One of the biggest stories on the internet is that of Bri, the homeless girl who managed to secure a coveted internship with the world’s premier fashion periodical, Elle magazine. The story first broke on Homeless Tales, which is authored by her boyfriend, Matt and where she occasionally guest writes. Since then, a media storm of attention has swept Bri along, but she agreed to take some time out from her hectic schedule and answer some questions for readers.
Please tell us your life story in 140 characters.
Born JW, left, shunned, recession victim, lived in parking lot, fell madly in love w/ English man, got Elle internship with E. Jean, PANIC!!
1. What do you think you will be able to bring to Elle Magazine that might be different to what we’re used to seeing?
Well, at the moment I don’t know exactly what my internship with E. Jean will involve, or whether my writing will even play a part in it. It’s all up in the air at this point, and I believe she needs a couple of days to put together a game plan for exactly how to utilize me. So for now, I’m just waiting on that. However, as in anything that I do; I can only hope to bring a different perspective to the table—that’s what it’s all about, different perspectives and opinions. I’ve seen life from two flip sides of the coin; relatively stable (perhaps not wealthy, but comfortable) and then also from the vantage of having lost almost everything, starting over from square one, and making the most of the leftover resources/assets I had on hand. I suppose my current perspective on life might be more thrifty and pedestrian than the high-fashion world is used to, because I’ve had to be so resourceful and pragmatic to get by over the past several months. I’ve never worn a designer label in my life, but I can tell you what thrift stores to dig through to find a really cute vintage sundress, if you enjoy the thrill of the hunt like I do.
2. What message do you hope to portray by your acceptance of this internship?
First of all, that I’m so, so incredibly grateful for an opportunity like this. It’s still sinking in; I’m overwhelmed by the magnitude of it all but I do realize just what kind of doors something this awesome can open for me, and I want E. Jean and Elle to know how much I appreciate their kindness in extending this offer to me. Secondly, it astounds me just how far you can get by simply asking for what you want. If you know where you want to be, go after it! When I’m told “no”, if there’s another possible route open to me, I try it. Don’t give up until you’ve exhausted all possible options, and even then, check back occasionally to see if that closed door has reopened. You just never know.
3. Please tell me about your blog, how you got started with it and what you’re doing over there now.
I began The Girls Guide to Homelessness three days before I started living in a Walmart parking lot, upon finding out I was to be homeless. It started out as a tongue-in-cheek way to keep sane, a way of poking fun at my predicament, as well as offering some basic survival tips to those who found themselves homeless, particularly women. I went into it fully with the mentality “of course, nobody will EVER actually read this.” I knew that I was going to be living practically out of a Starbucks most days, applying for jobs, and that gets very boring, very fast. Blogging cut the monotony a bit. The blog morphed over time into something slightly different, however. Initially, I made a quick post about my background and tried to leave it at that, and focus on practical safety tips. But more and more people seemed to want to hear about my past and my day-to-day life as a homeless woman, so I suppose I gave in to popular demand (popular equals about twelve regular readers, ha ha!) and started chronicling more of my personal experiences. The more revealing posts seemed to get better feedback, so I gradually opened up more, although those were the most difficult to write, as I tend to be more of a private person by nature.
4. What is your sense of style—what says fashion to you today?
As I said, I have never worn a designer label in my life.
