Online personality and social media fashion star Heather Hahn has made a name for herself since moving to Hollywood having styled many celebrities & stars such as Oscar De La Renta, and turning her fashion blog http://chiffonsouffle.com into one of the largest in America.
The Levity Ball sat down with Heather in California to find out more about her life and social career…
When did you first “know” that you wanted to work in the online fashion world?
I first knew that I wanted to work in the fashion industry, my freshman year of high school. From 9th-12th grade, I had all retail related jobs. By the time it was my senior year in high school, I had been accepted to art school to obtain my Fashion Marketing and Management degree, that’s when I really knew I was meant to be in the industry. As far as entering into the online world, my parents couldn’t get me off of the computer since I was 10 years old. I was also creating and designing things through photoshop and I always kept an online journal called “LiveJournal” at the time, and being that young, I guess you could say that was the start of my blogging career.
Who were some of your role models growing up?
Growing up some of my role models that I’ve looked up to were Diane Von Furstenberg, Karl Lagerfeld, and Stella McCartney. I loved looking up to those that had a strong, creative talent.
Is it difficult to run a fashion blog such as yours and update it so often?
To run the blog yes, and to run the blog as a business, an even bigger yes. To actually have your blog be successful, you have to update your content at least every other day, and you constantly have to be thinking of new ideas of what to put on your blog, and what you think will make people interested in reading it.
You have also been a stylist for some pretty big celebs and shows… can you tell us a few of your favorite?
One of my ultimate favorite people that I’ve worked with was Oscar De La Renta. I helped him put together a bridal fashion show up in San Francisco; I was terrified to even touch the gowns, knowing that they each were thousands and thousands of dollars. Another one of my favorite jobs was working with two contestants of The Biggest Loser. It was a photo shoot for US Weekly, and it was very inspiring to see two people in person that you’ve seen on the show that have made such big life changes. Kendra Wilkinson is also a lot of fun to style, she’s very real.
What has been the hardest thing you’ve gone through since starting your website?
Honestly, it would be having people take you seriously in having your blog as be ran as a full business. I get a TON of emails daily from brands asking to do product exchanges and ‘free posts’. It’s great when your just started out your blog to do ‘free posts’ and ‘product exchanges’, but makeup, and clothing won’t pay your bills when you’ve been running your blog over a year.
What is the one fashion trend you hope goes away? This year was the year of the “All In One”, aka “The Year Of The Onesie”, I hope this trend always stays, as well as the “Frayed Denim” trend. It’s nice to have a current trend that can take you so far back into the past.
What is the hot fashion trend of this season currently?
I feel like the “Mini Skirt” trend is still very current, even in the winter. Just pair it with a pair of tights, or sweater leggings and heels, and you’re good to go!
What is your advice to others looking at getting into the online world?
The best advice that I can give to someone looking to be successful as a digital influencer would be to keep going, don’t give up, don’t get bored, and don’t quit. Keep your content new, fresh, and creative, and always interact with your readers/followers. A few of my friends started blogging in the past, and have since “given up” because they couldn’t keep up with creating content, and it began to get frustrating that they felt like they weren’t becoming successful. You just have to keep going, no matter what anyone else thinks.
Where do you see yourself in five years from now?
In five years, I really hope to have my own clothing line, book, and charity foundation, obviously all of this would be based off of my brand.
What is the biggest thing you have learned since moving to Hollywood?
The biggest thing I learned since moving to Hollywood would be just to be yourself. The city itself is very fake, and if you’re coming from a small town like I did, it’s really really easy to get caught up in the “scene”, and that might make you end up going down the wrong path. Don’t impress those that may be more successful then you, and don’t think that you always need to be better. Just do the best that you can and what makes you happy. The Hollywood you see on TV is not the Hollywood you see in reality.
If you could change one thing in our world today, what would it be?
The judgmental state of our society and how people are “classified”. There shouldn’t be a “class” like poor, middle, and high end. Everyone is a human being, we should all be treated the same.
