By: Clare Daly | Staff Writer
Social@Salve profiles Salve students with unique voices expressed through social media. Using platforms ranging from Instagram to TikTok, these Seahawks have what it takes to become the next #influencer. Do you know someone on campus who could be featured in the next Social@Salve? DM us @srumosaic on Instagram!
For someone who didn’t have Instagram until three years ago, Alix Hughes seems to have it figured out.
With a style all her own and over 2,000 followers, this Salve junior is an influencer in the making.
“I got Instagram my senior year of high school,” the Trumbull, Conn. native said. “My mom wouldn’t let us have social media; I didn’t have Snapchat until I came to school.” Despite being later to the social media game than others her age, she’s always had a specific vision behind the Alix Ryan brand, even going so far as to register an LLC in her name this past Christmas.
Scrolling through @alixryanhughes, you’ll find a collection of images that range from self-made designs, to glimpses of life on campus, and everything in between. The posts combine to create a consistent concept that Hughes says is “as glam and glitz as a casual life can be.” Her photographers include herself, family, and local photographers like Casey Hampton. As a Studio Art minor, color is a main concern. Hughes’ color story consists of muted primary colors which are the basis for the cohesive themes found on her account.
The seaside hamlet we call home inspires her to include the ocean in every grid she posts. While there’s not a specific Instagram account that inspires her, she scrolls through brands like @nastygal, mood boards like @gllobetrotter, and friends’ personal accounts. She also saves photos on Pinterest that are similar to the content she aims to produce. Every photo, selfies excluded, is pre-planned, edited, and organized to fit in with her vision. Hughes’ editing process for creating the perfect post remains a mystery, but she did mention her preferred apps: VSCO (her “holy grail”), PicsArt, and FaceTune. A magician never reveals their secrets!
Hughes hopes to make a career out of social media and design for a major brand or a fashion magazine. Hughes is an ambassador for The Two Oh Three, a family-owned lifestyle brand celebrating all things Connecticut. She organizes pop-up sales events and promotes the brand on social media. She is excited to offer 10% off to Mosaic readers with code “203ALIX”. She also coordinates socials for Salve’s Love Your Melon club. Love Your Melon utilizes collegiate chapters to spread awareness of childhood cancer through promotion of their hats and apparel, of which fifty percent of profits are donated to pediatric cancer initiatives.
She refers to herself as a “fake Instagrammer”, saying she is not active on the platform outside of posting on her own account. She also prefers to keep her personal life private. Hughes isn’t included in the thousands, if not millions, of Gen Z-ers who have adopted the trend of a finsta or a private Snapchat story to vent about what’s really going on behind the screen. She does have a Twitter; it’s where she is the most vulnerable online.
When asked if she sacrifices authenticity for appearances online, Hughes was candid in her answer, saying, “If you read my captions or you look through my pictures… I don’t go into great detail about my life, so if you don’t know me, you think I’m happy, but most people that do know me know that this is my outlet. This is how I see my life in my head,” she says, “I don’t have an Instagram to share my life, I have an Instagram to share my talent. It’s my brand, the best version of myself.”
