Emma Chamberlain's personal style is the stuff of envy. She rose to fame on YouTube thanks to her authenticity. Chamberlain's genuineness translates to the way she gets dressed. It's not uncommon to see her fans on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube ahead of a seasonal shift asking among themselves, What is Emma Chamberlain shopping right now? When she films a fashion video, touring her closet or showing what she's been into recently, thousands tune in and take notes.
Part of what makes the social media star's look so special is that she loves secondhand items she's thrifted and archival designer pieces. You can often find her scouring eBay for her best finds, which is exactly why she recently partnered with the retailer for an exclusive auction of some of her favorite vintage items she wants to part with. Below, we caught up with her and discussed how she shops the website, how she decides what to part with, and what trends she's both scared of and excited for.
The Emma Chamberlain x eBay auction ends tomorrow at 8:30 a.m. EST.
Walk me through some of your favorite pieces that are available to shop on eBay right now.
Well, there's actually so many! I did this major closet clean-out in a way that I think was really long overdue. I had so many pieces that it was getting insane. I can barely even remember half of the stuff that's in my closet at this point.
I would say a standout item for me was this little Louis Vuitton Van Gogh. It is so cute, and honestly, parting with it was really hard for me. Ultimately, it's not big enough for me! When I bring a bag, I need to bring 90 things with me. It's just who I am. I'm not a mom yet, but I need a mom bag. Somebody needs to have this LV bag who only takes their phone and their wallet with them. That's a favorite, but honestly, there's so many things that I've worn to death. They are hard to part with, but I also know they are ready for their second life.
How did you decide that you could part with them? Was that difficult at all given how much you love cultivating your own wardrobe and experimenting with your style?
For the last eight years, I've been sort of on my fashion journey. Things happen really fast career-wise, and all of a sudden, it was like, "Wait, now I'm in this career, and fashion is such a big part of it."
As a young person, I was like, "Well, I guess I need a lot of clothes now!" That was sort of a dream that I always had as a kid. I always thought, "I can't wait until I make my own money so I can have so many clothes" because I just love clothes so much. Over the years, I have collected so many pieces, whether it was through shopping or just through working with brands. I ended up with this collection that ultimately was overstimulating for me. I couldn't even give all of these pieces proper use. I can't wear them to their fullest extent! It felt almost unfair to these pieces, as though they're almost alive.
I thought, "I need to scale it down so that I can truly appreciate what I do have." When it came to figuring out what went on eBay, I selected certain things that maybe were a bit more special, a bit more hyperspecific, something that maybe somebody would want to collect! Now, I feel cleansed, and I'm so excited that how other people can add these things into their wardrobe, and they can have a new life where they're actually going to be worn so much more.
Talk to me a little bit more about this editing-down journey! I think it's something a lot of people are thinking about more as they try to consume less and really focus on what they have and how they can wear pieces in many different ways.
When you end up with too many things, you end up wearing less of it! You can't even see what you have. You end up getting overstimulated, and it prevents you from actually utilizing things. You end up just wearing the exact same thing every day because you're overstimulated. That's a story I've been hearing a lot. People want a full closet, and … it's become … the norm now to have too many clothes. Now on the internet, I've been seeing people saying, "Wait, this is ridiculous! Why is my closet this packed?" I think I'm really all about the journey of, How can we, as a culture and a society, be more intentional with our wardrobes? Because it makes fashion more fun.
What's something you're currently searching for on eBay?
I definitely have had a fashion awakening recently. I just got back from fashion week a few weeks ago, and something about that fashion week and the looks that I wore there—which are obviously borrowed—it kind of rewired my brain a little bit.
For so many years, I've just loved boxy clothes and things that are kind of loose. In my personal life, I just loved things like that, but I'm having this awakening where I'm like, "I need some tight pants! I need a little short corseted top!" I'm I'm looking for really beautifully tailored pieces. I don't wanna look like I'm wearing my pajamas.
I'm so all about comfort, and for so many years, I thought I just need to be as comfortable as possible. Now, I'm like, "I actually think I'm ready to deal with a slightly uncomfortable tight pant or a gorgeously tailored top that's a bit tight, and maybe it's a little bit uncomfortable." I'm craving that feeling that I get when something fits me perfectly.
Shop the Emma Chamberlain x eBay edit below.
