{"id":102446,"date":"2017-04-25T10:00:40","date_gmt":"2017-04-25T10:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/?p=102446"},"modified":"2017-04-25T10:00:40","modified_gmt":"2017-04-25T10:00:40","slug":"blogger-spotlight-neil-thornton-the-science-of-appearance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/blog\/blogger-spotlight-neil-thornton-the-science-of-appearance\/","title":{"rendered":"Blogger Spotlight: Neil Thornton, The Science of Appearance"},"content":{"rendered":"

Described as a no-nonesnse approach on how to navigate the modern world as a man, The Science of Appearance<\/a> is a men’s lifestyle blog, authored by <\/strong>London-based<\/strong> editor and writer Neil Thornton. In this spotlight<\/strong><\/span>, Neil chats to us about why it is more socially acceptable for men to be more fashion conscious, how mindfulness helps him to create more balance, why sponsorship disclosure is important and why he is focused on expanding his vlogging career this year.<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Neil<\/a><\/p>\n

What inspired you to start blogging?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>I started the blog when I began working in fashion. I started out as a stylist back in 2011, and the women who helped set me on that path told me to get a blog and get on social to start building up a voice for myself. The blog began as a diary for work I was doing with clients and eventually I realised I preferred writing about fashion more. So as I began pursuing a career as a writer the blog naturally expanded and developed alongside this.<\/p>\n

What big plans do you have for The Science of Appearance in 2017?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>I\u2019m excited to try out more video content this year and see where that goes. I\u2019m shooting a lot more, too. I have a few trips coming up so I\u2019m looking forward to documenting them, as well as expanding more into travel – my readers have responded well to what I\u2019ve done so far.<\/p>\n

How do you keep your audience engaged and what are the challenges?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>I engage with them. You can\u2019t just push out content to people and leave it at that. I talk with my readers and followers on social; answering questions, offering advice or saying hello. It helps them understand who I am and what I\u2019m about. I want to know what they like, I want to cater my content to them, rather than just making the blog purely about my life for them to follow.<\/p>\n

Do you think it is becoming more socially acceptable for men to be more fashion conscious?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>Totally. It has been for a while now. It doesn\u2019t have to mean wearing something outrageous or attention grabbing though. It simply means being aware of the clothes you\u2019re in, how they fit your body type as well as the brands themselves and how your garments are made. Men love knowing about their clothes. They love telling you where it was made, what the fabric is. It\u2019s storytelling.<\/p>\n

\"neil-thornton-the-science-of-spotlight-Vuelio\"<\/a><\/p>\n

How would you describe the average modern man?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>It\u2019s such a broad question. I don\u2019t know if I think there is an average. Average by age demographic maybe, but from young adults to the silver foxes of the world, there\u2019s a lot of difference. My average man, the guy I feel my blog caters to, is a young professional, he likes the idea of taking care of himself but doesn\u2019t necessarily have the tools for the job. That\u2019s where I think a lot of guys are. They have a rough idea of what they should be doing, and they like what they see on TV or in magazines, but they don\u2019t know where to start. That\u2019s where I come in!<\/p>\n

What big trends do you think we will see this year in regards to men\u2019s fashion?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>I think the colour palette boundaries will continue to expand, we\u2019ve done oranges, and we\u2019re embracing pink and blush. I also think we\u2019ll continue to see the influence of sportswear on everyday looks, both in cut and fabrication. But to be honest, I try to stay clear of fashion trends, it\u2019s not my area. I always think more along the lines of style than fashion. I\u2019m a traditionalist. I\u2019m about cut, fabric and colours that work for your shape. Then I pepper it with more trend-led pieces. My reader isn\u2019t the fashion-forward type, he\u2019s a guy who loves his clothes and wants to look good, not avant-garde.<\/p>\n

In addition to covering fashion and grooming, you also cover lifestyle. Why did you decide to incorporate lifestyle into your blog?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>In looking for content, I realised there was so much I had right in front of me I could talk about. From my own struggles in the gym, which everyone can relate to, to the tough life lessons I\u2019ve been learning over the years; in life, work and in relationships. I realised that these things are universal and my blog can become a platform for discussions. Then there\u2019s the lighter side of life, like travel. I thought, I spend so much time planning and exploring on holiday that I should share it!<\/p>\n

Why did you start vlogging?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>It was a stars-align moment for me. I had talked about doing it with a few people and a brand offered me their salon space for filming, and some other friends offered to help with filming and editing, so I felt like it would be an own-goal to miss the opportunity. So we filmed a load of videos, mainly grooming as I get a lot of questions about it. I still have some to put up a year later! I\u2019ve recently got back into it through a collaboration with Gillette. Vlogs are a whole other ball game, and I am very aware of the content I put out. I want it to be useful, accessible and educational. So I\u2019ll only use the medium when I feel there\u2019s something of value to put out.<\/p>\n

You recently did a vlog about the benefits of meditation. Why do you think that this holistic element of lifestyle is important to embrace?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>I know the idea of meditation can sound really hippy, but it\u2019s an amazing tool to utilise. A close friend of mine who works as a life coach got me started. I was having a pretty rough time with work and a loved one who was very sick. The stress and worry was beginning to show and meditation allowed me to sort through my thoughts in a structured and healthy way. It\u2019s amazing to stop still and suddenly see how much is going on inside your mind at any one time without you realising. It\u2019s important to work through these. Life is about balance. If you live a hectic lifestyle, you need to counter it with moments of peace and mindfulness.<\/p>\n

Do you ever struggle with how much of your personal life you should reveal on your blog?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>I\u2019ve never had too much of an issue sharing. Any of my friends would tell you that I\u2019m often too open. I can\u2019t stand when conversations are off limits. These are all things we go through, so why don\u2019t we talk about them? I want my blog to be a place where people can ask these questions, find the answers and connect with like-minded people. Saying this, there are still parts of my life I don\u2019t share. Not out of not wanting to, but I\u2019m always waiting for the right time and story to tell. I want my words to be something that will be of benefit. I think the main obstacle I faced was simply sharing my physical self. When my blog started, I never used to feature myself, it was just writing. But as the blog grew, I was told by some industry mentors that If I wanted to take it next level, I had to show people who I was. To see me in the clothes or using the products I\u2019m talking about. To give a higher level of connections. It\u2019s been a learning curve, I\u2019m not the most comfortable in front of the camera. I can\u2019t pose to save my life. I actually prefer video as I am a lot more comfortable talking to camera. I can wax lyrical on anything!<\/p>\n

What do you feel about sponsorship disclosure?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>I think it\u2019s important. It\u2019s another odd one where people get funny talking about it. I\u2019m fortunate that I have a full-time job, so my blog is mostly pure fun for me. But I have done sponsored work, but I am lucky to be able to choose brands I work with based purely on a pre-existing love for them and an authentic connection. If you are full-time blogging, you\u2019re at the mercy of needing to pay bills, and I get that pressure. You\u2019re then afraid of having everything being sponsored\u00a0or needing to work with a brand you may not otherwise work with. I guess you need to make sure you\u2019re doing enough content for content\u2019s sake in-between. Openness and honesty is always the best policy. It\u2019s a clich\u00e9 but it\u2019s true. If you\u2019re open with your audience, they will get it. People are savvier these days, they know when you\u2019ve been paid.<\/p>\n

What’s next for you? Will you be working on any exciting projects?\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>I\u2019m keeping my options open! The blog is such a labour of love and it\u2019s really ramping up at the moment. I just want to make sure it\u2019s always fun and that I am always offering a unique voice. I want to keep up with the amazing experiences I\u2019ve had in the last year, from travelling to video collaborations. They allow for such better and broader content than reviews and mean more to the reader.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In this spotlight, Neil chats to us about why it is more socially acceptable for men to be more fashion conscious, how mindfulness helps to create more balance, why sponsorship disclosure is important and why he is focused on expanding his vlogging career this year. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":423,"featured_media":102451,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7272,4038,6980,1449],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102446"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/423"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=102446"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102446\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":103087,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102446\/revisions\/103087"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/102451"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=102446"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=102446"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=102446"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}