We love Samantha Amador's retro style inspired by the 80s and 90s! The fashion blogger regularly posts photos of her outfits on her Instagram, @Samantheah. Learn more about Samantha's favorite stores to shop at, summer trends she's loving, and the challenges she's had to face with being a fashion blogger.
Where are you from and where do you live now?
I was born in New Jersey and moved to Orlando, Florida when I was a kid and currently still live in Orlando now.
How would you describe your style?
I would describe my style as retro. Anything that reminds me of the 80's and 90's, I'm literally obsessed with. Jeans, shorts, sneakers, sandals, track pants, graphic tees, floral blouses, gingham, pastel — all of the above! Being comfortable is a major key in my style as I always dress for comfort first, then everything else follows.
How did you get into fashion blogging? What inspired you to start?
My boyfriend Julian brought a DSLR camera last year and he would always take photos of me for practice. One day it just hit me like, you know what? I could totally be using these photos for my Instagram. I grew a liking to being in front of the camera and started putting outfits together so I could have new photos to post on Instagram. "DO IT FOR THE GRAM" was so real haha. I later found myself just naturally inspiring and motivating young women to love themselves and be comfortable in their own skin. A couple months later in October 2016, my blog "& Samantha" went live :).
Do you use a film camera to take some of your photos? What draws you to film?
I use a mixture of film, DSLR, and iPhone shots for my blog and Instagram. I base my Instagram around my life/lifestyle, so whatever camera is handy at the time is usually what I'll use. I love that film is unique and so timeless in the sense that I feel like it'll never go away. Learning and using film is so fascinating to me, like what film to use, is the lighting right — all that jazz keeps me interested. The excitement I experience when I go to pick up developed film to see how the photos turned out is unreal. Shooting with film isn't something that a lot of people are doing so that draws me more to it and makes me love it even more. Maybe I'm just an old soul, idk, but I love old technology like cassette players and boom boxes... I wish they still made stuff that looked that cool nowadays.
What trends are you loving this summer?
The number one trend I'm loving this summer are sunnies! There are so many different styles, shapes, and colors. I literally have to stop myself from buying all of them. Off-the-shoulder tops are also my go-to this summer, especially since they're so easy to dress up or wear more casually. I don't know if I would consider this a trend, but I'm loving pastel colored nail polish this summer. Gimme all the baby pinks, blues, purples, and yellows!
If you had to wear only one outfit for the rest of your life, what would you choose?
Okay, hands down, I can literally wear this everyday. I'm the happiest human ever if you give me a pair of light wash high-waisted Levi mom jeans, any pair of comfy sneakers but preferably Nike Roshe Runs, and an oversized graphic tee. I feel like this outfit looks good and it's also just super comfortable, and I love being comfortable. Roshe Runs though — if you don't have a pair, do yourself the favor! #notsponsored
For the people out there having a lazy day, do you have any tips for how to still look put-together?
Be you. Just wear something you're comfortable in. Not necessarily physically, but something you're mentally comfortable in and you can pull off whatever.
How do you edit your photos?
I use VSCO and Lightroom to edit my photos for both my blog and Instagram. VSCO is my day one and I love the large variety of filters and simple editing tools it has.
What are some of your favorite places to shop at?
My new favorite is for sure ASOS. I love how they carry brand names, or self-branded things and they even have an annual 2-day free shipping subscription. Isn't that amazing?! I may or may not be subscribed to that :). Forever 21 and H&M are my choice for daily outfits that I wear. If I'm feeling fancy, I'll pop into Zara and see if there's anything that I like. Urban Outfitters just speaks to my soul with their vintage clothes, apartment section, and that tech section though. I've also been shopping a lot at Glossier lately and I just love how simple and easy to apply all of their products are. Those are my mains, but I also buy little things from Nasty Gal and Free People as well :).
What are challenges you've faced with being a fashion blogger?
I would have to say genuineness. I entered into the blogging world thinking everyone would want to be your friend and that is not the case *insert upside down smiley face*. Surround yourself with people who better you, support you, and truly befriend you. Another challenge I've faced with fashion blogging is staying creative. Sometimes I find it difficult to continuously create new content and stay original. I am always looking for inspiration and ways to make the same thing look different every time.
Anything else you'd like to mention?
Stay true to yourself and know you can literally accomplish whatever you want. We live in a time now where you can make a career out of whatever you love, so go for it.
You can follow Samantha on the following links:
Blog: andsamantha.com
Instagram: @Samantheah
Twitter: @Samantheahh
Pinterest: Samantheah