Fashionista Of The Month For June 2016: Nicole Wong

Nicole Wong, StarCentral’s Fashionista of the Month for June 2016 had a late introduction to the world of fashion – “towards the beginning of my university life, I began modelling in various fashion shows and photoshoots. My interest in fashion grew further when I cofounded the fashion community, Vanstyle, with my friend Tiana He…” Vanstyle is a fashion community based out of Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada. Not only do they “help elevate the Vancouver fashion scene…”, they also host a variety of events from fashion shows to photo shoots, from video shoots to socials. “A big part of my success today comes from the experiences I have gained and the relationships I have made via Vanstyle…”

But Nicole’s first love wasn’t fashion. “My first passion actually, was fitness and food…” Torn between her love for chocolate and staying healthy, the 22-year old began creating healthy alternatives to the “junk food” that she loved. She took “unhealthy” ingredients and replaced them with natural, “clean” ones. She began sharing her recipes on her Instagram account, @cleanfoods, – “I started to receive numerous amounts of positive feedback from the public, and it led me to secure partnerships with some of the biggest companies including Nike and BroadbandTV…”

Becoming involved with Vanstyle gave the ex-cheerleader another outlet for her creative whims. She really likes that “you can really tell a lot about a person’s personality through their style…” Vanstyle and @cleanfoods has also given her the opportunity to be able to connect with others through social media – “It is always interesting for me to meet and collaborate with people I have communicated with on social media…” That collaboration has awakened another avenue of interest for the fitness fanatic/powerlifting aficionado. “I have learned that I love to help others flourish, and I love helping them in the marketing aspects to further their career. For example, I would help others, at no cost, to design and make business cards, or contact companies about possible collaborations. All of these things are time consuming and things that I should be doing for myself, but for some reason, I find so much more satisfaction in helping others…which has led me to think about turning this into a career…”

With that realization comes the alluring possibility of pursuing media marketing as a career (she has a degree in Communications). As Nicole’s interests reach far and wide (it also includes videography and photography), she’s learned the importance of never giving up and accepting every opportunity that comes her way. “There were so many times when I went into something thinking that I was going to be rejected, and sometimes I have, but I take everything as a learning opportunity…”
The combination of a very supportive family (they are always in the audience whenever I am performing on stage, or playing sports, and I cannot thank them enough for everything they do for me…”) and her ambition, drive, talent and abundance of enthusiasm and passion, will surely see Nicole Wong succeed in her every endeavor.

‘LIGHTNING FAST’ Round:

1. What is the one beauty product you can’t live without? I don’t really use beauty products unless I’m attending a special event…makeup and beauty is not my thing
2. What is the most dramatic thing you’ve ever done to change your looks? One day I was coloring my own hair, trying to go for a subtle ombre look. I accidentally left the bleach in for too long, so I ended up with platinum blonde hair!
3. What is in your makeup bag when you travel? I don’t ever wear makeup actually…ESPECIALLY when I travel because I like to pack really light
4. What is the one “flaw” you wouldn’t change about yourself? I’m a really independent and business-oriented person
5. Your best guilty pleasure… Chocolate