Featured Blogger -- Ashley of Pink Julep Abroad!

We first connected with super sweet Ashley of Pink Julep Abroad on Twitter -- quite sometime ago. We were immediately smitten with her blog, Pink Julep Abroad and immediately became a follower. Not only is she a true lover of fashion but she is one of the nicest gals in cyber space and the blogging world. We just seriously...adore her! 

{1} Tell us a little about yourself and your blog, Pink Julep.

 

I'm originally from Eastern Kentucky where I was born and raised in a very small town, but I've lived in Miami, New York City and the Cayman Islands. I graduated from the University of Miami with a theatre degree. I'm married to a wonderful Irishman I met in New York. He's an accountant and we now live in London. I'm not currently working, but I have previously worked in theatre, film and finance. I love fashion and beauty, art, film, books, cooking, travelling and anything fabulous!

 

Pink Julep Abroad is a lifestyle blog that features all the things I love as well as tidbits about my life in London. It's all me and it's real. I feel like if you read the blog regularly, then you pretty much know me. I know that I'm blessed with the opportunity to travel and live abroad, so I'm excited to share my experiences! I see Pink Julep Abroad as an opportunity to create my online scrapbook of inspirations, adventures, loves and favorite things while connecting with others!

{2} What made you decide to enter the blogging world?

I was living in the Cayman Islands and quite frankly, I was bored. I didn't know many people and living on a beachy island can be dull when you're used to big city life. So I was on Facebook and Myspace a lot, living vicariously through all my friends with their exciting lives, when I discovered that 2 girls I knew were both writing blogs. I was really into reading about every detail and looking at photos of their adventures, their fashion choices and their travels. Through their blogs, I started reading a few others and then thought, I want to do that too! I had always worked in very creative environments and been very busy after hours with seeing theatre shows and attending events, but being in the foreign world of finance, I felt a bit lost and like I didn't have any projects I particularly enjoyed, so this became my project. My husband came up with the name and in the beginning, we were living in a new apartment with no internet so I would drag him out to Dunkin Donuts where I created the blog and wrote my posts. It was originally titled Pink Julep, but once we decided to move to London I hired an artist to create my header, another artist to design the layout and general aesthetic, and I changed the name to Pink Julep Abroad.

{we LOVE Ashley's style! get the details here.}

{3} What blogs do you make sure to read daily?

 

I read a lot of blogs, but some of my favorites are Go Fug Yourself, Day Old News, May December, Pretty in Pink Megan, Summer is a Verb, The Blonde Salad, The Love List and cupcakeMAG of course! I've been reading most of these blogs for years and they all inspire me in one way or another. Actually, Pretty in Pink Megan was one of the first blogs I followed. Most of these girls feel like pals even though I've never met any of them before. 

 

{4} How would you describe your personal style?

I like to think my personal style is "city chic." City girls actually have to think about what we put on before we leave the house. We need comfort, function and fashion! Most of us don't have the luxury of driving everywhere we go so most of the time you'll find me in classic basics and separates, usually in neutral colors with bold accessories and fairly comfortable shoes. I tend to wear a lot of black, but I love to jazz it up with a fuschia clutch and some turquoise jewelry!

{5} What are some of your favorite style tips?

 

1. Everything looks better when you wear it with confidence!

2. Put a ring on it! Cocktail rings are the best accessories, especially when you're in a hurry!

3. When in doubt, wear black. You rarely look underdressed or overdressed in an LBD or an all black pants look. Also, it's the perfect blank canvas for great accessories! 

4. Experiment! Don't be afraid to try something new with your look! 

5. Nail polish is a great and cheap accessory! Learn how to pain your own nails and rock the season's hottest colors! If nail polish isn't your thing, you can totally change the look of an outfit with the right lipstick, like Kirsten Dunst recently did when she wore red lips with a yellow dress at Cannes!

{6} What is your favorite part about living in London?

Honestly, the food! England has a bad reputation for food and it's just not true. Most packaged foods here have real ingredients, organic foods are more readily available here and more affordable than anywhere else I've lived and the grocery stores are fabulous! I also love all the gourmet shops, fresh markets and luxury food halls like in Harvey Nichols or Selfridges. In our neighborhood alone there are more international restaurant choices than you could imagine. We have Japanese, Italian, Lebonese, Indian, Chinese, Thai, British, French, Mexican, Spanish, Brazillian, Portugese and more, and it's all on our doorstep! I can literally walk across the street from my flat on a Sunday morning for freshly baked bread, warm just out of the oven pastries and fresh organic, locally grown fruit. It's amazing!

{7} What is up next for Pink Julep?

I've been experimenting with new photography and video options and I'm hoping to continually improve the look of my posts with better photography, photo editing, post layouts and more video posts. I'm on the lookout all the time for new exciting things to blog about or events to attend and I have some exciting things lined up in the near future. I've also revamped my 2nd blog which laid dormant for a while, but is back up and running. It's called Pink Julep's Dressing Room. It's basically a look book of my personal style. I'm very excited about the future of both Pink Julep Abroad and Pink Julep's Dressing Room!

Make sure you follow Ashley on both of her blogs and LIKE Pink Julep on Facebook! 

{Photo Credit: All images from Pink Julep}