Chictopia is an online fashion community where anyone can sign up for an account. They call themselves the largest online community that gives everyone a voice in fashion. They have over 100,000 users and are always growing. They are one of the top 4 style sites and have a huge presence in the online fashion community. I'm sure you've seen hundreds of blogs with their Chictopia badge on it. They have several features that I'll quickly explain and I'll tell how how I use Chictopia to my benefit.
Style Gallery is one of my favorite features. They have a gallery of photos of girls whose photos have been rated "chic" by members. I use this daily for inspiration. They filter the photos by making members vote photos "chic" or not… so that way you don't have to sift through a bunch of mediocre, dark, blurry, fuzzy, photos. This gallery gives you the best of what is on Chictopia so you can be inspired. You can browse by clothing type, colors, trends, everything. It's so helpful if you want to style up an olive green article of clothing… you can click on the color and find hundreds of outfits styling up an item that is olive green. I love that feature.
Rewards are items Chictopia posts from sponsors! You can earn chic points by doing several things: uploading a photo, commenting, gaining "chic" votes, gaining "fans" or "favorites" to build up enough points to purchase a chic reward! Keep on the look out though - they go super fast. I've only been able to snag one item from them!
Chic Swap is where you can sign up to become a Chic VIP so you can upload to the swap. You can post items, sign up for items and swap clothing online!
Forum They have a great forum with over 10,000 topics and over 164,000 posts on everything from living and advice, to current events, to culture and interests.
Community is where you can find out about recent contests Chictopia is holding (they hold SO many great ones!), they talk about Style Icons (hang tight, I'll give you some tips on how to become a style icon soon!) and the Best of Chictopia with some of the top-rated photos and outfits.
So go in, create an account and start updating with outfits! It's a fun community; make the most of it!
Tips on how to become a style icon:
- Post everyday: I know, it can be really tough to post everyday, but it's the best way to ensure you are constantly exposed to readers so they can add you as a favorite during the month.
- Step out of the box: When I was in the running for style icon, I had to be really really creative. I used a scarf as a cardigan, wore the funkiest floral tights I could find and tried to work my closet in a completely fresh and unique way.
- Comment on other photos: It's all about networking. If you comment on other photos, comment back on who has commented on your photos, you'll just be exposing yourself to so many more people who can add you as a favorite! The trick of the game is to get as many "favorites" as possible!
- DO NOT message or comment on people's photos and ask them to add you as a favorite. That will never work, plus it's annoying spam!
Weardrobe is a great online fashion community. It's a bit more low-key, more focused on the actual outfit photos instead of trying to filter it out by trend or color. Let's focus on the benefits of Weardrobe!
Featured: If you upload your outfit pictures to Weardrobe, you have the opportunity to get featured! They pick only the best outfits in the community and put it on their "featured" page along with links to shop similar styles! It's super helpful if you spot something you like on the featured page… you can shop it really easily.
Recent: Recent shows you a quick and easy look at some of the most recent outfit posts that have been styled. I love the simplicity of Weardrobe and how they let the bloggers do the talking mostly.
Explore: They haven't been keeping up on Weardrobe as much as I'd like to see, but they used to do interviews and features on bloggers! I like to check out their "blogs we love" sidebar. Such a great resource to some amazing blogs out there!
My favorite feature about Weardrobe:
You can name your clothing articles anything you like. So, whenever I upload a photo to Weardrobe, I am very very particular on what I name the item, so I never name the same clothing article the same name. Why? Because it's AWESOME to be able to click on your outfit photo, click on the name of the clothing article and see all the different ways you've remixed that item (like so!). Weardrobe is like… a remixer's dream! You can't do that on any other online fashion community.
Lookbook.nu is a "collective fashion consciousness". The home page is empowering. These are real people.. and they look like they've come out of a fashion magazine! It's such a great resource for inspiration. Lookbook used to be an invite only community, but now they've opened it up and anyone can join!
Hot: Lookbook.nu judges looks based on hypes. Users can "hype" a look and it will rise to the top of the "hot" page. It's a big deal to be placed on the "hot" page!
New: The new page showcases all of the newest photos that have been put on Lookbook. It's a great way to see all of the looks instead of just the "hyped" ones.
Top: The top page contains the top looks of the week, by total hype.
Leader: This page showcases all of the big names on Lookbook.nu. Check here to see the most popular Lookbookers of today, this week and of all time on Lookbook.
The Pros:
The GUYS! On Chictopia and Weardobe, we are lacking some major guy fashion inspiration! I love using Lookbook.nu to look for new ideas for Brett. He secretly denies me and says he hates what they are all wearing… but he'll be peeking over my shoulder and I'll spot him picking up an item that he saw on Lookbook. :)
The Cons:
The lack of variety in body type and ethnicity. There's definitely a lack of diversity on Lookbook. While there are tons of people on Lookbook with amazing style, I do love seeing more of a variety of people in all colors, shapes and sizes.
