We had the good fortune of connecting with Jolie Jones and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jolie, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I think my thought process has changed a lot since I started my blog. I was in either 7th or 8th grade when I started blogging and Dani Austin was my biggest inspiration. I loved her outfits, I thought she was hilarious, and I just loved how she talked to her audience like they were her friends. After just a few months of following her, I knew that I wanted to try this whole Instagram thing. But after a little bit of starting my blog, I realized that a huge part of it involves posting the direct links to your outfits.

But the difference between me and these big name influences is, they get most of their stuff from Nordstrom and I’m more of a TJ Maxx girl. Possibly Nordstrom Rack if the right deal comes along. And the issue with posting stuff about TJ Maxx is that you can’t post the direct link to the item because items vary store to store. (This is why I’m just waiting for the day that LikeToKnow.It disables my account because I rarely post on it.) I decided that the best course of action for me to take would be to try to find clothes and products that I love that won’t break the bank! I want women to feel amazing in these outfits at any price point!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I feel like my brand is kind of a mix of everything. In the very beginning, I wanted to just be completely fashion, but then I started sharing about my faith. I eventually just landed on being more of a lifestyle blogger because I feel like my page doesn’t fit into one specific box. I think what sets me apart from others would be that I’m a teenage blogger. I’ve met some other amazing bloggers my age but the majority of Instagram bloggers are adults. It’s definitely hard trying to balance school, work, my blog, and just being a teenager. I’m still learning how to balance it all. I’ve struggled with just trying to let myself be a kid because I want to work on my blog and my passions but I also just want to have fun and hang out with my friends. I’m getting better about balancing it all each and every day. I’ve found such an amazing community through blogging and that is truly what keeps me going.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
So I recently just visited Fossil Rim for the first time and holy cow…it was a blast. So a trip to Glen Rose would definitely be on the itinerary. I’d definitely have to take them shopping around some small businesses because who doesn’t love to support local shops? I live in Burleson and my favorite place to shop is this little shop called The Market Emporium. It’s owned by the sweetest lady and all of the stuff is at an extremely reasonable price point. I discovered it one day when my best friend and I were walking around Old Town, it’s actually where my love for big, over the top earrings was born! I remember picking a pair of pink tassle earrings up and I just fell in love. I almost didn’t buy them because I was afraid people were gonna think they were too crazy but my friend talked me into getting them and I’m so glad I did. I always go back in there to check out more jewelry. As far as food goes it would definitely be Mojos for lunch (Mojos is this AMAZING Mexican food spot in Burleson), It’s like a glorified Chipotle and I love it. And for dessert we’d have to stop at Doughboy’s for a gourmet donut. It’s family owned and everything is made from scratch. I love it.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
This is a hard question because I have had so many people who have helped me so much through this journey. But I think I’d definitely have to say that my sweet friend, Lyndan has encouraged me. I met Lyndan at church and she is the sweetest soul alive. I remember telling her about this dream of mine and her being so willing to listen. She made me get after it and keep going. One night we were standing around after church and I told her about how badly I wanted to go to Austin to go visit a friend of ours and take some Instagram pictures. She looked at me dead in the face and goes “Well let’s do it.” My favorite thing about her isn’t just how much she loves her friends, it’s how much she loves Jesus. She’s just showed me this example of how we should love our God and it is so encouraging. I think she’s gonna kill me when she reads this part of the article because she doesn’t give herself enough credit but I can truly say that she has been my biggest supporter.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joliejo.blogs/

Image Credits
Mallory Woods (CapturedByWoods)

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