One Year Blog Anniversary: 11 Questions To Get To Know Me Better | Of Leather and Lace

Exactly one year ago today, I started my blog. To celebrate my one year blog anniversary, I am accepting the 11 questions challenge (nominated by Khoi from Gentleman Within). I hope these 11 questions will help you to get to know me better! : )

ONE YEAR BLOG ANNIVERSARY

11 Questions To Get To Know Me Better

1. WHY DID YOU START BLOGGING?

A myriad of reasons. After 3 years of studying fashion and over a year of working in the industry full-time I had accumulated many fashion items that I felt was interesting and worth sharing. I also wanted to start a leather accessory brand so I thought a blog would be a great way to gain an audience for my future brand (the brand hasn’t happened yet, but I haven’t given up on it yet either!). Furthermore, and perhaps most importantly, I wanted a business of my own. I wanted and needed to become financially independent. I’m not there yet, but I’m working towards it, every-single-day!

One Year Blog Anniversary: 11 Questions To Get To Know Me Better | Of Leather and Lace

2. IF YOUR ENTIRE LIFE WAS A MOVIE, WHAT WOULD THE TITLE BE?

Hmmm… this may sound corny, but probably “The Lucky One”. My whole life I’ve felt SO lucky. I have always been surrounded by beautiful, wonderful, supportive human beings my whole life. In particular, my parents and my current boyfriend have been so supportive of my blog endeavors. I am eternally grateful to all these people.

One Year Blog Anniversary: 11 Questions To Get To Know Me Better | Of Leather and LaceOne Year Blog Anniversary: 11 Questions To Get To Know Me Better | Of Leather and Lace

3. Who was your favorite cartoon character as a child?

Chibi Maruko Chan – see the resemblance?

This is little me!

4. WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE QUOTE OF ALL-TIME?

“Keep your heels, head and standards high” – source unknown

One Year Blog Anniversary: 11 Questions To Get To Know Me Better | Of Leather and Lace

5. KNOWING WHAT YOU KNOW NOW, WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE YOUR TEENAGE SELF?

It’s too late to wait for everything to be perfect before you start. Just-start-NOW. I have spent so many years NOT doing. and I have wasted so much time that could’ve counted towards my future. I wish I had known the importance of starting early and just started no matter what.

Also, ignore the haters. Do you, be the best that you can be, focus on becoming better at all times and KILL the haters with success.

One Year Blog Anniversary: 11 Questions To Get To Know Me Better | Of Leather and Lace

6. IF YOU COULD BRING ONE MUSICIAN BACK FROM THE DEAD, WHO WOULD IT BE AND WHY?

Rachmaninoff. In my 10 years of playing piano as a kid, Rachmaninoff was the first composer whose music really spoke to me. I played his Prelude in C sharp minor and it’s the one piece I still remember how to play today, 10+ years later.

7. WHAT OR WHO HAS BEEN THE GREATEST INFLUENCES IN YOUR LIFE THUS FAR?

My mother. My mother is an amazing, loving, selfless and caring woman – everything you would expect from a stellar mum. She has taught me so much and shown me time and time again what it means to be a good person and loving mother.

8. WHAT ARE SOME GOALS THAT YOU HAVE FOR YOUR BLOG IN THE SHORT AND LONG TERM?

In the short term, I would just like to focus on good content creation and growth. After all, it’s only my one year blog anniversary – the blog still needs to grow and I still have much to learn! In the long term, I would like to be a top fashion and travel blogger – nothing less.

One Year Blog Anniversary: 11 Questions To Get To Know Me Better | Of Leather and Lace

9. WHATS THE ONE SUPERPOWER YOU WISH YOU HAD AND HOW WOULD YOU USE IT?

I’ve always wanted to be wolverine. As a woman, I’ve always felt physically weaker and occasionally unsafe. I cannot rely on my own physical abilities to protect myself should any danger befall upon me. So I’ve always wanted extraordinary skills to protect myself. Plus, I don’t wanna grow old. I don’t want wrinkles. I mean, who does?

10. WHAT IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST LEAPS OF FAITH YOU’VE TAKEN IN YOUR LIFE?

Quitting my job as a lingerie designer. I don’t know if I will get to where I want to get to but I know it was the right decision.

11. WHAT IS “HOME” TO YOU?

This is a difficult question for me because I’ve lived in so many different cities throughout my life. But at the end of the day, home is where I was born and where my family is – Taiwan.


BONUS Q&A

Because it is my one year blog anniversary, I had asked my Instagram friends to ask me any questions they might have and I will answer them here. So here are a few:

Question from @stretcherella (my good friend from Parsons!):

Q: How in the world do you guys manage to take photos in ultra touristy places without any tourists there?! 

A: Always get there before anyone else. For public spaces I usually try to get there the moment the sun rises, around 6-7AM. When we were in Rome, I woke up at 4:45 in order to put on makeup and get to Trevi fountain at 5:45!! I guarantee you there won’t be more than 2-3 people there and you’ll be able to get your empty shot! It takes a lot of early mornings and dedication. : )

Question from @thegentwithin

Q: How do you edit all your amazing photos?

A: Thank you! Much to many people’s surprise, I actually take a lot of my photos on my iPhone. (I have an iPhone 7 Plus). For my iPhone photos, I tend to edit them just in the iPhoto in-built app. Sometimes I use Facetune to clean the skin and whiten yellow parts of the photo. Recently I’ve just started using VSCO to put filters and change the tint of my color so that each photo remains consistent in my Instagram feed. For my blog photos, usually the photographers I work with edit them. If I were to edit my DSLR photos I use Photoshop.

I think the key to a good photo, though, isn’t editing. It’s to start with a well-composed photo with good lighting. Of course, some photos can be salvaged even if it isn’t well lit or well-composed. But it’s important to have a decent photo to work with first.

Question from @lovedaleyblog

Q: How did you reach so many followers in a year and should I pay for a web developer if I’m just starting?

A: Okay, easy answer first – you don’t need a web developer when you’re just starting. Try a few different templates and see which one you like the best. It’s hard to know exactly what kind of look you want at first without trying things out so there’s no point in paying someone if you might change your blog design in the near future.

How did I reach so many followers in 1 year? Personally I don’t think I have a lot of followers to be honest. Right now I have 24.2K followers on Instagram – definitely macro blogger status for Instagram. But nonetheless, I would never have thought I would be at 24.2K a year since I started (I had 600 followers, most of which were my friends, 11 months ago). I would say the main ways to grow is to

1) find your target audience
2) engage with this audience
3) always put out GREAT content
4) research your hashtags and use all 30 hashtags per post
5) use all 20 tags and tag feature accounts that may feature your content

This is a topic I could go much further in depth about, but I will stop here so this post doesn’t go on forever. If you have any questions or if you would like a more details post, please leave a comment and let me know!

Follow Of Leather and Lace on Instagram @ofleatherandlace


Thank you Khoi from Gentleman Within for nominating me for this 11 Question Challenge. It was his one year blog anniversary when he wrote his 11 Question Challenge so I thought it would be appropriate for me to reciprocate on my blog birthday. I think I will refrain from nominating other bloggers, partially because I don’t want anyone to feel pressured to answer but mainly because I don’t even know if I have 11 blogger friends (hey, give me a break! I’m an introvert!)

Thank you for reading along and for visiting my blog, whether you’re a newcomer or an oldie. I will strive to create great content for you all in the years to come. I sincerely hope you will find some of the information/photos helpful or inspiring.

| Photography by Austin Donohue |


If you don’t mind indulging my narcissism for a bit longer, read my post about the 5 lessons I learned in the 5 years of living in NYC.

5 Lessons Learned From 5 Years of Living in New York City | Of Leather and Lace - Travel & Fashion Blog by Tina Lee

20 thoughts on “One Year Blog Anniversary: 11 Questions To Get To Know Me Better”

  1. Hi Tina! A fellow fashion creative here! It’s great to know about your fashion background and your dream of creating your accessories brand – can’t wait for it 😀

    1. Hi Karen! Thanks for stopping by! Loved your illustrations 🙂 always great to meet fellow fashion creatives!

  2. Wow! Way to go. Congratulations on your one year blog anniversary. You’ve come a long way and your images and content speak for themselves. Yes, all about ignoring the haters and pursuing your dreams.

  3. I recently finished studying fashion myself and trying to build an online presence by creating DIY video projects. Just like you, the aim is to grow an audience to launch my clothing line in the future. It hasn’t been easy so far but reading stories of other talented women like yourself re-fuels me and keeps me going.
    Keep going Tina, your future is bright and promising ✨

    1. What you’re doing sounds amazing Priscillia! And you’re right – it’s not easy! But good things don’t come easy 🙂 Keep at it and you’ll see great results I’m sure!

  4. Wow Tina- I had no idea your blog was only one year old, you have achieved so much already! Congrats and I wish you all the best. You are one of the bloggers who gave me the courage to re-start blogging after a 5-year hiatus. I spent countless hours silently looking at your posts, your travels and outfits, and you really really inspired me. I also appreciate that you mentioned 1) forgetting perfection and just doing it anyway, whatever “IT” is, and 2) that you will accept nothing less than being a top travel and fashion blogger. You have a strong spirit, and you will succeed greatly!

    Happy Anniversary!

    http://www.dafrastar.com

    1. Wow. This is by far the best comment I’ve ever received, ever! Thank you so so much Dafra 🙂 It’s so good to hear from you and thank you so much for stopping by! xoxo Tina

  5. Happy 1 year anniversary! I begun an LGTB Lifestyle, fashion and travel blog a few weeks ago and yours was one of my biggest inspirations. Keep on the AMAZING work! XO.

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