Southern Belle in Training

Fashion, Travel & Lifestyle Blog || Est. 2012 || Virginia Beach, VA

February 5, 2019

NYFW 2019: Why I Decided To Go + Preview My Outfits!

     Happy Tuesday! It's the first Tuesday of February, which means time to debut my latest Tuesday blog post series. I originally shared that this month's series would be all about routines (fitness routine, daily makeup routine, etc), BUT at the last minute I decided to shift those posts over to March! I'm headed to New York Fashion Week (NYFW) this month, and it'll be the first time I'm officially getting to attend! In addition to recapping the outfits that I will be wearing and the shows and events that Gentry and I are attending, I wanted to share more "behind the scenes" content with y'all as well, which is what I'll be sharing on Tuesdays this month! To kick things off today, I'm sharing why I decided to go in the first place, and a special preview of a few of the outfits you'll catch me sporting!





{Original post here}

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     I'm pretty sure that it was way back in 2013 or 2014 that I first began to really take notice of influencers that were going to New York Fashion Week. I'd had Southern Belle in Training for a year or two at that point, and even though I absolutely loved blogging, I had a very, very small following (think like 1,000 IG followers at this point) , and didn't think that I'd ever continue blogging long enough to even consider being able to attend fashion industry events. 

    As the next couple years started going by, I started seeing that more and more bloggers of all following sizes were attending NYFW events. It started to actually seem in my mind like a realistic dream for me to work towards to go myself someday! In Fall 2016, I unexpectedly got to have my first little taste. I happened to be in Manhattan for a quick weekend trip for a family reunion (my dad is originally from Long Island, NY). The weekend I was in NYC was in September and during the same time as NYFW! I reached out to some blogging friends that were attending for the full weekend, and I was able to tag along with a few of them to a fashion show presentation one evening. It felt magical to get to attend that event- and be up close and personal to not only some incredible designer fashion, but also so many amazing bloggers! That little taste of Fashion Week was enough to finally convince me to make it an official goal to attend an NYFW in the future for more days. 

    It's already been two and a half years since I had that one night taste of NYFW, and my blog has definitely changed a bit since then. While I'm extremely proud of the content that I've produced in that time and the ways different ways that my blog has grown, my content focus has changed a lot from 2016 to 2019. Instead of being an affordable fashion blogger, I now consider myself to be a lifestyle blogger, who enjoys writing a few posts a month on fashion and style topics. So why would someone who considers themselves to be a lifestyle blogger, (someone who only has 14k Instagram followers) still want to attend NYFW?

    First and foremost, because it's seeing another dream to fruition, and that's something pretty special! It's been so humbling for me to see dream after dream with running this blog come true over the years. Some of them were very small dreams, and others have been larger, but a dream is a dream, and I figured why not now to make this one come true! Secondly, it worked out with timing in life for me to attend this upcoming February NYFW. I had a couple days of unused PTO at work that would be expiring in March, and I really wanted to use them for something travel related. I also have family in the NY area that I rarely get to see since I live in the South, so I was hopeful that I could work in a visit with some of them in addition to doing NYFW (which worked out!). 

    And third- I'm hoping that by finally experiencing a few days of NYFW, I'll feel more inspired with fashion and style content after attending. Being honest for a second? For over a year now, I've been feeling a little burnt out with fashion blogging specifically. (NOT all blogging- just the sharing outfits, sales, and trends part of it.) What used to be such a cool and unique way for someone to share their style with the world has turned into perfectly curated Instagram feeds of girls that all look very similar, wear the same trendy casual outfit from Nordstrom, and are solely trying to sell me that exact outfit. Blogs used to be the focus, and now it's much more "in" to be a fashion influencer on Instagram than a fashion blogger with quality writing and imagery on a website. I'm hoping that by spending a few days in New York (an extremely inspiring city to begin with) and attending fashion shows and NYFW events and seeing unique, beautiful fashion direct from the designers, I'll return home next week feeling re-inspired in terms of my own personal fashion, and how I'd like to share that with my followers on the blog!

     I'm not going to lie- part of me is a bit nervous to be attending NYFW influencer and industry events when I still have a small following as compared to other bloggers! I still don't have 20k Instagram followers yet... and I know I'll be meeting women who have 200k+. I'm extremely proud of the fact my blog's page views continue to increase each year, but I'm sure I'll be meeting bloggers with 50x the amount of page views I get! You get the point. But I'm hoping and praying that I can continue to showcase my authentic self at NYFW when I'm networking. I'm not the biggest influencer around and I know that, but my blog and personal brand are unique in its own special way, and hopefully I can connect with new people who are able to see that!


     And one last thing that I haven't really touched on yet- I get to go to NYFW with the most amazing blogger friend! Gentry of Girl Meets Bow will be my partner in crime for four days, and I can't wait! If you don't follow her yet- you absolutely must.


    Lastly- I thought it would be fun to give you a little preview of some of the things that will be in my suitcase for NYFW! A few of my outfits I'll be saving as surprises for the trip, but below I've linked a few things that I'll be bringing along- all at a variety of price points! Also wanted to link my travel jewelry organizer- I've had it for a few years and it's a gem.





     No Midweek Ramblings post tomorrow since this week is a little crazy between work and getting ready for the trip so I'll be taking tomorrow off from a new blog post. BUT I do have a really fun sponsored post going up on Thursday that I'm excited to share. Hint: it features Delilah! 🐱


     God Bless,


     xoxo Annaliese 










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11 comments

  1. I am so glad that you decided to go to Fashion Week- and that I'm going to get to join you!!! We are going to have the BEST time!! What a great way to get re-invigorated for blogging :) 3 days and counting!!

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  2. oh my gosh i am so excited for you my friend- wish i could join but i know youre going to have the best time! cant wait to follow along on such a fantastic journey for you!

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  3. I hope you have a blast! It is a dream of my sisters to go to NYFW!

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  4. So extremely happy for you girl! ❤️

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  5. Hope you had the best time at NYFW! You look stunning in that sequin dress!

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  6. I love that you shared this, I also that my following/content would not be worthy. But you just gave me hope! I would love to attend a NYFW event one day!

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  7. NYFW is the dream! Look forward to seeing your posts and outfits. Enjoy!

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  8. Your dress is perfect for NYFW! I bet you had a blast.

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  9. So exciting!! Cannot wait to hear more about it!

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  10. OMG how fun! I am so happy for you. I cannot wait to live vicariously through you. I want to go next year in the fall.

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  11. That's so fun that you are living out your dream and going this year!!! And that jewelry organizer is so cool!! That's going on my bday wishlist!!

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