Hiyaaaa!
First of all, I would like to bestow my gratitude upon each and every single individual and brand that has helped me become and grow as a fashion blogger. This journey has been exciting so far and I hope to learn and grow each day and try to figure out who I am. Although I have friends and family trying to mock me by calling me "sontada mele kai" (hand on the hip in Kannada) or "pichuade ke upar haath" (hand on the bum in Hindi) and some idiots calling my blog "handsonhip", it has all been a part of this fun journey I embarked upon a year ago.
Ever since I could style my Barbie dolls as a 12 year old girl, I have wanted to become a fashion designer/stylist so bad! But things took a detour as I graduated from one of the most prestigious institutions in the country as a Computer Science and Engineering graduate in 2012. It's the very first anniversary of Hand On The Hip and I thought I should take a trip down the memory lane!
The first of many firsts
I had returned from a trip to Goa with my ladies and was left with more fat than I could handle and more clothes than ever. I was determined to do something about my passion in fashion. My boyfriend back then (fiance` now :D) asked me why I took pictures with my hand on my hip and that's how I decided to start a fashion blog. I had been a huge fan of Aashna Shroff, Riya Jain and Sushmita Gururaj for the longest time and saw how they posted on Instagram. I thought I should do the same and voila, @handonthehip came into existence on the 21st of April, 2016. In no time, I was designing logos and buying domain names for my very first blog.
The first collab request
Within literally a couple of days after my first post on Instagram, the sales manager of a clothing rental portal approached me for a collaboration. At that point of time, I had 2-3 blog posts, 2-3 pictures on Instagram and followers in double digits. He told me he would collaborate with me if I got some followers, promoted myself on other forums and gave me month's time. After a month I figured he wasn't working with the brand anymore, but since then, I was unstoppable :)
The first photoshoot
After a few more days, I was approached by a budding photographer Vinoth Raja and we did a few shots. It was a great experience and the pictures turned out better than expected! You should check out his page for some amazing photography!
The first public appearance
My pages on Instagram and Facebook went live only after a couple of months since I started handonthehip.com. I was excited and nervous! But thanks to my friends, family and well wishers who sent me their best wishes instantly, I felt great and that motivated me more.
My Instagram page - https://www.instagram.com/handonthehip/
My Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/handonthehip/
The first actual collab
So once you go public, there's no looking back. All of my friends and acquaintances were helping me gain contacts. I ran into the region head of Liberent one fine day and instantly collaborated with them.
The first mentor
I had no clue about blogging or what I could do to grow as a fashion blogger. I wrote to several bloggers, but only Krupa was kind enough to actually spend a couple of hours giving me a one-on-one Bloggers 101 session on Skype. She is a fabulous fashion blogger and is the most helpful human being I've met. I can't thank her enough for her effective and fun initiatives!
The first fashion show
Soon enough, my inbox were flooding with collaboration requests from photographers and brand owners. I decided to take on everything I could. It was a lot of fun! But what completely overwhelmed me was that I got invited to a fashion show at the Bangalore Fashion Week! It was a dream come true!
The first bloggers meet
I was invited to a POPxo event the same day as the fashion show of Bangalore Fashion Week and I was terribly disappointed that I could not make it. However, I was extremely surprised and happy when Zapyle invited me to their Brunch and Bubbly. Not only did I get a chance to do some classy photoshoots, but also met some lovely people from the industry.
The first fan moment
Aswathi Balakrishnan has always been one of my biggest role models. When I ran into her, I could not control my happiness! She was so sweet and even gave me a few pointers. I was awe-struck!
The first girl gang
Thanks to Zapyle, I met some like-minded fashion bloggers at the event. We bonded instantly and collaborated for several shoots to showcase how we each were different, yet had the same goal. Thanks a bunch High On Stilettos, The Velvet Radio, The Red Lip Rover and All That's Fancy for being such dolls!
The first female photographer
How amazing is it when you run into someone you last met back in primary school? Well, I met my old school friend at a photoshoot and we have been meeting for shoots ever since. Do check out her work at Purni Pics.
The first fashion related Tableau dashboard
I work as a Tableau analyst during the day. I wanted to somehow use my software skills to do something about fashion blogging. And all of a sudden, I was making this dashboard analyzing the top 100 bloggers of the world. Do check out my Tableau profile.
The first vlog
It's almost mandatory for all fashion bloggers to have their own YouTube channel. And that's when I realized how I could make best use of all the small little videos I take here and there. So voila! I made a vlog of my Prague trip. Don't forget to check it out here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HTGude8vGU&t=4s.
The first magazine appearance
Thanks to LibeRent, some of my pictures were picked for an article in a Tamil weekly called the Dinakaran. I was so excited to see myself on print that I felt like an absolute celebrity! :D Do check out the ebook here.
My family, friends, fans (yes, I do have fans :p) and well wishers have been of great help and support. I cannot thank you guys enough for what you've done! I hope the journey doesn't end here and things get better as I grow. Last but not least, to all the haters out there, thank you! Your hatred only motivates me and doesn't shatter me.
Happy first birthday, HOTH :) You are my baby. You always will be.
Love,
Hand On The Hip
First of all, I would like to bestow my gratitude upon each and every single individual and brand that has helped me become and grow as a fashion blogger. This journey has been exciting so far and I hope to learn and grow each day and try to figure out who I am. Although I have friends and family trying to mock me by calling me "sontada mele kai" (hand on the hip in Kannada) or "pichuade ke upar haath" (hand on the bum in Hindi) and some idiots calling my blog "handsonhip", it has all been a part of this fun journey I embarked upon a year ago.
Ever since I could style my Barbie dolls as a 12 year old girl, I have wanted to become a fashion designer/stylist so bad! But things took a detour as I graduated from one of the most prestigious institutions in the country as a Computer Science and Engineering graduate in 2012. It's the very first anniversary of Hand On The Hip and I thought I should take a trip down the memory lane!
The first of many firsts
I had returned from a trip to Goa with my ladies and was left with more fat than I could handle and more clothes than ever. I was determined to do something about my passion in fashion. My boyfriend back then (fiance` now :D) asked me why I took pictures with my hand on my hip and that's how I decided to start a fashion blog. I had been a huge fan of Aashna Shroff, Riya Jain and Sushmita Gururaj for the longest time and saw how they posted on Instagram. I thought I should do the same and voila, @handonthehip came into existence on the 21st of April, 2016. In no time, I was designing logos and buying domain names for my very first blog.
The first collab request
Within literally a couple of days after my first post on Instagram, the sales manager of a clothing rental portal approached me for a collaboration. At that point of time, I had 2-3 blog posts, 2-3 pictures on Instagram and followers in double digits. He told me he would collaborate with me if I got some followers, promoted myself on other forums and gave me month's time. After a month I figured he wasn't working with the brand anymore, but since then, I was unstoppable :)
After a few more days, I was approached by a budding photographer Vinoth Raja and we did a few shots. It was a great experience and the pictures turned out better than expected! You should check out his page for some amazing photography!
The first public appearance
My pages on Instagram and Facebook went live only after a couple of months since I started handonthehip.com. I was excited and nervous! But thanks to my friends, family and well wishers who sent me their best wishes instantly, I felt great and that motivated me more.
My Instagram page - https://www.instagram.com/handonthehip/
My Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/handonthehip/
The first actual collab
So once you go public, there's no looking back. All of my friends and acquaintances were helping me gain contacts. I ran into the region head of Liberent one fine day and instantly collaborated with them.
The first mentor
I had no clue about blogging or what I could do to grow as a fashion blogger. I wrote to several bloggers, but only Krupa was kind enough to actually spend a couple of hours giving me a one-on-one Bloggers 101 session on Skype. She is a fabulous fashion blogger and is the most helpful human being I've met. I can't thank her enough for her effective and fun initiatives!
The first fashion show
Soon enough, my inbox were flooding with collaboration requests from photographers and brand owners. I decided to take on everything I could. It was a lot of fun! But what completely overwhelmed me was that I got invited to a fashion show at the Bangalore Fashion Week! It was a dream come true!
The first bloggers meet
I was invited to a POPxo event the same day as the fashion show of Bangalore Fashion Week and I was terribly disappointed that I could not make it. However, I was extremely surprised and happy when Zapyle invited me to their Brunch and Bubbly. Not only did I get a chance to do some classy photoshoots, but also met some lovely people from the industry.
The first fan moment
Aswathi Balakrishnan has always been one of my biggest role models. When I ran into her, I could not control my happiness! She was so sweet and even gave me a few pointers. I was awe-struck!
The first girl gang
Thanks to Zapyle, I met some like-minded fashion bloggers at the event. We bonded instantly and collaborated for several shoots to showcase how we each were different, yet had the same goal. Thanks a bunch High On Stilettos, The Velvet Radio, The Red Lip Rover and All That's Fancy for being such dolls!
The first female photographer
How amazing is it when you run into someone you last met back in primary school? Well, I met my old school friend at a photoshoot and we have been meeting for shoots ever since. Do check out her work at Purni Pics.
The first fashion related Tableau dashboard
I work as a Tableau analyst during the day. I wanted to somehow use my software skills to do something about fashion blogging. And all of a sudden, I was making this dashboard analyzing the top 100 bloggers of the world. Do check out my Tableau profile.
The first vlog
It's almost mandatory for all fashion bloggers to have their own YouTube channel. And that's when I realized how I could make best use of all the small little videos I take here and there. So voila! I made a vlog of my Prague trip. Don't forget to check it out here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HTGude8vGU&t=4s.
The first magazine appearance
Thanks to LibeRent, some of my pictures were picked for an article in a Tamil weekly called the Dinakaran. I was so excited to see myself on print that I felt like an absolute celebrity! :D Do check out the ebook here.
My family, friends, fans (yes, I do have fans :p) and well wishers have been of great help and support. I cannot thank you guys enough for what you've done! I hope the journey doesn't end here and things get better as I grow. Last but not least, to all the haters out there, thank you! Your hatred only motivates me and doesn't shatter me.
Happy first birthday, HOTH :) You are my baby. You always will be.
Love,
Hand On The Hip
