Trendsetter Spotlight on Lollie Shopping
Nicknamed “Lollipop” as a child, Laura Coronado started fashion blog Lollie Shopping to inspire the idea that all people can look fabulous regardless of age, income or shape. The veteran Vegas blogger dished to us on her fall/winter essentials, her secret obsession, and her hilarious husband-wife ensemble (we want photographic evidence!).
Shop It To Me: How long have you been blogging, and what inspired you to start?
Laura Coronado: I began blogging in October 2007, and at first it was a means of communicating to my girlfriends which trends I was wearing and which sales I was shopping. Among my friends, I’m the go-to girl, the one that everyone emails for fashion and shopping advice. But after a few months of blogging, I discovered complete strangers were reading Lollie Shopping. So that’s when I created a mission for Lollie Shopping: to inspire others to believe that all people have the potential to look good no matter their age, body shape or income. I’m a pretty confident woman, and I wish to empower others to feel confident, too.
SITM: How do you normally build an outfit? Walk us through your process.
LC: Normally I build an outfit around a specific piece, such as a new pair of patterned pants that I can’t wait to show off or my current pair of favorite shoes. Then I simply build on that piece by complementing it with other pieces of apparel and accessories. However, sometimes I see an outfit in a movie or a magazine, or on television or the Internet, and I simply want to recreate my version of that outfit. Lastly, there are the times that my mood affects my outfit. Like the other day, I woke up in the morning and thought, “I feel like wearing a white T-shirt today.” So I built my outfit around the T-shirt, but really, I was building the outfit around my mood.
****SITM: **Name one fashion or beauty essential for each season that you can’t live without.
**LC: ****In the fall and winter, I can’t live without a yummy leather jacket and the perfect pair of boots. In the summer, I can’t live without a good, supportive strapless bra. I tend to wear a lot of tank tops and spaghetti straps during the hot season and I hate to show bra straps.
**SITM: ** What determines when you buy full price items vs. when you buy sale items?
LC: If an item is limited edition from a designer or brand that I adore and sports a particular unique style that I know I can’t get anywhere else, then I am ready and willing to pay full price. Additionally, if the item is already priced in a range that I find affordable (say a $40 dress), I’ll pay full price then, too. However, I search sales to find designer or brand name bargains that I know will impress my friends and make me feel like I found the greatest treasure ever.
****SITM: **Now that you can choose to see your Shop It To Me email organized by either retailer, by clothing type or by brand, what method do you prefer/why do you shop that way?
**LC: I prefer to organize my Salemail by designer rather than retailer. I’m mainly concerned with getting a DVF dress at a great price. Which retailer I buy it from doesn’t matter to me, so long as the price is amazing.
**SITM: **We’re all about time-saving here at Shop It To Me. Can you share a time-saving trick that’s part of your daily routine?
LC: No one uses the phone anymore. If you see a dress featured at the website of one of your favorite stores, but would prefer to buy it in-store so you can try it on first, call that store before driving over there to see if it has your size in stock. So many times people see something online and then they drive to the store to get it without first checking to see if that store even has it. If it doesn’t, you’ve just wasted a trip to the store. Make sure your select store has the item you’re looking for in your size before driving over there. And if it does, ask the associate to hold it at the counter for you.
**
**SITM: **Any embarrassing wardrobe malfunctions or a fashion faux pas you want to share?
**LC: Once, my husband and I were out and about, and we had a little too much to drink. And we stopped by the typical Las Vegas tourist shop and bought him a button down shirt with a cocktail print all over it and a matching dress for me. Ordinarily, my husband and I don’t wear matching ensembles, especially ones with a cocktail print all over it. But we thought it would be hilarious. Obviously we don’t wear these clothes out in public, but they do come in handy when someone has a Vegas themed costume party. We call the outfits our Vegas honeymooners look.
SIT****M: Tell us something unique to you — after all, it’s what makes you YOU!
**LC: **I am “Alice in Wonderland” obsessed. I have a collection of books, toys, artwork and other items that are “Alice in Wonderland” related. My collection is quite complete, but anytime someone comes up with a new “Alice in Wonderland” item, be it a movie or Urban Decay’s makeup set, I have to own it.
Follow Lollie Shopping on her blog, Twitter and Facebook.
Want to have your blog featured? Apply to become Shop It To Me Trendsetter by emailing trendsetters@shopittome.com