And so LOOKBOOK.nu was created - an invitation-only site where users upload photographs of their looks or outfits, which are then viewed by thousands of other fashion-minded individuals all over the globe. If deemed appreciable they receive ‘hype’ from other members which in turn determines whose looks feature on the front page. It’s an example of democratic creativity at its purest - and perhaps this is one of the reasons why the site is such a success. “I was always a huge fan of The Sartorialist and street style sites,” Lee says. “Blogs like this were popping up all over the internet and I was really fascinated by the way the fashion was coming from real people rather than magazines telling you what you’re ‘supposed’ to be wearing.” “It all started with my boyfriend and I combining our passions of fashion and programming to bring together people and their styles from all around the world to create a virtual book of real fashion from real people.” And it’s this emphasis on providing ‘real’ people with a voice, a channel of expression that has seen the site quite literally boom to astronomic proportions in the two short years of its existence. “In the beginning we were really small, totally unknown - so we did a lot of scouring the net, reaching out to people who showed an interest in fashion. And then the word started to spread.

With the whole eruption of the blogosphere there's a lot of power being taken out of the big fashion publishing companies. People began blogging about us and it just erupted!” Joined by Andy Chen and her boyfriend Jason Su, they collectively run the LOOKBOOK.nu empire from their San Francisco office, and the site now boasts an ever-growing user base currently sitting at the 60,000 mark. And they show no sign of stopping there. “We just did a collaboration with American Apparel - which was super exciting,” beams Lee. “We’re always so happy to land a partnership like that… It’s inspiring to know that there are huge, professional companies out there that recognise our members as something special and unique.” There’s that community spirit again. But in web developmental time, the two years since LOOK- BOOK.nu was founded is a virtual lifetime. Change is continual, as is the need to keep up. So what inspires Lee and her partners to keep the site growing and developing? “I always wanted to work in fashion… so in a sense this is a dream come true,” she says. And you can’t really argue with that. “When
I was younger,” she adds, “I thought: ‘Oh, I’ll be a stylist or a designer.’ But with the whole eruption of the blogosphere there’s a lot of power being taken out of the big fashion publishing companies - and the people are getting a lot more of it. And that’s something we’ve embraced and nurtured through the site and its ethos. It’s not about an image that a magazine has created for the public to see anymore. It’s the actual person. And our users are just so inspiring - it’s the fact that I get to connect with them everyday that keeps me motivated.”    

The internet has been a byword for freedom pretty much since its inception. But one of the most exciting (or controversial, depending on your stance) aspects of web 2.0 is the prospect of providing every individual on this planet with a voice; of giving everyone a platform upon which they are able to publicly present themselves, their work and their talents to other individuals across the globe. One arena that’s been embracing this community spirit stronger than many others is that of fashion.

Here there’s been a tangible shift towards individuals influencing major trends through small-scale blogs and websites. And Yuri Lee, the 25 year-old co-creator of LOOKBOOK.nu - one of the internet’s foremost community fashion sites - is at the forefront of this wave. “Well, we didn’t think that it was really fair that you had to wait for someone to come and professionally snap your photo in order for you to share your style with the world,” she says. “I love to share my fashion ideas as I’m sure loads of other fashionistas do.”
http://www.lookbook.nu/