ChicFiles – Fashion, Culture, Shopping

Hello, fellow fashion-obsessed! I’m Courtney, a native New Yorker, and a lover of all things fashion and arts – Chanel, Alexander McQueen, Rodarte, flea markets, vintage shops, vinyls, used book stores, Marie Antoinette, motorcycles, offbeat New York theatre, dive bars, baroque art…I could go on and on, but basically my loves all amass to a sort of shabby chic way of life, femme but tough. That translates into my personal style, too.

Basically my mission is this: I have been in love with high fashion since I was six (I used to watch New York Fashion Week on television and design my own lines with crayons), but I, like many other recent college grads, have a budget that cries when it sees Proenza Schouler price tags. So, with my blog, Vogue Before Food, I take the high end lines that make fashion what it is and translate the trends to budget-friendly wardrobes. This means I report on sample sales, hot deals, discounts, etc., plus I find affordable lookalikes and alternatives to designer pieces. I also stress the importance of incorporating your own individuality into trendy looks, and I concentrate a lot on the power of vintage! It might sound trite, but I truly believe in the expressive power of fashion – it’s not as superficial as people will make it out to be. It’s an art form!

Currently, I’m a fashion and beauty writer. I write and blog for fashion lines, beauty brands, blogs (like Shoeaholic), and online and print magazines. I’m very lucky, because I get to write for brands and blogs I really love – something I hope continues for a long time!