Interview with Annie

Today’s interview is with the very stylish, very chic Annie – a product manager in Los Angeles. I have been a long time reader of Annie’s blog because she just has such a wonderful sense of style – she always looks put together, chic but never too trendy, and comfortable in what she’s wearing. Enjoy meeting Annie!

Who are you? What do you do, and where do you live?

My name is Annie. I work in the tech industry by day and am a blogger by night where I have my mind wander in fashion and beauty. I currently live in Los Angeles. I’ve been living in Los Angeles for a total of about 18 years, but in between I moved around, living in Korea and Michigan.

You work in tech/product design. How did you end up in your career?

Working in the tech industry wasn’t part of my “original” plan. I majored in supply chain management and business and when it came to looking for a job none of the job locations really interested me. Where I was going to live was priority over getting a job – clearly my priorities were not in the right order!

So, soon after graduation, I packed up and left Michigan for LA. Luckily, it all worked out and I landed a job working for a very well known electronics company. My job started out as a technology market researcher and slowly evolved to managing and developing mobile and web products. As much as this career path wasn’t what I planned, I love it. I get the chance to wear many hats from designing, developing, marketing, etc. Plus, technology is constantly evolving so it never get’s boring. The best part of my job I would have to say is seeing my product come to life after working on it for months.

Can you share a little bit more about your style? 

My style is simple and classic with a bit of edge. The edginess will usually come from my shoes, jewelry or bags which I like to wear as a statement piece. As for clothing, I love simple pieces with a unique twist whether it’s the cut of the fabric or the detailing. You will rarely find me wearing a dress/skirt unless I have to attend a wedding. Otherwise, if I am wearing a skirt/dress on a normal day I’ll most likely pair it with something that has a bit of edge or a leather jacket, which is my “go to” to tone down the girly-ness for any outfit.

My inspiration comes from my mom hence why I used “Jin” in my blog name “Herimajination” (my mom and I share the same middle name). My mom is very fashionable and I’ve always loved her sense of style. When we shop together it’s double trouble! She currently lives in Seoul which has become a fashion mecca so I usually get some of their fashion inside scoop from her which gives me inspirations to try new things. Also, being in the blogging world, I find a lot of inspirations from other fellow fashion bloggers.

What are some of your favorite items in your wardrobe?

I’m pretty obsessed with my Celine clutch right now. I usually switch out my bag pretty often, but lately I’ve been carrying this clutch nonstop. I love that it’s half leather, half embossed faux crocodile. Also, I normally carry oversized bags, but the clutch only allows me to carry very limited things – iphone, pocket mirror, lipgloss/lipstick, pen, cardholder. Plus, it was a birthday from my close girlfriends, which is another reason why I love it so much.

I’ve also been hooked on the Everlane silk blouses. I own a black and blush color, but want to own every single color and variation of them. The silk quality is pretty top notch and the colors are so pretty!

Any recent splurges that you love? 

My biggest splurge was my Loro Piana coat. Living in LA you don’t really need to invest in a cashmere coat, but at the time I was purchasing it I convinced myself that I could get good mileage out of it when I travel back home (Korea) during the winters. Plus, it’s so soft and light that I couldn’t resist! I’ve worn it during some of the cold LA nights and it was perfect with a lightweight shirt or sweater. It’s such a classic piece that will never go out of style, so I will have to say it was a pretty good investment.

Another recent splurge was on some Diptyque candles. They are like the Hermes of candles. But, it looks pretty wherever you place it in the house and there’s something calming about burning a candle and the pretty scent is certainly the cherry on top!

What’s a piece of advice about style and building an ideal wardrobe that you could share?

Style should be something of your own. There are a lot of influences/influencers out there like fashion magazines, bloggers and celebrities, which is great for inspiration, but you should always be true to yourself. If your trying out a trend and don’t feel confident, I would suggest to think twice before walking out the door because you should always be confident in what you wear.

When building your wardrobe I think the key importance is to be aware of your body type and know what works and what doesn’t work for your body type. You want to make sure every piece in your wardrobe flatters your body. Also, investing in good basics and timeless pieces that you know won’t go out of style is the best investment since they will be worn frequently in rotation.

If you ever do come across something you want to buy and you see it being a one time trend, I would highly advise to find a budget friendly version. The last thing you want is to drop big bucks for something you’ll only wear for one season and then have it sit in your closet collecting dust. With that said, my other advice is to mix and match high-end and low-end designer pieces. My closet has a good balance of high and low price tagged pieces which I like to mix up when putting together my outfits. One thing to keep in mind is that fabric makes a huge difference, so when shopping for pieces from low end designers make sure to touch the fabric and check the hardware. As long as the fabric and hardware is in good quality a $20 item can look like $200. Also, you can always change up the hardware yourself if your not happy with it – an easy and simple hardware upgrade you can do yourself are changing out the buttons.

You’re getting married soon! What’s been the funnest part of wedding planning – and not so fun?

The best part about wedding planning was looking for venues. My fiancé and I both love to travel so we would make it into a weekend trip by checking out venues in Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez and Palm Springs, which helped to make it feel less like a wedding chore. And of course, the other fun part was trying on wedding dresses with my close girl friends. What girl doesn’t like playing dress up, right? The not so fun part is probably trying to stay within a budget, which is tough because you want it to be perfect! Everything adds up so quickly, so I highly recommend having an excel sheet and keeping track of all your spending.

At the Parker Hotel in Palm Springs

You love to travel and described how you often visit New York, San Francisco, Las Vegas, and Palm Springs. Why these destinations? What are some of the favorite places you’ve traveled – and any particular favorite hotels/resorts?

Living in LA, these destinations are easily accessible and they all have something I love to indulge myself in. I love visiting San Francisco because they have great coffee (I’m a coffee addict) and the food is so tasty! I love Vegas for obvious reasons – gambling & shopping. Most of the time I come back a winner playing blackjack, so I’ll bring myself back a little souvenir. When I want to get some R&R, my go to place is Palm Springs. There’s something about the mid century decor and the heat that makes me feel like I’m in the 60’s and it relaxes me. New York on the other hand is such a fun city and I love going there and feeling the high strung energy of the city and the people. So, I’ll fly out there to visit friends for a little dose of that. I don’t particular favor one place over the other. They all have their own charm. Out of all the hotels and resorts I’ve stayed while traveling, I would have to say that The Parker in Palm Spring and the Shangri-La in the Philippines were by far my favorite. Hopefully, I can add another one onto the list from my honeymoon.

What are some of your other passions and hobbies?

I have a passion for cooking, traveling and photography. Lately, I’ve really gotten into arranging flowers. On the weekend, I’ll go to my local flower shop or Trader Joe’s and buy an assortment of flowers and arrange them in various types of vases or bottles and scatter them all around the house.

Finally – please share something surprising about yourself!

I’m a tech geek! It’s not so much of a surprise anymore here on your site, but people do get caught by surprise when I tell them I have a technical background as my career.

I have to repeat myself again and say that I adore Annie’s style. It’s exactly how I think a cool California girl would dress! I love that she’s from a technical background and works in the technology space – one of my favorite aspects of these interviews has been discovering all of the incredibly diverse careers that people have. Thank you very much to Annie for being here today – and for more of her, please visit her blog.