Navy on Navy on Navy

La Redécouverte - Yann Tierson

Earlier today I came across Susie Bubble's article on originality in blogging and found it to be extremely interesting and insightful. A well seasoned veteran fashion blogger by now, Miss Bubble definitely knows what she's talking about. She cited an article written on Fashionista.com, which had quoted Cathy Horyn (of The New York Times):

“I think it’s about bringing something fresh and different to a blog, that’s not really about criticism or opinion. News is good because it’s something you have that nobody else has. If you can be truthful about it, without being shady about the sourcing, then I think it’s good.”

I believe Susie Bubble made more of a valid point in recognizing that original commentary and criticism has it's own place on the web, even if it is not entirely totally original. While I don't usually agree with much of Horyn's ideas about fashion and collections on her column/blog, she does have a point here. As there are more and more fashion blogs created by the day, you would think the scope of discussion would expand. Unfortunately that is not the case and with the growing popularity of the Tumblr style of reblogging, the same material gets regurgitated over and over again. Just how many times have you seen the Zara video in collaboration of The Selby of Lucy Chadwick on blogs this week? Or perhaps all the coverage on H&M x Versace? Tumblr (and other blogging services) has value in being able to disseminate information quickly, but now it's making things almost too easy and therefore all the more harder to separate the new and fresh material over the tired and overdone shizzo. Most people blog for fun so perhaps it would be a little much to expect a "professional" attitude to it from everybody and yet though I don't plan on this blog being more than a personal side project, I can only imagine how much more dynamical and meaningful everything would become if bloggers would just spare a little more time, thought and creativity in what they publish on the web. Even if we are entering an age where 100% original ideas are almost nonexistent (even Steve Jobs, the supposed genius of our time, took the idea of the personal computer from Xerox PARC and is now known as the ultimate tweaker), our own personal takes on things still matter.

The idea for this post, is a perfect example. I am neither the first nor the second to talk about it and yet I am still able to add on my own thoughts and extend it outside the narrow focus of the fashion blogosphere. At the end this is what I love most about blogging is that inspiration can come from anywhere and how ideas that are continually bounced off one another can be always reinterpreted differently everytime. So what can anyone gather from this long winded post of mine? My eyeballs are fried and overwhelmed by seeing the same sort of images everywhere and will in turn drastically cut down my consumption of blogs at least for the time being. Please don't think I consider myself too good to read other people's thoughts (clearly evidenced by my bouncing off other people's ideas to be not true at all–in fact I thrive in it) but that I merely need to disconnect and engage in some introspective navel gazing. The blog would not be in anyway affected by my temporary disconnection (I will still reply to any comment and e-mail that comes my way) except for a renewed determination and commitment to authenticity and honesty in all posts hereafter to come.