Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Anna Lownes. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Anna, appreciate you joining us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

The first biggest risk I took was moving to LA after almost 11 years of living in New York. I did find a full-time job out here, but I didn’t know many people and really had no idea what to expect. It was a huge leap of faith. I then got let go from that job after only 3 months, which was really scary. I beat myself up about it for awhile, but then realized I could use my new freedom to pursue what I really wanted: styling. While I collected unemployment and babysat for extra cash, I did everything I could to gain experience in the field. I interned for stylists at 29 years old. I basically started my life over. I networked, I joined groups, I applied for jobs, I told anyone and everyone I could that I was looking for styling work. By the time my unemployment ran out, I had about two steady freelance gigs that kept me busy. I wasn’t making a ton of money, but it was the start of my freelance career. I swore when I moved here I’d never become one of those “LA freelancers” and that is exactly what I became (haha) but I’m so glad it worked out the way it did. Best decision I ever made to move here, and a blessing in disguise that I was given an (unexpected) opportunity to go after what I actually wanted.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m a freelance stylist who works with e-commerce, commercial, editorial, and celebrity and personal clients. Growing up I was always everyone’s go-to fashion girl, always reading magazines, styling my family, cutting up my Barbie’s clothes, helping to decorate my ballet costumes, taking fashion design classes, and doing arts & crafts. I think for awhile I didn’t really know styling was a career, but once I was out of college I was freelance for a short period of time and assisted some editorial and product stylists. In my day-to-day what sets me apart is my keen attention to detail and good sense of humor. In terms of artistic endeavors, I always have grand visions and concepts, probably from growing up dancing and the influence of stage and sets. I’m a more is more girl. Sparkles, glitter, rhinestones, feathers – all that stuff is right up my alley. I’ll never get tired of it. I also feel I am good at “understanding the assignment” in terms of what a client wants. I have my own tastes, but can adapt to whatever vision we are trying to execute. I’m most proud of how far I’ve come over the past 5 years. I’ve done some projects I really love and can’t wait to produce more work with my fellow creatives!

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I think freelancing can be mentally challenging at times. If you’re not getting booked it can be hard not to take that personally, and this dread creeps in that you’ll never work again. What I’ve realized is that the industry ebbs and flows – some times are busier than others – and that you never know what is right around the corner. I still have times where I freak out a little and wonder why I chose this lifestyle, but then I remember that I’ve never truly been down and out in terms of work. I remind myself that “the pendulum always swings”, and it does. Whenever I have a quieter period, I take the time to really enjoy myself, especially living in LA. I’ll do everything in my power to always work, but sometimes the universe hands you a day off, and you take it. As long as you keep trying, keep your eyes open, and do good work, something else is always coming your way. I’ve also learned that it’s ok to take a little time off to see your friends/family and that there will still be work when you get back. Saying no is ok, taking time for yourself is ok. Especially as we grow older, I know it’s time I’m not going to get back. I love my job, but I don’t want my world to only revolve around my job. Oh and here’s a big one; often unpaid work does not lead to exposure !!! No one tells you that when you start out. It’s good for your book, but you get published or put on instagram and think you’re gonna blow up, and then nothing happens. Most of the time now I say no to work like that.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

I think oftentimes our jobs seem frivolous to others. And they can be! I think some people truly don’t understand what I do, and that’s ok! The way I think about it is that most people have a natural tendency towards something. Maybe you’re great at math and love solving puzzles. Maybe you love history. I love clothes and dressing people and telling stories (not to sound cliche) or making beautiful images. Really for me, it’s beauty for the sake of beauty. It’s bringing dreams to life. And we can all admire beauty: it’s everywhere. Every night we watch the sun set. We smell the flowers. We appreciate a rainbow. What I’m trying to do is mimic that same feeling, but with clothes. Creating brings me immense joy. It fulfills me on a level almost nothing else does. It’s my natural tendency. I’ve had all sorts of jobs and most of them didn’t come naturally to me. I think I’ve chosen this career path because it comes naturally to me, and I am happy to do it every day. It’s also a lot of hard work! I think my dad thinks I sit around and eat bon bons all day but I’m really schelpping shoes and clothes and touching people’s dirty socks and underwear after shoots. I’m cleaning up, I’m packing bags, I’m doing a lot of manual labor. No one thinks about what goes into the finished product. Now whenever I watch TV or film all I think about is how much work must have gone into something.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @annalownes
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-lownes-39685312/
• Other: Website coming soon!

Image Credits
Joy Newell, Sheri Angeles, Nicolas Bates, Raul Romo