Reese Blutstein

This weekend I am excited to introduce you to Reese Blutstein, aka @double3xposure, one of fashion’s most favorite style bloggers and also one of this year’s Lingerie On Film contributors. 

I became familiar with Reese’s work on Instagram as she was getting shot in several of my pieces for various editorials. I love her approachable style, her sense of color, and her IG handle - Making the most out of the clothes I have since 1996.  I was particularly struck by her way of styling pieces over and over again into new looks instead of showing pieces only once in a seemingly never-ending cycle of new clothes. I find that to be the most eco-friendly thing we can all do in terms of fashion–buy less and be more creative with what we have.

Below the Atlanta based style star shares with us how she has created her distinct personal style that inspires over 200K followers on Instagram and some tips for keeping your looks fresh without shopping all the time. ~ Araks

Can you tell us a little about growing up in Atlanta and how that has influenced you and your style?

Atlanta is an old school southern city that lacks a certain kind of fashion scene. There is a more uniform type of style in the south that is all about blending in with others. I always felt the need to reject this idea. I didn’t want to wear clothes everyone else was wearing so I was constantly experimenting with clothes. I think Atlanta is the reason I have a distinct style, because I tried so hard to dress the opposite way from what I saw here. It made me think about what I really wanted to say with my clothes, which was that I don’t want to look like everyone else around me.

What excited you as a child, and what did you want to be when you grew up?

This is going to sound odd but also explains a lot about me since I think I am an old soul, but I always enjoyed filing papers. I always thought I wanted to be a secretary because I loved filing cabinets and all the things that come along with organizing papers. Wow, I just made myself sound like the most boring child haha!  But when I was a child I always wanted to be a grown up.

When did you realize that you loved fashion?

Ever since I was little I was obsessed with bags and shoes and designer brands. It has always been something that interests me!

The tagline on your IG account is “Making the most out of the clothes I have since 1996” – We love that! Can you share the idea and sentiment behind this statement?

When I first started posting on Instagram pretty much everything I wore was thrifted or pieces I had lying around. I didn’t have the money to buy new clothes so I had to create new outfits with the same clothes. I began reinventing pieces in new and interesting ways, which I still do even though my wardrobe has grown a lot.

You refer to yourself as a “style” blogger, not a “fashion” blogger. Why the distinction?

Style is something you have to have an eye for and create for yourself, whereas fashion is something that is created by someone else. Fashion to me is so broad. Anyone can wear clothes created by the industry but to be able to style it is a different thing. I guess I just feel like the word fashion is also kind of a cliché and I don’t relate to it as much as I relate to the word style.

“Style is something you have, fashion is something you buy.”

Describe your style in three words.

Structured, colorful, and unintentionally methodical.

What are the defining elements of your Instagram aesthetic?

I try not to overthink what I post, but still take the time to create content that isn’t something I see every day. I post things I truly love and would want to see on my feed.

What other objectives you are trying to achieve through your work other than amazing looks?

To be confident in what you wear. If you truly love what you’re wearing you won’t care if others stare at you or think your outfit is weird.

Photos by Reese Blutstein

How can consumers become more sustainably minded when shopping?

Only buy things you know you will want to wear for a long time. Or, find pieces that you can style multiple ways, so you don’t get bored of the look and want to buy something new! Invest in classic pieces you will always love.

It is common to see fashion influencers in different outfits every single day, but you often repeat the same pieces. It seems like you put effort into utilizing the clothing that you have instead of purchasing new things all the time – what is your thinking behind that?

I don’t really put much forethought into it because in real life I actually do repeat items I own constantly, just like most other people on this earth! I can’t relate to someone who wears new clothes every single day and never styles the same piece twice. I am certain most people can’t relate to that. The idea of being a style blogger or “influencer” is to help inspire people and show people that they don’t need an endless supply of clothes or money to have style. The idea that you always need to have new pieces of clothing is just not realistic for most people, and not sustainable. I also don’t think that idea is very inspiring. Instead, it makes people think the clothes they have aren’t good enough, which is definitely not true.

“You have to keep looking at your clothes in a new light and come up with new ways to wear the same clothes, which is way more impressive to me than someone buying new clothes every day.”

I am standing in my closet and I have seen all my clothes a million times. How do I keep my wardrobe fresh looking?

Look for inspiration. I look on Tumblr every morning and pull inspiration from there. I obviously won’t have the same pieces as the people in the pictures, but I can always find similarities in my closet and that’s how I start to create a new look. If you see someone style a pair of shorts in a cool way that you never thought of, you can use that to idea to reinvent a piece most people have in their closet. So I would say always try to find a source of inspiration that helps you look at your clothes in a new light.

You are inspiring over 200k people each day – what is your favorite thing about being a style influencer? 

That I get to help inspire people every day!  I find it so cool that I could be the one who changes someone’s mind about a piece in their closet they thought they could never wear again. It's a lot of fun to put ideas out into the world and see people respond to them in a positive way.

What advice would you give to other young women who want to pursue this path?

Do it because you truly want to not because you want to be known or want to make money. I have people DM me all the time asking how I got to where I am, and I think they are waiting for a magical answer that will make them successful overnight, but that’s not how it works. The only difference between a successful person and a not successful person is that the successful person did it. You just have to try!  You can talk about all the things you want to do, but at the end of the day you actually have to do them -- even if they don’t work out!

Thank You, Reese!

All photography by Reese Blutstein

Follow Reese ~ @double3xposure