by Lookbook, featuring Hannah Louise of Hannah LouiseF • March 11, 2016
“Moving to a big city has given me more confidence to wear whatever I want. London probably serves as one of the strongest hubs for fashion and creativity in all of the UK.”
How long did it take for your blog to take off?
I’ve been blogging for over 4 years now — and on Lookbook for even longer! I grew it whilst studying Law at university and focused on it full time upon graduating this past summer.
What were some of the greatest challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way?
One of the most difficult things about blogging alongside studying or working is time management (I wrote more about this here).
Also, realizing there is no “secret to success.” The more you put into a blog, the more you will get out of it. First and foremost, make sure you have quality content. Then, make sure to utilize social media to the greatest extent by promoting your posts and engaging your followers (try Twitter chats and uploading your outfit photos to Lookbook with a link to your blog).
Finally, always network with other bloggers on social media (by commenting on their posts) or in real life.
What are a few tools or apps you can’t live without?
Aside from the obvious ones like Instagram and Twitter, photo editing apps are quite important for me. I tend to use the iPhone photo editing tools to adjust brightness, warmth and more. I will on occasion add a filter using VSCO cam.
Photo filters aren’t absolutely essential (especially if you’re a good photographer), but they do help out a lot!
I also use the Notes app for organizing my entire life.
What are you most inspired by?
I mostly feel inspired by the other bloggers I follow, people I see on the street or even just my friends. I’m constantly surrounded by all of this so I rarely struggle to find inspiration.
If I’m ever feeling very uninspired, I try to actively seek out inspiration by browsing blogs, Instagram, Lookbook, or the work of artists or photographers that I like.
Where are your ideal places to shoot?
I recently moved from Manchester to London and there is a plethora of incredible locations here. I try to shoot somewhere new each time, and collaborating with different photographers really helps when it comes to finding spots.
Moving to a big city has also given me more confidence to wear whatever I want. There’s a lot of fashion and creativity here, probably more so than anywhere else in the UK.
What is your daily routine?
My days are quite varied. I have to shoot a lot in order to keep the content flowing, so once or twice a week I’ll meet with a photographer or friend, and shoot a few outfits that I have been wearing or am planning to wear. Other days I’ll have meetings, and sometimes I’ll just be at home all day writing things up and editing photos. Being self employed means that I can fit all this around social life plans as well — which is great!
What are your favorite things to do during this time of year?
I hate cold, wet weather, so I try to avoid being outside. I’ll usually go to bars with friends or visit galleries, exhibitions or the cinema.
Travel-wise, I plan to visit Berlin and Copenhagen later this year, and hopefully somewhere a little further afield too.
What’s on your iTunes or bookshelf at the moment?
A couple of books I have enjoyed recently are Raymond Carver’s What We Talk About When We Talk About Love and Richard Brautigan’s Revenge of the Lawn.
I also wrote up a post about my favorite music from 2015 here.
What is one invaluable piece of life advice you can leave with us?
One of the most invaluable things I’ve learned, and learned to do well, is balance and prioritize. ‘Work hard play hard’, but also relax hard!