Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Buckingham.
Jennifer, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I started my blog as a way of expressing my love of style and a mission to help others on their own self-acceptance journey. I wanted to see more diverse bodies in the traditional and digital media we are saturated with in our daily lives. I have never been a “small” girl and for much of my life I faced a nasty uphill battle with self-esteem that manifested into both mental and physical issues. I don’t think that magically one day we are all of a sudden cured of our insecurities. However, I believe we can recondition old negative thought patterns and replace them with positive beliefs. My blog combines lifestyle elements with the philosophy that we are all beautiful, worthy, and enough just as we are right now in the present moment. Life is far too precious to spend your time putting yourself down or holding yourself back from pursuing the things you are passionate about. My goal is spread a positive message that no matter what part of your journey you are on, you deserve to own your beautiful individuality and feel empowered to move forward in whatever way feels best in your life.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The personal growth, I’ve gone through as a result of this work has definitely not been completely linear. There have been struggles and hard lessons that I’ve learned. Sometimes we all have to take a step back and regroup. Personally, some of my biggest struggles are when I do not feel good about myself and doubt myself in the message, I am putting out there. What I found is so powerful though, is to talk about that because other people are going through it too. The power of connection is so beautiful and strong. In the midst of perfectly curated social media feeds, it is a breath of fresh air to get real about what is actually going on in real life.
My advice for young women thinking about starting a blog would be to stay authentic to yourself. You don’t need to be anyone other than who you are. There are a ton of blogs out there, but only one you. Talk about something you are passionate about that resonates in your life. Also, be kind to yourself and say eff you to fear. I think we stop ourselves from going after what we really want so often because we are afraid of the outcome. The moment we can give fear the middle finger and do something we are passionate about that is where the magic starts to happen!
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Jennifer Buckingham, Life + Style Blogger – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
My work is mainly as a lifestyle plus size blogger and also a plus size model. As a plus size model, I was really proud to represent more diversity in the industry. The majority of plus size models stop at the smallest end of the plus size spectrum, which makes it difficult for many consumers to know what a garment would look like on their body. I truly believe all bodies should be represented because representation is extremely important.
At the vast majority if not all of the castings I’ve gone on, I definitely felt like I stood out from the standard measurements in the industry. At times it felt very defeating. As time has gone on, I’ve tried to change that conversation in my head and think how cool it would be to see more diversity in the size of models. One of my proudest moments is when a big retailer found me on my agency’s website, and I was their first plus model to work with this huge department store. That was a big personal victory for me, and I hope to continue to break down barriers.
What advice would you give to someone at the start of her career?
My biggest piece of advice is to stay authentic and true to yourself. There is only one you in this world and I think that being real, open, and vulnerable is the best way to connect to others. Build a career off of something you are passionate about that feels purpose drives and fulfilling to you.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jenniferbuckingham.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jennifer.buckingham
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jenniferbuckinghamblog
Image Credit:
Gabe and Brit Photography
Nicole Alex
Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
