Michelle Madsen is the style blogger of LA based blog, TAKE AIM. Her style is clean, casual, cool, sharp focused and possesses that hard-to-do minimal aesthetic. And when I say “minimal”, I don’t mean that black and white minimal that has taken over Instagram and is ever so popular. Michelle loves denim, button-ups, neutrals, and does functional essentials like a boss. Her Instagram is an art-form, her blog is modern and refreshing. It’s no surprise that she has acquired an incredible and loyal following and has made a full-blown career out of blogging in just three short years. How did she do it? I've got the lowdown straight from Michelle herself.
1. Why did you first get into blogging?
I was working on a clothing line with my husband, Tyler.
It’s called LOVE NAIL TREE and we had been each doing it full time for about
four years when we decided to take a little break from being business partners
and simply try to enjoy being married to one another. Everyone says it’s hard
to work with your spouse, and the truth is, it is! We both felt is was the
right decision at the time and even more so now, I realize that letting go of
that part of my life opened me up to exploring other things like blogging. I
was following a few girls at the time and got really inspired to start
something of my own. TAKE AIM became my platform to share inspiration with
others, but even more so, a place where I discovered more about myself and a
way to challenge myself to ‘take aim’ at something I really loved.
2. How did you grow your TAKE AIM into what it is today?
I would say that consistency and determination are big
factors. There are tons of stylish ladies out there but I committed to sharing
daily, perfecting my skills, branding
myself and learning the strategy of social media and networking… over three
years of pushing forward everyday and I’m grateful to look back and see that it
really took me somewhere beyond my original hopes.
3. What do you aim to provide your readers with when they
visit your blog?
The obvious thing would be some inspiration on daily outfits
that are casual, cool and effortless… but beyond that I really hope to inspire
an inner confidence and positive outlook. What we wear is actually a small part
of our lives and it’s who we are that matters.
4. How would you describe your personal style and where do
you draw your inspiration from?
I like to find a middle ground between trendy, cool and
minimal - nothing too flashy but not too boring either :) I get inspiration
from brands’ lookbooks, friends, events like fashion week and some obvious
taste-makers like the Olsen twins.
5. What does the average day in the life of Michelle Madsen
look like?
Every day is kind of different but typically I wake up to
emails for a couple hours, go to an event or two, take photos for upcoming
projects, and come home to work on more emails and my website. Then a lot of
times there’s night time events to go to. I try to get my posts up at midnight
or early the next morning so I do that at night usually. Aside from that work
stuff, I also try to squeeze in a yoga class and time with my hubby and
family/friends each day. It seems like bloggers just drink coffee and shop all
day but I swear there’s never enough time!
6. What would you say is the biggest challenge for bloggers?
I think the schedule is pretty non-stop but it’s also
flexible to my needs so I can’t complain too much! I think the most challenging
part is the period of time that it takes you to build with not a lot of return.
It took me two years to turn my blog into my career and that is a pretty long
time to invest full-time hours into something that is still considered a hobby.
Other things would just be things like fashion week where I’m pushed to my
limits on lack of sleep and stress overload but it’s such a fun time that it’s
worth it.
7. When you can’t think of anything to wear, what’s your
go-to outfit?
Button downs and jeans. I have so many of both because they
are super easy, comfortable and still look put-together.
8. You've been featured in huge magazines like Elle and
Allure. How did these major moments happen for you?
As you’re in the industry more and more, PR people will find
you. Opportunities like that have come just through an email to see if I was
interested and of course I said yes!
9. What are your goals for 2016?
I want to find my balance in my day-to-day routine and have
more free time away from my computer and phone. I also hope to continue to grow
an audience and work with more brands on my bucket list.
10. What’s the best advice you have ever received?
In regards to blogging, be patient and be true to yourself.
In regards to blogging, be patient and be true to yourself.
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