For those of you who may know me beyond the black, white, and read all over, you may have thought that perhaps Emily Brisson can dress well (and occasionally like an e-boy). 

Well, I’ll have you know that my affinity for thrifting and new habit of wearing clothes that actually fit me is all thanks to a YouTuber—Ashley, aka BestDressed. 

This is not what I would call today YouTube. She’s not a vlogger, it’s not a collab channel, a giveaway land, or anything like that. It’s very reminiscent of 2014 YouTube; a socially awkward babe talking to her camera about clothes. Don’t get me wrong—she makes a shit ton of cash from YouTube and it’s her full-time job; she’s not an everyday Nelly, but she’s pretty damn close. More like an everyday Nelly That’s Absolutely Winning™. 

I’ve had the pleasure of watching this channel evolve over the past year. Originally, BestDressed (named from her high school superlative) was a channel that taught people how to wear tights, construct outfits, or cute clothing hauls. The creator, however, is an aesthetic genius recently graduated from UCLA’s Film School—so she can truly only go up. Today, the most viewed videos on her channel are extreme bedroom makeovers, thrift flips, and tell-all videos about womanhood, sex, and navigating adulthood. 

While Ashley is some type of famous now, she grew up in a normal family somewhere in suburban, Maryland. While she did go to one of the most elite film schools in America, she’s not exactly the kind of  pretentious you would associate with LA (read: one of her favourite films is Snowpiercer (2014), and that’s the only character trait a person needs, really). 

She’s very down to earth, has a love-hate relationship with capitalism, and genuinely wants people to know about sex and love and the struggles of living alone in large cities. I have learned more about how to establish myself in relationships and to exist as a poor kid in such a quick culture. 

Her love of fashion and expression through clothing and apparel comes from her own struggle to establish her own identity in a world she couldn’t afford—in more ways than one, to be a part of. 

Typically, fashion YouTube is comprised of well-off, white people producing clothing hauls faster than we get paychecks and going thrifting because it’s ‘fun.’ 

I don’t want to make it sound like Ashley isn’t raking in the dough from being an influence and running her own design line (I highly recommend), but I do need to stress that this is advice from a person that isn’t trying to sell you unrealistic expectations for your adult life. 

Ashley is using her platform to discuss more taboo issues. Her number of subscribers has increased exponentially over the past year, and the evolution of her channel is a response to that. 

Yes, she did teach me how to tailor my own clothes and accentuate my waist, but she also works to normalize discussions about sex and insists on a dialogue about being alone in your adulthood—something ‘regular’ YouTube does a poor job of, as all these vloggers apparently live together? (someone please tell me what David Dobrik is doing, I know so little, why does he have so many cars)

The point of the matter is—I love Ashley aka Best Dressed. 

Second point is, this is a quality channel that can teach you how to respect yourself and your taste in fashion, encouraging an exploration of the self with brilliant cinematography, a glorious B-roll and a genuinely relatable person.