Favorite Blogs: Interview with Laura of Tagträumerin

Hello everyone! :) It’s time for the weekly Friday interview, today with my lovely blogger pal Laura from Leipzig who writes the awesome, colorful blog Tagträumerin which is about fashion, second hand, DIY and lifestyle, written by a lovely lady who knows how to enjoy life. :) Can’t wait, Laura and I are going to meet each other in person in only three weeks! <3
So here’s her very inspiring and interesting interview, have fun! :)

1. Please introduce yourself. :)
Hi there, my name is Laura and I’m from Leipzig, Germany – my favourite city in the whole world! After finishing my A-levels, I did an apprenticeship as a tailor. At the moment, I’m studying fashion design in a small city named Schneeberg. This summer, I’ve been blogging at Tagtraeumerin (translation = day dreamer) for five years! Crazy!

2. Why and when did you start blogging?
I started my blog in the summer of 2007, because I wanted to share my own point of view on fashion and my craft projects. At that time, I had been sewing for about 2 years, but I was still far away from being an expert, so I also wanted to document the progress I was making.

3. How would you briefly describe your blog and its style? What is the main focus of your blog?
I love colors, so they’re a big part of my life and, naturally, of my blog. I love playing with patterns and colors in my projects and outfits to create something fresh. In addition, I really like interesting, surprising and funny details. The main focus of my blog is to make people happy. My aim is to motivate others to enjoy the beauty of every day and make beautiful things with their own two hands. I post about my outfits, craft projects, vintage finds and inspirations.

4. What is special about you and your personal style? What makes you unique?
As I mentioned before, I think I have my own point of view that differs from what the fashion world thinks is “in”. I like to mix vintage elements and bright colors into something that appeals to me – no matter if others think it’s fashionable or not. To my mind, it’s important to follow your own style when it comes to fashion and design.

5. What is the best thing you have ever made / created / sewed / cooked / …? Please tell me about your best project and share a link!
Wow, that is one difficult question, since I have made so many things I love and wear regularly! However, this t-shirt adorned with a silk peter-pan-collar from last summer is definitely among my all-time-favourites!

6. Concerning the creative part of your life, what is the best thing that has ever happened to you?
Last Spring, I got an e-mail from a big German publishing company mainly focused on craft books. You know what? They asked me to write a book for them! They had an idea for the book and asked me to write a brief concept. Obviously, it was convincing, so I won the contract and wrote a book last year! In November of 2011, “Hilfe! Meine Jeans hat ein Loch” (translation = “Help! There’s a hole in my pair of jeans!”) finally came out. As you can imagine, it was amazing to hold my first book in my hands! I’m still so proud and thankful for this opportunity that I would not have been given without my blog. If you want to know a bit more, take a look at this post.

7. Who and / or what inspires you? Where do you get your inspiration from and how does your inspirational process look like?
I get inspired by so many things! Vintage books and magazines, nature, the people who surround me, my home town Leipzig, beautiful blogs and websites like yours, … I always try to go through the world with open eyes and carry a little notebook or my camera with me most of the time. If I see something that appeals to me, I record it and might use it later on. 

8. In which way does your course of study contribute to the content of your blog?
Although I don’t post about my university projects that often (except at the end of the term when I’m not able to think about anything else), studying Fashion Design has influenced the way I see and design things. In addition, I have been able to improve my creative skills, for instance photography and drawing.

9. How do you organize blogging? Do you always prepare your posts in advance or do you rather spontaneously post about what comes to your mind?
It depends. At the end of the week, I always write down my blog post ideas for the next week. I sometimes get to prepare a few posts, sometimes I don’t. However, I always try to add spontaneous posts to my “schedule”, because I think that makes a blog more up to date and personal.

10. Please name three of your favorite blogs to share them with my readers and briefly tell me why you like them and what makes them worth reading.
My absolute favourites are Mein Morgenstern, Squeaky Swing as well as A Beautiful Mess. Oh, and I love your blog, Lu, but I guess that doesn’t count!

11. Please share links to three of your favorite DIY ideas or projects by other creative people. :)
Eni’s shelf make-over, the horse throw pillows from A Beautiful Mess and Stefanie’s lace bag are among my all-time-favourites!

12. Is there anything really important you‘ve learned through blogging and do you have any useful advice for other bloggers?
I think it’s important to do what you love and what makes you happy. Thinking too much about other people or visitor figures will not make you feel inspired, but dejected. Do your own thing and if others like it, too, that’s fine! If they don’t, keep doing what you love – someday you will find the right readers! Another advice I have is: be focused! I like blogs with a strong focus and personal style and bloggers who know what they have to say.

13. What is your biggest dream or most important goal you want to achieve?
I hope I can, at some point, make a living from what I love to do. Maybe blogging, maybe writing books, maybe sewing beautiful things and selling them, maybe writing tutorials and selling sewing patterns, maybe creating websites for others. In addition, I dream of having my own little family, owning a big garden with homegrown vegetables and a retro caravan to spend our summer vacations in… But no matter if that becomes true or not, I try enjoy every single day and make an effort to see the beauty in “ordinary” things.

So inspiring and charming, thank you again so much for answering my questions!! :)
Lu <3

(All photos in this post belong to Tagträumerin!)