Thanks Lisa P. I know the Vivienne Files is conservative, but I love her concept of coordinating and putting things together. It speaks to my mathematical brain.

Anchie -- A part of my brain does realize blogging is a business, but I must forget it at times. I have recognized that bloggers with "sponsored posts" are indeed pushing one particular brand or retailer. I have either avoided them or had my guard up. Still I can be seduced by bloggers to a much greater degree than magazines. I think it is because bloggers do seem more relatable than a picture in a glossy magazine. I need to make myself be more conscious of the fact that blogging is a business.

I most definitely want to be shown ideas on fashion trends/styling. I love seeing new trends and certainly can use styling advice. Perhaps it is important to be conscious of the goals as well. I can learn.

Muffin -- It really is a lovely bag. I like it a lot and it certainly must amp up your style quotient. YAY you.

Angie, you are amazing.

Thank you for weighing in, Angie. Your descriptions are very helpful. I hope you do not think I was in any way including YLF in my original tirade. As Suz so correctly pointed out it was the empty bag that offended me to the core of my being. That set me off and was the basis for this post.

Through having written this post, I have gleaned a lot of very useful information.

I do understand and respect the need to support ourselves and our families. But I don't think I want to absorb content from outfit bloggers going forward.

This is a personal decision on my part. I am easily influenced and I don't need one more aspect of life pointing me in a direction that might make me feel inadequate.

Thanks for weighing in, JAileen. I'll be joining you on that bench.

Well stated, CJ. I wish I was as eloquent as you.

This is a major aside, but before I found YLF, I owned a MASSIVE wardrobe and yet I could not put outfits together to wear for my life.

After finding YLF, the size of my wardrobe started to decrease and become much more manageable. Had I been reading Outfit Bloggers instead of Fashion Bloggers (YLF and the Vivienne Files), would I have made any progress or would I have continued to be mired down? I personally think I would have continued to spin my wheels and spent untold amounts of money trying to achieve some unattainable fantasy. I remain grateful that I happened to find a Fashion Blogger that focused on teaching me to think for myself.

Thank you for your post sterling. The blogger feature is my least favorite part of YLF because most are not authentic. In addition to YLF the only other blog I follow is the Directrice.

Angie: YES - the difference between fashion and outfit bloggers is the key here. OOTD - doesn't interest me. Writing and thought and education and information does....along with the odd photo to keep it real.

Excellent comments and insights/ thank you. I, too, have wondered about the reality of wearing high heels every day..many outfits can be bland or too basic but add three inch heels and everything looks better! Well, if you're 25... My other pet peeve is labeling sunglasses as a piece of a stylish outfit. Sunglasses are not usually worn inside. Or when it's raining. Or cloudy. Sure, a pair of sunglasses needs to fit the frame of your face but please don't make it part of color for a pulled together style. And thanks to Angie for keeping YLF relatable.

I really enjoy the blogger feature - we get a very clear breakdown of why their incredible looks WORK, on a mix of body types, styles, and budgets. I enjoy the inspiration as well as the practical information about how an outfit was created.

I also admire the confidence and zeal with which style bloggers (and fashion bloggers, too!) approach their looks. I know it takes a lot of work to look polished and to share your personal work in front of a vocal internet audience, all while juggling the pressure to publish lots of content and to keep it fresh.

Plus, I don't mind a little fantasy and aspirational browsing! I have had one of those bags in an online shopping cart for this ENTIRE summer, but haven't pulled the trigger because I know it's highly impractical for my own needs.

What interesting thoughts and responses.l read a Lot of fashion bloggers as I enjoy it but I like to think that I m quite savvy about their motivations.Here in the uk it’s the law that they declare whether or not they are a sponsored post so it’s your choice whether or not to read them,l don’t know if it’s so transparent in the states.l have always assumed that they put the outfit together for the post it never occurred to me that that was how they went about their daily business,it’s like a modelling shoot really.l m really sorry if you feel that you ve been duped sterling,that is not a nice way to feel but maybe it says good things about your character ie you are not cynical,you accept people at face value and you are trusting ,all good ways to be.

Thank you so much, Avicennia. The blogger feature is my least favorite part of YLF. I just never realized why they were my least favorite part. Today's post drove home the fact that they are disingenuous and inauthentic. It just took me longer to comprehend that than you did.

I am making a list of blogs mentioned on this post. I will certainly check out the Directrice. Thank you so much.

Hi Canada. I love your Country and hope to visit it some day soon. Your comments about sunglasses make so much sense they made me laugh. Isn't it amazing how we all have our own pet peeves. I doubt I would have thought too deeply about today's post IF she didn't feature a bag that offended my soul. (And yet I liked the bag itself)!!!!

I'm glad you do enjoy the blog features, JuniperGreen. It is important that YLF appeal to a broad audience. The fact that I don't care for them does not in any way detract from their importance to others. My objection is how easily I am influenced to buy items that do not fit in with my personal wardrobe plan. Knowing that this is a personal weakness, I can adjust my viewing practices.

Eh, the empty bag doesn't bother me much. I'm not a fashion blogger, and I've done it for my YLF WIWs; I'll grab the bag, take a photo, and then put all my crap into it. Whatever.

Also, to me a fashion blogger photo shoot is obviously not real life and I don't think it's pretending to be? I mean, you obviously have to plan to go out with your photographer and/or tripod, shoot photos, etc. And for some of them, it is literally their job to do that. I guess what I'm saying is that I don't think of it in the same way as seeing people on the street wearing interesting outfits, or things like that. It's more like looking at a fashion magazine.

To get really meta for a second, I think the act of taking a photo kind of takes it out of the realm of real life and into the realm of performance art. Even in the sense of my snapping a WIW photo in my mirror, because the instant I'm doing that, I'm doing it for an audience, however small. There's nothing wrong with that though.

THANK YOU, Cardiff Girl. I do accept everyone at face value. It is a both a blessing and a curse. Regardless, I would not change because I do not want to become angry or cynical or bitter.

I am no longer feeling duped. The thoughtful comments on the Forum have a way of bringing me back to center. I am educated and can see both sides of the situation. You are very kind.

Nope Diana. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it. I guess I just needed a moment to vent about the empty bag. My moment has passed.

Hmm, I think I'm the opposite of everyone on this thread. I enjoy looking at pictures of bloggers but don't want to read anything. I just don't have time so I like to skim pictures. I always figured the outfits most bloggers wear weren't for actual real life. I look at them for inspiration and what's trendy - sort of like Angie does with fashion shows. Right now I've gotten out of the habit and only read Angie's blog daily.

I guess I never thought about whether the blogs I check out are "real" or not. I know if there is constant selling I am turned off and stop following, but the idea that they may not be actually wearing the outfit all day doesn't bother me. I agree that some of the seasonally confused are annoying, because I am looking for inspiration and can't see past the confusion.

The Mormon article is interesting. I am generally not a fan of group generalizations, but can't help thinking that these poor girls must be very confused between modesty and looking good.

I really like the blogger feature on YLF, too, perhaps because I don't regularly look at outfit blogs elsewhere, but mostly because Inge picks so well. She selects a real variety of women -- different ages, from different countries, different body types, etc. I love that aspect. Even if the outfits mostly aren't "real" you do get an international flavour. And most of the outfits and bloggers that Inge features do feel more real than the typical outfit blogger. Including today's. It was only the bag that stood out as, well, impractical. (I always thought if I got one of those, I'd put a little sack inside for my things. But I need a bigger bag, so have not been tempted.)

I miss Angie's outfits, and would love a return of those (no pressure, Angie -- I know it's impossible now!) , but I also love the idea of featuring others, because it emphasizes what Angie said -- YLF is about us, our community, and about the variety and the richness that offers. Even if some element or another seems impossible for me to replicate, the outfits do sometimes give me ideas.

I don't really look at outfit bloggers either, i prefer the fashion blogs that are more instructive. My attitude with the fashion bloggers is to use them as inspiration (often for remixing my own pieces), not duplication!

I have great empathy with Sterling, as I have a great love of clothes and fashion, but for years had no confidence in what I wore. I felt very fortunate that the internet suddenly began providing me with thousands of outfits I could successfully copy! For many years I followed a dozen bloggers for this very reason - I liked their style, their figure/age echoed mine, and they gave me excellent ideas and models for wrangling my closet. Or I just thought they were delightful, see: The Directrice and No Fear of Fashion and Ephemera . But these were bloggers who weren't making a living from their blog. When it is their profession, they MUST monetize their look. Wardrobe Oxygen is entirely transparent about the process. Allie is an influencer and deserves compensation for her work.

The in-your-face empty purse cracks me up, though. How hard would it have been to throw your phone and wallet in there? Although I suppose it would expose how COMPLETELY IMPRACTICAL that bag is.

t's interesting how many perspectives there are! I do remember when regular old for-fun bloggers started snapping pictures of their outfits. Before smart phones, even. It was simply to document what they were wearing, and to share with whoever happened to be interested, like our WIW's.

The thing is, as Forever Amber has discussed, outfit/fashion blogging has changed immensely since then, and not just once but many times.

I'm not as trusting as Sterling by nature, but it still took me a very, very long time to realize that most outfit/fashion bloggers (I didn't even realize there was much of a difference until today) weren't still just taking daily outfit pictures. Sponsorship, monetizing blogs - all things that casual browsers aren't going to realize. I often see them as genuine because back in the day, they were.

What's kept me from feeling pressure to Do As They Do is simply that none of them are like me. No one has a pear shape like mine, with height like mine, combined with an aesthetic remotely like mine. And especially not with a climate like mine! I would scroll outfit after outfit and find maybe one that was sort of interesting, at most. Honestly, it's not relatable at that point, and barely aspirational. For a while I followed Tuppence Ha'penny, since she's very hourglassy and not short, and also likes color; but her style is more vintage-authentic than I want to wear daily. (She also stopped blogging for several years.) I've stuck with Forever Amber because her blog is all-around interesting (and funny!) and she consistently loves color and full skirts. (This also explains why I was, and still am, SO! EXCITED! to find the Duchess of Cambridge as a style icon.)

Me too, Sara.

“I always figured the outfits most bloggers wear weren't for actual real life. I look at them for inspiration and what's trendy - sort of like Angie does with fashion shows.”

And as far as featured bloggers on YLF, I find seeing an outfit on a blogger instead of a catalogue shoot just another way to represent that inspiration. Angie’s reviews sometimes mention catalogue photos that don’t represent the fabric, color, movement of a garment very well, or where the styling is odd. Bloggers who have high quality photography may do specific styled sessions with several outfits at a time, not photographed on the day they wear them.

Seeing outfits I like on a blogger is just another tool in the style inspiration toolbox even if I might choose different pieces or am sized out of the exact items they wear.

I have just learned so much....

Ginger -- The Duchess of Cambridge is a favorite of mine as well. I love everything about her ... from her wardrobe to her adorable children. So you have never felt a "pressure" to emulate any of the bloggers? I sometimes feel very subtle pressures that create a need to buy different moisturizers or a new hat or a different nail color. When I recognize those pressures for what they are, I'm fine. It is when I don't recognize them that I get myself into trouble. This is post all about me enhancing my awareness.

Hi Roberta -- When the Heavens opened up and I could view as much fashion content as possible, I was beyond thrilled. I devoured every single website I could find. I am familiar with Wardrobe Oxygen and you are right, Allie is delightful. However, as Ginger so correctly points out, blogging has changed immensely since I first started reading websites. And that's fine with me. But those types of blogs no longer meet my needs and recognizing that I deleted those bookmarks.

I agree, SunTiger. I want to be instructed. I want to learn. I want to revel in how brilliant everyone around me is. Rarely has an outfit blogger inspired me to copy, but they have inspired me to buy. [I hope I am not confusing my terminology in these comments].

As always, well spoken, Suz.

You are not alone, Sara, I'm sure a lot of us view outfits and just don't have the time to read the blog itself. It is eye candy.

It is a degree of subtleness, Robin. Some outfit bloggers are SO not subtle, I can easily identify them. It is when the blogger is more subtle that I begin to think that they are just like me and pay ever so much more attention to them. I haven't had time to read the Mormon article just yet, but I will later this evening. I'll keep your comment in mind as I read the article.

Hi Kari -- I guess was railing against the fact that I am a bit more naive than most. When it dawned on me this morning, I felt a bit betrayed. I'm over that now and I do see the value in Outfit Bloggers if you like them and can use them to your advantage.

YAY RunCarla. ME too. I always learn so much from YLF.

I'd love to see some , um, different bloggers featured here. I can't find the words to describe what I want, but almost none of the ones I see are inspirations to me. I realize they are chosen to represent what appeals to the majority and to the widest range of readers, but I'd love to see someone wearing more classic high-fashion, (is that even a term anymore?) or minimalist /chic looks , vintage, avant garde , Having Inge articulate why an outfit works is so beneficial, and she does it so well - I hope she will consider branching out . I supposed I feel out in left field a lot of the time in terms of feeling represented here.

I started a fashion blog at the end of June. The outfits I photograph are outfits I wear. Sometimes I will shoot a photograph of an outfit with an empty bag b/c I haven't switched over, yet, and it's just easier--who cares if I actually have my stuff in it for a photo? Also, I will take photographs for a couple of posts at once since I'm in makeup, my hair's done, the camera is set up and the sun is in the right spot. (I take my own photos with a self-timer.) . I have not monetized my blog, but I would like to add "shop this post" soon. So far my posts have a how-to-put-together this look angle. It can take me 2-4 hours to put together a post, so if I were to make a few pennies per click to a retail website I wouldn't consider that duping anyone. Below is a photo I took with the same style of purse, in which you can see a tissue at the bottom right--my daughter really teased me about it.

Fascinating discussion, Sterling. I enjoy blogs for mature (?) women like Susan B.'s Une Femme d'un certain age. She is very upfront about products she earns money on and gifts, and this doesn't bother me. A Well-Styled Life is another one. Susan is petite and I am tall, but I admire the consistency of her taste, although it isn't exactly mine. I've bought a few things she's suggested--shoes mainly. There are others I check in on daily--Corporette is one.

It wasn't until I read this post, Sterling, that I seldom look at younger women's blogs and the kind you are talking about. Just doesn't have much to do with my life. I was always a big reader of fashion magazines, although most feature clothes that don't fit my California life. I do remember being excited as a teen when my Mom bought me a winter coat that had been featured in Seventeen.

Thanks for the link, La Pedestrienne. I grew up in Salt Lake in the Mormon culture--the article is a bit superficial, but wearing the right clothes and makeup was important even back in the 50s. It may have gotten worse now. (Yikes, another class reunion coming up--I'd better start planning what to wear.)

Sterling, I'll wager that blogger's real bag is probably a large sack slumped on the ground by a tree outside the frame.

The only other blog I follow besides YLF is the Directrice's. She is charming, witty, literate, has great cats, which sometimes make an appearance on the blog, and a wonderful quirky style, which she tames, but not abolishes, for her business life as a lawyer in my city. Our lives and our clothing styles are completely different, but I totally enjoy her blog. She, like Angie, is great at breaking down and explaining her outfit, and why it works. I am also grateful to the Directrice, because I found my tailor through her.

Angie spoiled me forever with her fashion blog, and that is the model I want to follow. I am still amazed and humbled by the amount of effort she puts into this blog, and her generous advice. I have greatly benefited from that advice and the advice of the forum members. She has created a wonderful space on the web for those of us who enjoy fashion.

Outfit bloggers have little appeal for me, but I do appreciate the greater diversity in body shape and in age that we see among outfit bloggers. That was certainly not the case in the fashion magazines I used to read.

I’m at the airport and boarding soon, so excuse my brevity.

Thank you for the kind words about YLF. Elizabeth P, CJ, Kate, Christina and others.

Sterling, this is a good discussion. Informative as always! All successful outfit/fashion bloggers are of value to someone. You just have to find the right fit for you and your needs. I like that you are finding the right fit.

Big thank you to Suz, Kari, Ginger and Diana for your very balanced perspectives. Appreciate it more than you know.

Remember that at the end of the day, bloggers and celebrities are people too. They have real feelings like you and me, and are just trying to do their bit in life. It looks easy and glam - but it isn’t. It’s hard work, tough, and often with little in return.