Diana Cordero, LSU alumna and Baton Rouge Fashion Week judge, shares her fashion journey and what we can expect from this year’s show.
Coming to LSU from the Dominican Republic, where she grew up for 17 years, Cordero brought the vibrancy and boldness of the Caribbean to Baton Rouge. She found she had a love for putting outfits together from a young age and worked at the retail store Express for five years during her time in college.
The culture and way of life of the Dominican Republic allowed her to express her unique style anywhere she went. She combined her fun Caribbean style with her new found love for Louisiana fashion.
Dominican style embraces the sunshine and warm climate that makes it such a beautiful place.
Vibrant colors like blue and green, floral patterns and bold prints are recurring trends in the Caribbean. Cordero took these staples and made them her own.
“You’re not scared to play with color, vibrancy or tones,” Cordero said. “All of that, that’s where I think the Dominican Republic comes in for me.”
In 2012, Cordero saw other women in the Baton Rouge area sharing their love for fashion through their blogs and was inspired by their posts. Her love for fashion, creation and that inspiration from other bloggers inspired her to start Foster the Fashion.
Foster the Fashion is a personal style blog where Cordero expresses her love for fashion. Not only does the blog showcase Cordero’s skill for coordinating outfits, but her love for Baton Rouge as well.
Cordero believes that in the age of social media, people always have something to say, are more visual and have less time to grab other’s attention. So, what’s her advice for anyone who wants to start a blog of their own?
There are so many bloggers today, which Cordero believes is a good thing. She encourages people hoping to start a blog of their own to have a tailored niche target to be able to stand out. She believes that even with such a large amount of people blogging, there’s still room for everyone.
Cordero took her own experiences and fashion journey and created content readers could be excited to see. She wishes to encourage others to do the same.
“If there’s something in you that you need to express and put out there, ‘Just Do It’ like Nike,” Cordero said.
Foster the Fashion helped Cordero launch her fashion career and is a great read for Baton Rouge natives to see local inspiration.
“It started with my own love for clothes and putting things together, but eventually you get invited to events and you can do different things with it,” Cordero said. “Just start and see where it will lead you.”
Foster the Fashion led Cordero to becoming a reoccurring judge at Oneofakind Baton Rouge Fashion Week. She was first invited as media, and then Brandon Campbell, the founder of Oneofakind Baton Rouge Fashion Week, asked her to be a judge.
The show features local talent, designers and stores from Baton Rouge. There’s even an LSU student participating this year, and a reappearing alum SimplyJoe will make his return super sweet.
When asked what we can expect from this year’s show, Cordero shared that she hasn’t had any sneak peeks yet and has no idea what to expect.
“With SimplyJoe, he blew me away last year,” Cordero said. “I thought he was going to do something lacier, and he brought this retro-mod line that was amazing. So, I cannot predict what he’s going to bring this year, but I heard the words cotton candy, so he’s going to play with that so I can’t wait.”
When it comes to continuing her personal fashion journey, Cordero is coming full circle. She shares that she is revamping her blog and even hopes to start incorporating other people who inspire her. Since Foster the Fashion is about embracing different styles, she hopes to add features of others as a journal style blog, as well as continuing to share her own things.
“You’re never done really, you’re always trying to think of new things,” Cordero said.
Cordero will continue to update Louisiana residents on the latest fashion news and look fabulous while doing it.
The sixth annual Oneofakind Baton Rouge Fashion Week will feature many events the week of Feb. 17, primarily in the downtown area.
