into two categories: "The ones I don't fancy all that much", and "The ones which I wouldn't mind wearing":
The ones I don't fancy all that much
versus
The ones which I wouldn't mind wearing
I hope you see what I mean. If all else fails, go for solid colours, simple designs, and good quality materials.
Thirdly, online shopping is not restricted to the phenomena of blogshops, so don't confine yourself to 1 single platform/source! Shop online at reputable and affordable brands like Forever21, American Eagle, Gojane, which offer a vast selection of apparel with the most current and voguish fashion trends for both men and women.
I like ASOS, the leading UK retailer of online fashion, which is currently having a final winter clearance with up to 70% off on selected items. What's more - they are offering free international shipping with no minimum spending! What's even better - NUS Extra Cardholders (NUS students studying in the UK are eligible to apply for this card) get 20% off for items across the website. It is true that the prices on these websites will be slightly steeper than what you would normally find in the average blogshop. But you would be paying just a little more for some measure of exclusivity and quality.
If you're concerned about the extra shipping charges, have no fear! Either pool some friends together to make group-purchases and share the shipping costs equally, or simply join a spree, choose your desired items, and let the spree organisers do the work. You can find regular sprees held by reliable organisers on online communities like Sgspree, which are specially created and maintained by moderators, who regulate the community and ensure that the risk of online scams remains low, if not, non-existent.
So go ahead, venture a bit further, explore beyond your comfort zones of online shopping, and you'll find yourself looking less and less like 'that typical blogshop girl'.
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