How to Take a Mirror Selfie Like a Pro
Former Opening Ceremony model and Club Vintage founder Anna Z Gray shares her wisdom.
In 2008, when
was in college, she went to check out Opening Ceremony, the cool new store in Soho at the time, with her friend Meredith. “We had fun, and then we left,” she recalls. (“We were broke.”) But on their way out, they caught the attention of Humberto Leon, the store’s co-owner. “He ran after us and was like, ‘Hey! Do you guys model?’” It was every Eugene Lang girl’s dream come true. “We were like, oh my god! This is going to change our lives,” Anna laughs. “And I guess in a way, it did.”For the next four years, Anna worked part-time as an e-commerce model for Opening Ceremony’s website. If you bought anything between 2009 and 2013 — or scrolled online wishing you could, as I did — you probably recognize her. Since then, she’s worked just about every job in fashion a person can: publicity, events, retail, editorial — you name it. In 2016, she also started her own shopping newsletter: Things I Would Buy If I Didn’t Have to Pay Rent, which was way ahead of the trend and is still going strong today.
By her late twenties, Anna felt burnt out by capital-F fashion, or “selling people new things they didn’t need.” So she got more into vintage and interior design, eventually opening her own store called Club Vintage in 2021, which sells clothes, accessories, and furniture.
Described as a “department store of vintage sellers,” Club Vintage works with about 70 different professional pickers from around the world, all of whom have their own unique aesthetic, to bring their best finds under one roof. (Well, actually two roofs; Club Vintage currently has stores in New York and Los Angeles.) It’s a unique model that benefits both the customer, who can find everything in one place, and the vendor, who doesn’t have to do all the work alone. For an additional fee, Anna and her team will style the merchandise, model it, photograph every angle of it, list it online, and get it on the sales floor.
It’s not an easy task; getting through 30 looks can take Anna and her team about four hours. “I'm thinking about buying a mannequin,” she half-jokes. But remember: SHE IS A PRO. Every time I scroll through Club Vintage’s website, I’m struck by how good the product is — a testament to Anna’s taste — but also how good she is at taking photos of herself wearing it. As someone who takes a lot of mirror selfies for “work,” I’m consistently in awe of how relaxed she seems.
“Years of modeling will degrade your ego to this malleable putty where you’re like: it’s not about me, it’s about the clothes,” she says. Oftentimes, she won’t even show her face.
I like the idea of a clothes-forward mirror selfie, as opposed to the Kardashian-style blah we’ve become so accustomed to. A visit to the Chloé exhibit at the Jewish Museum this weekend, which you must see before it closes soon, really underscored for me the fact that people just don’t pose like they used to. Clearly, it’s an art, and I think it’s about time we brought it back. We may not all be former models like Anna, but most of us take mirror selfies and ‘fit pics. Perhaps we could learn a thing or two from her.
So, without further ado: In the hopes of making my own mirror selfies less embarrassing and inspiring others to up their ‘fit pic game as well, I asked Anna to share the secrets of her craft, below…
8-ish Easy Steps to Taking a Mirror Selfie Like a Pro
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Get a full-length mirror. Must be big enough to see your whole body. The Ikea Hovet is the best.
Any phone grip helps with stability and angle. I have a PopSocket that has Burt’s Bees lip balm inside. This thing also seems promising.
Make the background look tidy and/or cool!
Focus less on what your body looks like and more on the clothes. If the clothes look good, so will you.
The phone must be parallel to the mirror. Don’t angle down; you’ll look shorter.
Hide your face behind the screen — it’s one less element to think about. Tilt your head to hide both eyes.
Pose. Here are a few of my go-to’s:
The Lean: One foot is in front of the other in a line and the back hip juts out. It creates a subtle S-shape that makes pants/skirts look particularly flattering.
The Zoom: Stand close to the mirror and zoom in with your phone. It isolates the frame and draws attention exactly where you want it. You can also crop after the photo is taken. Recommended for your top half.
The Hook: Use your joints! Elbow out. Put your hand on your hip or in your pocket and push your elbow forward toward the mirror. Knee out. Put a foot forward and lean into that knee. It’ll make your torso look longer.
The Triangle: Feet are more than hips width apart, one foot forward, weight on back hip (this is reading like yoga instructions) and lean away from the mirror. Your legs are both straight, making a triangle.
The Angled Plié: Heels together (or almost). Angle one hip forward and bend the back knee.
And, finally, show us the layers! If you’re wearing a coat, open it so we can see what’s underneath. Hook one side of it behind your hip. It’ll make for a more dynamic photo.
For more of Anna’s superior mirror selfies, follow her on Instagram as well as Club Vintage. You should also shop clubvintage.com and subscribe to her newsletter too!
NEXT TIME: In honor of Valentine’s Day, I’m going to share with you my ultimate “ick.”
P.S. - A couple of you have asked me about textile dyeing. I would check out Upstate in NYC and Suay in LA!
I really love such practical information. And watching you on @neverworns — I feel like I know (and ok love) you more! Thanks again for these joys.
As someone who considers themselves incapable of taking a good mirror selfie, this was VERY helpful!!!!