Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Weller.
Ashley, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Well, let me start off by saying, I had no idea that I was going to end up where I am at today. I have been an elementary teacher for twenty-four years, but I have always had a passion for photography, being creative and just expressing myself in fun ways. Six years ago, while my kids were in school, I started losing myself in their daily lives and someone told me to find an outlet for myself. I found Instagram, and thought it was fun to take photos, search for fun places and things to do and also posted other’s photos, not knowing it was “against the rules!” I had a popular blogger call me out on doing this and I turned the situation around and asked her to meet me for coffee and try to understand this thing called “Instagram,” The best pieces of advice that she gave me were; not to pigeon hole myself into one category, be honest and genuine, care about your followers and that when my Instagram blew up, I should never change for anyone.
I knew right away that I wanted to focus on my Southern lifestyle; fashion, food, beauty, home décor and fun places to visit in the South! Southernchicstyle has grown and I am having a blast! I have gone from posting for trade to working with over one hundred different companies! I took her advice and it paid off. I love social media and everything it can do to help businesses big or small, grow and I love meeting new people and establishing strong relationships with my followers. I am lucky to be in Dallas with supportive bloggers and influencers.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has not been a smooth road; most influencers are much younger than me, taller and thinner and cliques can form and sometimes, that can be hard to break into but you just have to have the confidence to push through the insecurities and go for it! I have gained so much confidence over the past six years and I feel blessed just getting to go on this journey.
If you start blogging or want to be an influencer while having another job, you have to learn to create a balance. Many people ask how I do it all, and sometimes, areas of my life suffer because I am trying to do too much. I am slowly learning to prioritize what is really important from the things that can wait. I tend to do a lot of my social media posting later at night or early morning so that I can have family time and just time to relax. Also, always take more photos than you think you will use, you can never have too many. Many times I pull photos that I have taken a day or even a week ago because I get busy or nothing exciting or pretty is happening around me! Life is not always picturesque!
What should we know about Southernchicstyle? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I am a Southern Lifestyle blogger, not the cowboy type, more like the traditional, deep rooted family, barefoot in the summer, Sunday dinners around the table, sipping tea on the porch type.
I specialize in casual but timeless fashion, affordable beauty, delicious and beautiful southern food and anything else I think is cool and want to share with my followers!
I hope that I am known for being genuine, offering to pray with and help my followers when needed, always being positive and someone that knows how to get the most for their money! LOL!
I am most proud of the relationships that I have been able to establish with the companies that I work with, staying authentic and true to myself and having the confidence to know and love myself throughout this journey. I am also proud of the photos that I post and take, I love editing and finding a pretty angle, it’s amazing how good you can make a cup of coffee look!
I believe what sets me apart from others is that I am older, maybe a little wiser because of life experience, I am a lifestyle blogger that focuses on many different areas of life and that I am just an ordinary person, like everyone else, not trying to be something I am not.
For good reason, society often focuses more on the problems rather than the opportunities that exist, because the problems need to be solved. However, we’d probably also benefit from looking for and recognizing the opportunities that women are better positioned to capitalize on. Have you discovered such opportunities?
I honestly think that you can only put limitations on yourself. I really believe that anyone no matter what gender you are, can do anything they want to and I think that time has shown that. I think that women have more opportunities today than ever, just look at, Johanna Gaines, Sonia Gandhi, Oprah Winfrey, J.K. Rowling, and Malala Yousafzai and the incredible things that they are doing! Women are tough and are survivors, we are the only ones that hold ourselves back.
Contact Info:
- Email: southernchicstyle1@gmail.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/southernchicstyle
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/southernchicstyle1
Image Credit:
Amanda Bayacal
Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
