Mandakini: fbff: feminism

today's fbff questions are all about style and feminism. do they go hand in hand or to they contradict each other? for more answers to these questions, check out Modly Chic.

1. do you think there is an incompatibility between feminism and a love for fashion?
absolutely not. fashion is just another way to express who we are. you can have feminist thoughts and ideas and still be beautiful and fashionable. i don't know where the horrible stereotype of a "feminist" came from, but i don't believe people who are feminists all dress or look the same way. to me, they don't even have anything to do with each other.

2. there is more to each of us than a love for fashion, how do you incorporate every aspect of yourself into your blog?
both nora and i talk about our lives in our blog. sure, a part of our lives is how we dress, what clothes we buy for our shop, how we style clothing...but that isn't all that our blog is about. we write like we talk, so hopefully our readers feel as if we are immersed in a conversation with them. i don't feel the need to incorporate every aspect of my life into our blog, but i certainly feel like we both talk enough about our lives that people have a general idea of our personalities, our families, or social lives.

3. with the fashion industry still being a male-dominated profession, how do you think it would differ if women played a larger role?
i guess i never thought of it as a male-dominated profession. i'm sure it is, but i see a lot of women in the industry. some of my favorite designers are women – betsey johnson, vera wang, stella mccartney – to name a few. i think that both men and women in the industry all think somewhat similarly. men who are clothing designers know what works for women almost as much as women in the industry do. so i won't take away from the men in the profession...i think they do a pretty great job (hello marc jacobs!)

4. how is your self-image and the way you carry yourself informed by your beliefs?
i would like to think that i carry myself with dignity, and a little but of goofiness to add to it (ok, a lot). knowing that i am a strong and smart woman helps me with that. this hasn't always been the case, though. i have always considered myself somewhat of a feminist (more of an equalist, i would say), but that doesn't mean that i have always had a soaring self esteem. i believe you can have a certain set of beliefs, but you don't always apply them to your own life. it wasn't until i was in my 30s that i truly started feeling fully comfortable with myself, my body and my style. but that doesn't mean that i didn't think all women should feel beautiful and strong and smart. sometimes, even now, it's easier said than done. we all have our bad self-esteem days, but they don't change my feelings about women/feminism.

5. do you think clothing/makeup/hair helps communicate the truth about yourself or are those things superfluous add-ons?
of course it does. it is a way to express myself and show the world who i am. i dress for myself and to show my personality. if i were dressing to impress the rest of the world, then it would be different...but i definitely dress to show off my personality and personal style.