Because visa restrictions prevent so many people from traveling outside the Balkan region, blogs and social media have become one of the only ways for young people in Kosovo to tell the world about their country. Fashion bloggers, in particular, are fighting to regenerate the country’s image abroad; whereas international media features Kosovo as a dead end, undermined by high unemployment, violent anti-government protests, and mass migration, Saraqi and Citaku unveil a different side of Europe’s newest country. On their Instagram accounts, they set street style shots against a local backdrop, giving their international followers a look into daily life in Pristina — one that's filled with, like many other major cities, parks, nightlife, and flea markets, and is not consistently plagued by conflict.

With no established bloggers inside the country to look to for inspiration, though, Rita and Bleranda are exploring unmapped territory. But they aren't just tasked with educating Kosovo, its companies, and its people about how this world works — they're tasked with using their platforms to sway outdated international opinions of Kosovo: that the country is no longer gray and war-torn. Even more critical than changing outward perception is what they're doing internally: helping establish an identity through style in a place that is currently working to create its own cultural existence through artistic expression. It's that power that reminds the people of Kosovo that the country has such potential to be a style hub, an artistic influencer, and as Saraqi says optimistically, “a happy place."