UNIF and Bon Iver loving Lindsey Rempalski, Lindsey Rem for short, simply put- is the nicest, cool girl you will ever meet.
PC:@lindseyrem
She has been creating videos for her YouTube channel since she was in highschool in 2012. Now, a college graduate, she is producing content and working for major fashion and cosmetic brands like Valfré and Too Faced. Even more impressive than her work for such powerhouse brands, is the work she is creating for her own brand, Lindseyrem Design. Rempalski splits her time between YouTube and her own graphic design work.
Lindsey posing outside of alma mater, Chapman University.
PC: @lindseyrem
This woman really does it all, let me tell you. She brings life to the YouTube platform with every upload on style, music, art, advice, or life. Rempalski gives her viewers insight into her ever-changing life through many lenses, like her Snapchat, Instagram, and even an app less commonly checked, Spotify. But, her YouTube channel is the place where her subscribers can watch and feel like they are having a conversation with her. She talks about her day and what is going on in her world. I was lucky enough to get to chat with Rempalski in person, and spend what seems like a dream day with her. A day that mirrors the life she lets viewers follow, one of clothes shopping, conversations about art, and most importantly, a day of discussions about valuable advice for this generation of men and women.
Rem’s beauty looks and styles in her filming space.
PC: @lindseyrem
Rempalski is a longtime watcher of YouTube. She has been watching Zoella before she had even hit 100,000 subscribers- which the British star has now amassed almost 12 million subscribers. Back in his earliest days, she had been watching Shane Dawson’s OG skits. She tells me how inspired she was by all these creators and told me, “because I already knew how to use cameras, and I had already been so creative my whole life,” she proposed to herself, “Why don’t I try this?” Both she and her childhood friend created channels. Her friend felt it was weird to have everyone be able to see her, and deleted all her content, whereas Rempalski was like, “if I’m putting it out there (online), it’s gonna happen, and now I’m pretty used to it.”
At first, Rempalski recalls her recognition as being weird. It took some time, but now she is accustomed to her subscribers recognizing her out and about. She gets run into almost every day. Coming from the semi-uncomfortable years when she was in high school, where YouTube was not as popular or well-known as it is now, her channel has come a long way with persistence and faith, despite the infamously destructive YouTube algorithm. Rempalski’s channel has well over 350,000 subscribers. She has curated a space on the internet with a community of people who love to listen and talk to her about the topics she passionately speaks about, be it a discussion on feminism or a vegan grocery haul.
Thumbnail from Lindsey’s Vegan Grocery Haul video on her channel
PC: lindseyrem YouTube channel
What started out as a fun outlet, where she made the kind of videos she liked to watch on the internet, has turned into a full-blown gig. Her videos are ever-ranging in topic alongside fixed segments on her channel, like her Chai Chats, where she drinks chai tea and discusses topics like body image, meditation or even fonts- she is a graphic design major after all. I really enjoy Chai Chats because they contain some of her videos on mental health. The discussion about mental health and illness is becoming less stigmatized as it is spoken about more openly.
Rempalski is at the forefront of this all, and is aiding the cause in speaking out about these formerly taboo topics on her channel. She tells me, “I remember when I started (YouTube), I always, especially with the mental health videos, I made them for my past self because I have had anxiety since I was nine years old and so much of that was… I didn’t know how to express it. And I was really confused…” Rempalski did not know why she felt different from all of her friends, and felt as if though she did not really have anyone to confide in. Rempalski relays how much she really loved Zoella’s videos where she talked about her anxiety. Even though Rempalski’s audience is around her age, her intention was always to “be that ‘older me’ talking.”
Lindsey’s Chai Chats
PC: lindseyrem YouTube channel
Speaking from personal experience, I have always appreciated and found her chats to be incredibly helpful, even though she is only two years older than myself. For folks like me, who do not have a big sister, Rempalski is a God-send in a lot of ways. Her advice is genuine and her videos effortlessly convey that. She feels like most of her content is “just kind of like (an) older sister chat, or even just a friend, or advice from my past self.” To Rempalski, her videos are “like a nice, little online diary.” For anyone seeking advice, head straight to Rempalski’s channel for positivity and unfiltered truth.
When asked about which other channels young people should be watching, Rempalski named a few of her favorites like Arden Rose and Meghan Hughes. “I think mostly when it comes to younger generations, I would hope that they can find voices out there that are authentic,” she remarks. She begins to describe how important it is that men and women are watching creators who “don’t hide their acne or hide things that they struggle with, or things that they’ve been through, because when you’re looking up to all these people that seem really perfect online- that can be really detrimental to your mental health and just to growing up.” Rempalski hopes that the masses keep their eyes out for the realistic content, and choose to follow not just the “perfect shiny YouTubers”.
Just one of many pictures Lindsey has posted on her insta that capture her spreading positivity to her followers. The caption of the post is “happy finals & remember your worth isn’t solely determinate on external factors like grades!!!”
PC:@lindseyrem
Rempalski’s beauty and fashion taste is totally reflective of her mantra to staying true to herself; she wears what she wants. “I think I just try to put effort into wearing things that make me happy,” she remarks. When browsing her insta, it is clear that Rempalski has a curated look, that from time to time, she punctuates with standout pieces. Her fashion style is often accented with her beloved Doc Martens and pieces from brands like Reformation and Réalisation Par. If she is not online shopping, you can find Rempalski thrifting. Her channel features lookbooks and hauls of the gems she finds. Follow her Depop to shop pieces from her closet clean-outs if you are on the hunt for some of her fits.
A story about a little pink, fuzzy sweater she bought in London comes up, and a smile begins to light up her face. A feeling of delight is apparent and undeniable. The piece is not something she would traditionally go for, but something about it made her gravitate towards it. “I just don’t know how to describe it other than I just wear what I like and what feels good, kind of whatever fits my mood, especially if I’m maybe not having a good day, I’ll want to wear something really special that’ll make me feel better.”
Style across the board
PC:@lindseyrem
When it comes to her face, you will constantly hear Rempalski describe her makeup as the “wearable dead” look. Anastasia Beverly Hill’s Modern Renaissance palette helps her create the look. She uses the red shadows- Venetian Red, Love Letter, and Red Ochre, all over the lid, beneath the lower lash line, and in the crease. The look has somewhat of a 90’s vibe to it- it is a little goth, little bit grunge. To achieve her full face look, using some of her favorite products like Milk Makeup’s Sunshine Skin Tint and Kush Brow or Glossier’s Cloud Paint will have you well on your way to creating your own “wearable dead” look. It is a lot cuter than it sounds. Take it from Lindsey, take it from me.
Lindsey outside of the Glossier Store in Los Angeles
PC:@lindseyrem
Makeup aside, Rempalski will be the first person to tell you that external beauty comes from internal beauty. If a person does not feel beautiful or worthy on the inside, it will translate outwardly. One line she said has stuck with me ever since our conversation, and I think every woman should take note- “feelin’ cute is a mindset!” Take note ladies.
Beauty for days
PC: @lindseyrem
A love for art has always pulsed through Lindsey’s veins. Growing up, she was crafting ceramics, doing studio art and painting, and a few years later she was designing her high school’s yearbook. She claims those latter years were “kind of like my gateway into fonts”- a phrase that made me laugh. Rempalski loved art within constraints and she just adored creating on her computer. Inspired by many and the world around her, she has created her own brand, Lindseyrem Design. Her work features original artwork all done by her. The designs reflect her style to a tee, just take a look on her website or insta page. She is constantly creating posters and art for events and people. Recently graduated as a student of Chapman University’s Graphic Design major, she has had the opportunity to premiere and sell her art at Chapman’s ‘House of the Arts’, an art show that happens once every semester. Her art is available for purchase online at https://lindseyremdesign.com/. You could say she has come along way since her days of selling her ceramics as a child.
Lindsey and her art at Chapman’s ‘House of the Arts”
PC:@lindseyrem
A taste of her art
PC: Lindsey Rem Design
The future for Rempalski is beyond bright. What she finishes are chat with is a sentiment I think her audience, including myself, really is striving towards. She pronounces, “All I want is to be able to continue doing YouTube and art in a way where I have complete freedom over what I’m doing.” Rempalski’s goal to be self sufficient and in control of what she creates is akin to being able to design one’s life in whatever way they see fit. Lindsey Rempalski and all she creates are blueprints that everyone can take inspiration from. In a world where the options are endless, Rempalski would say design away.