Fashion blogger and former Miss USA Alyssa Campanella has a lot to celebrate this past and upcoming year. Her blog, The A-List,
has been gaining more attention for her impeccable upscale feminine style. She recently partnered with Saks Fifth Avenue to help celebrate the launch of Saks Canada in Toronto. In 2016, she will also marry her fiance Torrance Combs of CW’s Reign.
Earlier this fall, the gorgeous blogger took a minute out of her busy jet-setting life to talk to us about how her blog came to be out of her Miss USA lifestyle, how her travels influence her style, and how she changes up her beauty routine along the way.
Q&A WITH ALYSSA CAMPANELLA
You started in this industry as a pageant contestant and model. Was there any particular posing skills that you learned that helped with both careers? Was there anything that you had to adjust when you transitioned out of the pageant world?
Not too much as a blogger or a model as you’re expressing yourself. But it’s also the brand and the designer that you’re working for. I guess the thing with pageants is that they’re pretty over the top, hair and makeup. The bigger the hair, the closer to God.
Bloggers are a lot more natural. Even as a model, I was a lot more natural. They’re similar, to be honest, but they’re also different. My reign as Miss USA was helpful.
Once you transitioned from being the reigning Miss USA to a social media influencer, how did your interaction with your fans change? Did you feel like you were under less pressure?
Actually it all started, the whole social media influencer thing, it all began during my reign as Miss USA. I used to post a lot of Outfit of the Day posts. I was the first Miss USA to document what I was wearing, whether it be for an appearance or what I was wearing to run errands but I was constantly documenting. I think they still have the same floor to ceiling mirror in the Miss USA bedroom that I used to document my outfits. After my reign was done, I stopped that for a while and focused on modeling. Fans were asking for my Outfit of the Day posts. That’s where it all started started [again]. Now I don’t need to promote Miss USA but it’s the same where I’m documenting what I’m wearing to certain events or day to day.
How has your style changed since you ended your reign?
As Miss USA, they have a stylist. They get a vibe of your personality. There’s a 50/50 influence, so it was half what I wanted to wear, half what the stylist wanted Miss USA to wear. My style has completely changed because pageantry is very much about glitter and sparkle. Sparkle is not in my vocabulary or closet. I don’t even have my ears pierced. The only jewelry that I own is my engagement ring. It took my fiance a long time to find a ring, but it’s beautiful. He did a good job.
You love to travel and have a travel section on your blog. Which cities inspire you the most to try something new with your style?
London was actually my favorite city because of all my favorite brands are UK-based. My style tends to be very feminine. I’m very much a girly girl [even] since I was 2-years-old. I would always dress in my nana and mom’s dresses and pretend I was different people. I just loved playing dress-up. That’s basically what my blog is: documenting every day, to share it with everybody and to give inspiration to everyone else to dress up. If they have the same sense of style that I do, that’s great! They’re getting inspiration and trend alerts from me. London is a great city that I fell in love with, both the royal history and the style. I’m like a 2-year-old in a candy store. The style is very sophisticated, sharp. But at the same time, I saw a lot of girls wearing fun skirts and dresses. I learned a lot from people watching.
In Denmark, they wear a lot of pops of color. I’m part Danish so I’m probably biased. Copenhagen had a lot of fashion that caught my eye. It made me take a look at my style then. I’ve been trying to grow every since then. My style is constantly growing.
How much of your style or beauty routine changes when you travel?
When I travel, I never usually know my schedule, to be honest. It’s constantly changing. I try to pack for what I think could happen. Some people laugh at me because they think I over-pack. For my beauty routine, I don’t change much at all. I include a lot of my normal everyday products so my skin stays the same. When it’s humid, I do stay away from balms. I’ve been obsessed with serums lately.
As you collaborate with your fiance, do you find it easier to model for him or harder?
To me, it’s easy because we laugh a lot. He always gets me in moments that I didn’t know he’s getting of me making random faces. It’s very easy to collaborate. He started studying photography in depth when I started the blog. I’ll go away on a trip and he’ll [write me] and say “I got us a new camera lens!”
Who are your style icons?
I love the style of the Duchess of Cambridge. She’s my idol for life. She’s been making fashion statements without being too “in your face”. She’s very tasteful and respectful but she also researches where she’s going and chooses her designers based on what she’s doing and where she’s going. I started [following her lead] when I went to Europe. When I was in Denmark, I chose to wear Danish brands. It made sense and felt respectful. Whenever I go to an event, I try to wear brands or a designer [associated] with the event. I also love Alicia Vikander, a Swedish actress.
What is your go-to daytime and nighttime look?
Most of the time, it’s no makeup at all, but if I’m going out to step out or go to lunch, I’ll fill in my brows and put on concealers, maybe a touch of mascara and chapstick. It’s clean and simple. If I stepped out like that [as Miss USA], people would [think] I was lazy. Now I’m able to walk around with no makeup and it’s such a breath of fresh air.
For nighttime, I’ll start to go with a little more concealer, a super light foundation, gold/nude/brown eyeshadows. I love to stick with a simple smokey eye. I was taught a smokey eye when I was a model. Smokey eye or eyeliner, mascara, and red lips. I thought red lips wouldn’t work with red hair but it’s not bad!
What beauty and fashion trends are you loving right now?
I haven’t been looking too much into beauty trends because I’m specific on what I Iike for myself. But I really want to try to expand my lip colors. I tend to stick to the same colors, nude or light pink. I want to start trying out plums.
I started the 70s [look] in the spring and I’m hoping it goes through the winter: the bell sleeves, the flare jeans, it’s been a great year for the brand Chloe. This year has been very bohemian. I’ve been in a personal heaven.
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