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(Austonia/Instagram)
Austin has no shortage of personalities with a large social media following. From food to motherhood, we've got you covered on Austinites that have blown up on Instagram.
Here are 15 Austin-based female influencers you may want to check out.
Foodies
1. Rachel @austinfoodstagram
In five years, Rachel Holtin grew her Austin food Instagram page to over 91,000 followers. She made the account to post photos of her food adventures in Austin and gained popularity quickly. She has since made Austin Foodsta, a blog.
2. Koko @atasteofkoko
Starting out as a blog in 2010, Jane Ko, known as Koko, has expanded her platform to social media with over 77,000 followers on Instagram. She posts about different restaurants around Austin, as well as lifestyle content.
3. Kelsey @somuchlifeblog
Kelsey Kennedy started her So Much Life blog in 2016 as a helpful guide to the best restaurants and fun things to do in Austin. While still featuring the same kind of content on her Instagram, it has gained over 27,000 followers.
Lifestylers
4. Camille Styles @camillestyles
Popular Austin influencer Camille Styles has racked up 165,000 Instagram followers over the years. She is the editor-in-chief of CamilleStyles.com. Her Instagram page features lifestyle content, including home design and her everyday life.
5. Ava @ava.gg
Video game and lifestyle influencer Amanda Myddleton, known as Ava, is a popular Twitch streamer with a YouTube channel. Her Instagram page has over 81,000 followers, featuring her travels and video games.
6. Rachel @rachelprochnow
Lifestyle blogger Rachel Prochnow spreads positivity in her Instagram captions. Her pastel-colored themed Instagram page has almost 40,000 followers.
Fashionistas
7. Emily Herren @champagneandchanel
With a whopping 1 million followers, Emily Herren, showcases herself in effortless outfits available for purchase.
8. Ashley @dtkaustin
Stylist and Dressed to Kill owner Ashley Hargrove has grown an Instagram following of 155,000 followers. Her page follows a strict black and white atheistic of outfits and accessories.
9. Larissa Kate @larissalampiteli
Designer Larissa Kate launched her brand Larissa Kate Lingerie in 2016. Her Instagram showcases her style and designs she creates. She has gained over 18,000 followers.
Health and Wellness
10. Jo @joplacencio
Co-founder of women empowerment group Glam Soriee, Jo Placencio has a pink aesthetic on her Instagram feed with health and wellness products, as well as fashion. Her page has 141,000 followers.
11. Natalie Paramore @natalieparamore
Natalie Paramore found her passion for writing and taking photos in 2011 when she started her blog. Her Instagram, filled with healthy eating, her baby and fitness, has almost 25,000 followers.
Mothers
12. Olivia @livvylandblog
Olivia Watson, lifestyle blogger of Livvy Land, often used to post about style but since having her child, her Instagram and blog contain a lot more mommy and family content. She has 311,000 followers.
13. Sarah @deliveringmotherhood
Mother of three Sarah Viebrock is a labor and delivery nurse, as well as the motherhood content creator of Delivering Motherhood. Her content aims to help moms with living a healthy and balanced life. She has gained almost 57,000 followers.
Interior artists
14. Lee Anne Benjamin @leeannebenjamin
Home and style guru Lee Anne Benjamin posts home decor and fashion on her Instagram that has 459,000 followers. She has a blog Life by Lee and Youtube channel with fashion and home tips. Her husband Dylan Benjamin also runs his own blog and Youtube channel.
15. Erin Ruoff @hi_lovely
Erin Ruoff, home and lifestyle blogger of Hi Lovely, often features home design on her Instagram. She has over 45,000 followers on Instagram.
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Popular
(Paxton Smith/Instagram)
Paxton Smith’s 2021 valedictory speech at Lake Highlands High School in Dallas wasn’t the same speech she had previously shared with school administrators. She dropped the approved speech and made a case for women’s reproductive rights after lawmakers passed the Texas "Heartbeat Bill.”
Her advocacy made news on NPR, YouTubeTV and in The Guardian. Just over a year later, the “war on (women’s) rights” she forewarned has come to a head as the U.S. Supreme Court voted Friday morning to overturn Roe v. Wade, ending constitutional protection for abortion access.
“It is up to the people to show up and show the courts and the politicians that we won’t sit back and let this happen,” Smith told Austonia Friday morning. “We will show up, we will fight back. Before, we were scared of them, now they should be scared of us.”
Now a University of Texas sophomore and abortion rights activist, 19-year-old Smith said she wanted to give the same speech in the “the most public way possible” to reach “as many people as possible who don't agree that I deserve this right.”
However, she says the response was “actually overwhelmingly positive” and supportive of her cause. According to a recent UT poll, 78% of Texas voters support abortion access in most cases.
The speech opened up further opportunities for activism: she advocated for reproductive rights at the International Forum on Human Rights in Geneva, interviewed with Variety magazine and spoke to tens of thousands at Austin’s Bans Off Our Bodies protest at the Texas Capitol in May.
Smith also serves on the board of directors for the Women’s Reproductive Rights Assistance Project, a national nonprofit organization that helps fund abortions or medication abortion—like Plan C pills—in all 50 states. Most recently, Smith has been attending protests in Washington, D.C. leading up to the ruling.
“This is land of the free. This is where you get to choose how you live your life,” Smith said. “Overturning Roe v. Wade violates everything that we have come to believe about what it means to live in this country. I think a lot of people aren't willing to accept that this is a human right that is most likely just going to be gone for over half of the country within the next couple of weeks.”
Bracing for the next steps, Smith gave some tips for supporters:
- Find a protest to attend.
- “I would say invite somebody to go to those protests with you, invite a couple of friends, invite people into the movement,” Smith said.
- Talk about the issue on social media—use the platform you have.
- “Have these kinds of conversations where people can just talk about their fears and then find ways to go and advocate for yourself,” Smith said.
- Volunteer at a nonprofit near you.
“I feel like a lot of the reason things have gotten as bad as they have within the abortion rights world is that people are not making a scene, not protesting, not putting the effort into ensuring that the government doesn't take away this right,” Smith said. “I want to emphasize that if you're not doing anything, don't expect the best scenario, expect the worst because that's the direction that we're going in.”
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(Council Member Chito Vela/Twitter)
The U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark ruling that guaranteed a constitutional right to an abortion, Friday morning. Moments later, Austin City Council set a special meeting for next month to pass a resolution aimed at decriminalizing abortion.
The GRACE Act, which stands for guarding the right to abortion care for everyone, is a twofold plan submitted by council member Jose “Chito” Vela. It recommends that city funds shouldn’t be used to surveil, catalog, report or investigate abortions. It also recommends that police make investigating abortion their lowest priority.
Council Member Vanessa Fuentes, who co-sponsored the resolution along with council members Paige Ellis, Kathie Tovo and Mayor Steve Adler, said the importance of the GRACE Act cannot be overstated.
“By introducing this resolution during a special session, City Council is doubling down on fighting back for reproductive health,” Fuentes said. “Items like the GRACE Act will promote essential healthcare while enabling individuals to exercise their bodily freedom.”
The act takes an approach similar to when former council member Greg Casar moved to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana. Ultimately, state law doesn't allow city officials to order police chiefs to adopt specific enforcement policies so the resolution would be a request to Police Chief Joe Chacon. In May, Politico reported that Vela is having "ongoing conversations" with Chacon about the proposal.
Austonia contacted Attorney General Ken Paxton for comment on the GRACE Act but did not hear back by time of publication. On Friday, Paxton celebrated the overturning of Roe and announced an annual office holiday on June 24 in recognition of the high court's decision.
In a press release, Vela said the Texas state government has a history of overturning municipal protections of human rights. Thirty days after the Supreme Court’s ruling, Texas will ban all abortions, with exceptions only to save the life of a pregnant patient or prevent “substantial impairment of major bodily function.”
Still, Vela expressed hope for the GRACE Act’s longevity. Council’s special meeting on it is set for the week of July 18.
“We know this resolution is legally sound, and Austin is not alone in this fight,” Vela said. “We are working with several other cities who are equally horrified by the prospect of an abortion ban and want to do everything they can to protect their residents.”
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