HELP Please: No More Friday Ensembles - YouLookFab Forum

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Outfits Ensembles Trends Advice

HELP Please: No More Friday Ensembles

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Soooo, Polyvore has closed shop:

https://youlookfab.com/welookf.....is-no-more

They literally did so overnight, and replaced it with SSENSE - a designer shopping site that shows one body type, one model's age group, and one price point. I guess Polyvore was not a profitable business model.

I'm really disappointed. Polyvore allowed me to create a look that expressed diversity in price point, body type, dress code, trend and silhouette - exactly what YLF is about. I've given YLF Friday ensembles for many years using the Polyvore tool, and it was successful. Those days are gone.

I need another style tool - does anyone have suggestions?
I need another Friday blog post subject - any suggestions?

A few things upfront:

YLF is about quality in every sense, so the tool and idea have to be visually beautiful to go on the blog.

We take privacy and our terms of service very seriously so we can't use photos from Pinterest and the like on YLF. It's illegal.

We cannot take fresh photographs of me, clients or other people because we do not have the time to do that anymore.

I was thinking of an outfit formula, with some some sort of visual. Not sure yet.

Thinking caps on please! xo

85 replies

Latest reply was from rebekahphoto

rachylou

Veteran

I love the Friday formula / ensemble posts. Your MOTG formulas are what led me to YLF!

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Rachy, so did most of YLF. Thank you. The Friday Ensembles were heavy traffic posts.

Now what? Hmmmmmm.....

Helena

Veteran

Oh well that just sucks! Like Rachy, it was the MOTG posts that got me into YLF. So sorry to hear this Angie, what a nuisance for you! Thinking cap on for sure!

rachylou

Veteran

I have done a search on Fashion Collage App and gotten some hits... and there’s a site called Finery (but it requires a login, which I imagine defeats the purpose). I guess there are several things to think about in addition to the collage aspect... click-through, linking/sharing rules...

Gaylene

Veteran

Another fan who was drawn in by those MOTG formulas! I printed them off and posted them on my closet door.

I was also a big fan of the posts where you deconstructed an outfit and offered up ideas as to how changing just a few elements could update what would otherwise be a rather ordinary look.

Joy

Veteran

Friday ensembles were usually my favorite posts. Could you take an idea (like yellow and green) and use Finds to illustrate? ( like some of us do if we don't get a photo of an outfit) Could members add photos of their outfits that fit the theme?
Friday could feature an idea that would inspire playing in the closet. It would not need to be a whole ensemble, but could include assessories or a silhouette or proportion work. Friday Fun or Friday Frolic?

texstyle

(website)

Veteran

I found this site, not sure if it would work:
http://fashionmix.com/

rachylou

Veteran

There is PicMonkey, as described here: http://www.mackenziekendall.co.....-tutorial/

I imagine retailers are ok with their images being used without express permission for each one, since that’s how Polyvore worked?

Sisi

Veteran

Oh, I am so sorry. I liked those ensembles. But there are many brilliant technologically-advanced people among the YLF community (not me ). I am sure a solution will come out sooner or later.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Thanks, ladies. I appreciate the ideas.

Textstyle, I will have a look at that tool over the weekend. Closest so far.

rachylou

Veteran

Ok. I fixed that link. I imagine early earthquake warning doesn’t really apply here

MsMary

Veteran

Oh, no! I hope you can find something that will work.

Have you thought about checking out Amazon Echo Look and taking photos of yourself? I've been having fun with it and maybe you could make it work? It's not a huge monetary investment to give it a try...

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Thanks, Rachy. That was hilarious.

Mary, Echo outfits are great for the forum, but the quality isn't good enough for the blog.

Dana

(website)

Veteran

I got the email last night, too! I'm super bummed Polyvore is gone, as I use it for my blog, too. And I was getting so good at making the collages...not sure I'm up for learning another platform, lol! We will miss the Friday ensembles, but Angie, I am certain you'll find something brilliant to replace it!

Rachylou, it was always my understanding that Polyvore was legal. The parameter was that you were supposed to link your collages to Polyvore, so people could potentially buy from the retailer...clearly not profitable. We are allowed to download our already made collages, but I know mine are all stale at this point.

Anonymous

Have you considered hiring a photographer ?

bella

(website)

Veteran

I suggested this before: a kind of a blast from the past feature, where you take an outfit photo from the past, tell us if you still have the items and how to update it today, with perhaps finds. something along those lines would be very interesting to me. but it may not bring as much traffic. at least you can play around with the idea until you find a replacement.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

This would be a stopgap for a short period, Angie, but Gaylene's point makes me think that you could go back to some really great older ensembles and show how to update them. The problem might be the "cover" image could look dated...but not if you used the key new item(s) as the cover and then showed the ensemble.

This would allow you to explore the whole idea of "datedness" in fashion (and maybe the datedness of that concept!) and to talk about proportion, etc. Plus, revive a few of your oldies but goodies.

In the meantime, you could be exploring longer-term alternatives, new software options, etc.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Ha, Bella -- we cross posted!

That's a similar and great idea.

bella

(website)

Veteran

ha, great minds think alike Suz!

Ledonna N.

Veteran

Hey no help but feel kinda sad about polly This is what lead me to be a lurker.

MsMary

Veteran

I think Bella and Suz have a great idea for a stopgap strategy!

Suz

(website)

Veteran

So...another idea, related to Bella's, not easy to articulate...could you do a series of posts on how you decide which older items to keep in your closet and which to let go -- I expect it's like your shopping style, i.e. "organized emotional" -- involving outfit try-ons as well as gut reactions...but I'm really curious about exploring an evolving style.

A lot of us come to YLF under the weird idea that if we can just get our wardrobes "into shape" we will be "set" for life, and one of our first lessons is that no, it doesn't quite work like that, and this is good, not bad! Yet then some of us struggle with concerns about wastefulness and churn. How can each of us achieve a balance that feels personally right?

Jane

Veteran

I wonder if you could do a series of short term features until something permanent emerges. So Suz’s on previous posts and updates, perhaps something on National dress. Goodness the National dress may be a crazy idea. May be have a range of well known people (so representative of shapes and sizes) and then interpreting their wearing of say, statement jewellery, or blue jeans, or leather Moro jackets and then we can see how we can interpret. This may be equally crazy or not at all practical or able to with quality.

Elizabeth P

Veteran

I'm sad to see the end of Friday ensembles, I loved them! It was such a great way to stretch ones imagination. Could the same thing be achieved with finds? The visual may not be as nice, but the premise would remain the same.

I really like Suz's and Bella's idea(s).

Janet

(website)

Veteran

I am sad to see that feature go away too. I also like the idea of a sort of remix/redux feature. Taking an older item or outfit and featuring updated styling options, perhaps. Sort of ties into a Flashback Friday theme, and also encourages those of us who are trying to keep making our wardrobes work for us rather than having constant closet churn.

I'll chime back in if I think of something else too.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Sorry to be brief, ladies - thanks for the suggestions. You are ALL fab.

Lisa p, hiring a photographer will not work for all sorts of reasons. But appreciate the thought.

Bella, Suz, Mary and Janet, - sorry to sound obtuse, but are you talking about my own outfits and the upadates? That makes the post about me, which is not what I want to do. And how do I represent the visual update? Through a collection? I want the posts to be about YOU and YOUR style. Or are you talking about old ensembles and how to update them? I don't think we can feature the old ensembles again actually, but will check. We can't link to the Polyvore site at all anymore.

Elizabeth, I've tried. Can't do the visual effectively with Finds. And the cover page is a problem. Suz is bang on the money.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

I like Flashback Friday. Has a nice ring to it.

Okay. Off to work with a client...

Helena

Veteran

I love the Flashback Friday idea, at least as a stop-gap, as suggested ... after all, a lot of times, the issue is less about needing something brand new, and more about how do we take the things that we like and work for us, and make sure they are current? Such a good idea!

Style Fan

Veteran

I loved Friday ensembles. I wish I could help. I am so computer illiterate. Lots of fabbers here have great ideas.

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