“The pop landscape, not to mention the fashion scene, is always a duller place without Björk.”
Truthfully, the world would be a little less bright without the quirky sounds and styles of this Icelandic performance artist who brought strange to the mainstream long before meat dresses were in vogue.
This pixie-like siren with a voice as distinctive as her look, has been bringing her eccentric style to the masses since she was 11 years old. After fronting various bands since the age of 14 Bjork finally hit the big time as a member of the Sugarcubes, an alternative rock band that gained a cult following in the states and abroad during the late 80’s/early 90’s. Post Sugarcubes, Bjork moved to London to pursue a solo career where she linked up with producer Nellee Hooper and her first super hit “Human Behavior” was born. While “Human Behavior” didn’t get much air time, the video directed by frequent time Bjork collaborator Michel Gondry went into heavy rotation on MTV and that was pretty much history. Several albums and awards later, this singer-songwriter/composer/producer/occasional actress has earned acclaim across several genres and influenced and mentored several struggling recording artists. While her eclectic sound and three octave vocal range have cemented her as one of the greatest voices of all time, according to NPR and MTV, her striking appearance is as distinguishing as her sound.
Who can forget the impish Bjork bopping down the red carpet at the Academy Awards dressed in a swan? Her signature coal black hair framing her face as she baffled every red carpet commentator with her Marjan Pejoski creation. After seeing Gaga carried to the Grammys in an egg, Bjork’s 2001 choice seems tame in comparison. As the answer to “What came first, the mama goose of the egg,” Bjork’s unconventional style has spawned legions of fans and admirers. She’s collaborated with fashion’s favorite rule breakers, Alexander McQueen and Jeremy Scott, and came up with outlandishly amazing creations more for art’s sake than to shock and garner attention from a crowd. Face paint? Yes. Dresses that are more papier-mache art projects than dresses befitting an in the flesh start? Check. Dark hair that adds a certain mystery to her strikingly East-Asian features? Banged and falling around her face or tightly wound in Princess Leia like buns.
While most avant garde, performance artist types from the 90s have fallen into anonymity, Bjork has recently released her 8th album Biophilia, the world’s first “app album” in collaboration with Apple which was partly recorded on iPad. To top 2011 of right, Bjork has also collaborated with the Dirty Projectors on their album Mount Wittenberg Orca, due out in late October.
Whether you are a fan of her quirky fashion sense or phenomenal vocal and musical talents, we can all agree that Bjork is one iconoclastic performer.
week ending 8/27
OK, sooo my life is pretty much a roller coaster--the kind that is super awesome but can make you sick with so many twists, turns, loops, and drops that can leave your stomach in your throat. In an effort to keep me grounded while my life pulls turns sharper than an ice skate, I've decided to take a page from Gala Darling's blog and list all of the little things that make me smile each week. Sorta like counting your blessings but not so much, you know. Oh and I know the magazine is mirror imaged since I took the pic in Photo Booth.
This is a Gamine original and since I own Gamine, I also own all the rights to this. To see it in its original format go to Life According to Gamine: Vampire Envy.Like every twenty-something approaching 30, I have begun to contemplate my own immortality. Instead of dwelling on the fact that one day my boobs will start to head south for the winter and that my coolness quotient, being tied to how close I am to 25, will being to drop exponentially the second I blow out the candles on my 27th birthday cake, I have become obsessed with exploring my options for forever delaying my inevitable slip into old age and eventually the coffin. I’ve toyed around with having kids as an attempt at immortality, like most people, but they are damn expensive and require me to have some semblance of a career with health insurance and sanity. I have even begun to explore the fact that my choice to become a writer is more influenced by my narcissistic need to live forever than my desire to write, but writing doesn’t pay until it does. So after careful consideration I’m turning to vampirism, more specifically I’m begging the vampires of Bon Temps–wherever that is–to come and get it.
I’ve really thought this trough after being a student of the vampire myth my entire life, and watching every episode of True Blood. I’d be totally ok with never seeing the sun again, I have a permanent tan thanks to having ancestors from west Africa, and I’d look great frozen at 26 for the next however many years until the world ends, Buffy stakes me, or I meet the true death at the hands of an angry vampire king. I also already wear a ton of black and would have no problem living off of blood–its like a juice fast but jucier.
My decision to embrace life as the undead has pretty much been accepted by everyone except my boyfriend who thinks my dreams of biting necks, glamoring fools, and hanging with Vampire Bill and Eric are no more than teenage fangirl fantasies. I acknowledge that at the heart of my desire are fangirl fantasies where I am less like True Blood’s resident backwoods Barbie and more like the chicly dressed but tough ass nails lady vampires who do nothing but sleep all day and wear vintage Dior at night. While some part of me would love to have one of the show’s main man vamps bite and turn me, another larger part of me refuses to accept that death is begin to blow his icy breath on the back of my neck–my bad that was the a/c. Either way, I am on a mission to join the undead in their quest to do whatever it is that they spend immortality doing, as long as I don’t get stuck hanging with lames like Vampire Bill and this new sensitive Eric Northman who would win me over in real life as a vampire, because thats what vampires do, but would probably annoy the heck out of the vampire me and the real me if he were the real him. (The real Eric Northman is Swedish and no offense but I don’t know anything to come out of Sweden that isn’t a little bit odd. Think about it, Ikea, H&M, Abba, Ace of Base…all odd.)
To satisfy my boyfriend’s curiosity and annoyance with my geeked out fangirl tendencies–he’s sat through Harry Potter and Twilight with me and indulged my comparisons of both series to the ultimate geek trilogy, The Lord of the Rings–he will be the first person I turn as a new vampire. He will also be responsible for turning me if he becomes a vampire first. However we come to vampirism, we will have forever to figure out our careers, how we’ll afford to live, and whatever else you’re supposed to figure out before 30 because I have the same ideas about being an adult at 26 as I had at 16.
This is another MISS orignal for my weekly Fashion Meets Music column. To view this piece in its original format go to Fashion Meets Music: Beth Ditto. Hailing from Searcy, Arkansas, this 30 year old performer with more energy than an atomic bomb went from a wannabe singer who thought her weight would keep her stuck belting out songs in the Bible Belt to a bonafide star after toiling for years with her bandmates, Nathan “Brace Pain” Howdeshell and first Kathy Mendonca then Hannah Billie. Since forming in 1999, working the underground club circuit in the Pacific Northwest, changing drummers, and dropping the “the” from their name, Gossip has won several awards, released four albums and experienced the kind of mainstream success that VMA’s are made of.
When it comes to style, this self professed “fat, feminist lesbian from Arkansas” has broken every rule that attempts to confine plus-sized beauties to dark, structured pieces pushing them into the background. If there is one thing Beth Ditto is not, it’s a background type of girl. This one woman revolution dons spandex dresses in bold patterns including the taboo horizontal stripe, shows as much skin than her svelte counterparts, and has been known to love Miu Miu’s (not muumuus) flowy frocks. Whether she’s changing up her hair color, piling on the eyeliner, or proclaiming that she doesn’t shave her arm pits, how punk of her, this girl from the backwoods doesn’t have killer style in spite of her roots she has it because of them. While she’s come a long way from shoplifting from Marshall’s and Goodwill, the style she developed out of necessity has carried her from Arkansas to Paris Fashion Week where she opened John Paul Gaultier’s Spring 2011 runway show.
Although this punk rock, plus-sized charmer may have landed on the cover of Love magazine’s first issue, stark naked might I add, and had her own collection of clothes sold by UK retailer Evans, she has empowered countless girls to be who they are no matter what size they are. In fact, her unique ability to embrace every inch and ounce of her body, something most women struggle do regardless of their size, lead to her contributing an advice column on body mage for The Gaurdian.
Whether you love her for the way she growls and gets down on stage or for her sincerely in your face style, Beth Ditto is for sure the real deal and worthy of our adoration.
This is a MISS original, making the copy and layout all theirs. To see it in its original format go to Fashion Meets Music: Amy Winehouse. By now most of the world has heard the news that the 27 club has gained a new member in Amy Winehouse. While this talented, young singer may never get the chance to make the comeback we were all rooting for, her talent and bold sartorial choices will go on to inspire generations of young women for as long as the Internet still stands. Since we have already covered the life, times, and brief career of Amy Winehouse, I’ll skip the pleasantries and get straight to the fashion.
Before exploring 50’s and 60’s girl groups sounds in her Back to Black album, Amy dressed like any other recording star on the rise in her late teens. As evidenced by the album covers for Frank and Back to Black, Amy’s early style was quite tame compared to what it would eventually evolve into. Her dark hair didn’t even have the crown fullness of Snookie’s pouf and her eyeliner had yet to reach Cleopatra-like proportions. Somewhere between the 2003 release Frank and the 2006 release of Back to Black Amy fell in love with duwop and embraced the style of women like Etta James and Ronnie Spector, or Veronica Bennett as she was known during her days with The Ronnettes.
Instead of carbon copying the style of 50’s and 60’s icons, Amy added her own spin on things and came up with a look reminiscent of a character from a John Waters flick complete with skyscraper hair and Tracy Lords like body con outfits. To accessorize her modern girl group member meets pin-up girl style, Amy seemingly used an entire pot of MAC fluidline to draw an exaggerated cat eye that would make Elizabeth Taylor’s Cleopatra make-up artist jealous. On top of the over the top beehive, that sometimes sported a white streak or two, the drape like outfits, and the eyeliner that launched one thousand make-up tutorials, Amy made sure to show off her impressive and always growing collection of ink. Amy Winehouse’s distinctive style was so innovative and in demand that she was asked to collaborate on a 17-piece collection with the Fred Perry label which hit stores in October 2010.
Years after Amy’s “Rehab” and “You Know I’m No Good” put her on the map stateside, girls are still embracing the modern pin-up look, piling on the eyeliner, and pulling inspiration from Amy’s muses. While her look may have inspired a fad that died out the minute she began to give in to her self-destructive drug habit, the true legacy of Amy Winehouse’s style is in showing her fans that it is okay to be who you are. From Adele and Duffy who benefited from Amy taking the soul revival mainstream and making a way for them to move from the UK to the US, to Lady Gaga who credited Winehouse with making it easier for non-Britney pop stars to have mainstream success, down to the girl next door experimenting with her make-up, we all can learn a thing or two about expressing ourselves from Ms. Winehouse.
This was post was written for KC Style. With all layouts being done specifically for that site as well....In other words I'd better not see this anywhere else online. To view this post in its original format go to Add A Little Summer Chic to Your 9-5 Routine
With temperatures across the country hovering near boiling, it should come as no surprise that most of us have been dying to inject a little summer fun into our work wardrobes. Before you step into those shorts or pull on that cropped top, here are a few things to consider when merging your summer style with your 9-5:
Beach wear is for beaches not the boardroom. Your summer work wardrobe should not include anything you would wear to a beach, amusement park, or backyard barbecue. So steer-clear-of flip-flops, even if they are dressy flip-flops, anything cropped, rompers, and anything that exposes way too much skin.
Let the sunshine in with brightly colored pieces. Add a heap of instant summer to your work wear by simply swapping navy, brown, and black for brighter hues. You can also play with the season’s hottest trend, color blocking, by wearing a top and skirt in contrasting or complimentary colors.
Keep cool in lightweight fabrics. There is a reason that wool and flannel suits disappear from the shelves in spring. Instead of trying to summer up your fall and winter weight suits, invest in a cotton or linen number to keep you cool and dry as you trek from the car to the office. Speaking of linen, your linen suit should have a similar cut to the wool ones you wear in winter and should not make you look like a guest at a party in the Hamptons.
Use prints and patterns to add interest.Take your Monday through Friday top and slacks/skirt combo up a notch by adding a floral or nautical striped top into the rotation. Beware of any print that resembles the Hawaiian shirt your dad brought back from vacation, that kind of kitsch is best left in gift shops, retirement homes, and ironic tiki parties.
Bare your toes at your own risk. Some offices are okay with you wearing sandals, not flip flops, to work while some have a strict closed toe only policy. If your higher ups are okay with you baring all, when it comes to your feet of course, please be sure that your feet are ready for their close-up from toe to heel. A quick to the local nail shop for a pedicure is a must. Also stick with sandal styles that enclose your heel, incase they’re not camera ready, and that have a sturdy yet comfy bottom. An espadrille is a great way to add height while staying comfortable and work appropriate.
Initially this spring cleaning post was all about cleaning out your mind, body and wardrobe, however after a very sobering trip to Lenox Square-for an event that lead to me window shopping-I decided to dedicate it to something that all of the Gamine Girls can relate to, transitioning your wardrobe. I don’t mean moving from spring to summer to fall, I mean transitioning from college to intern to entry level or in my case college to intern to professional blogger. As a persnickety, style obsessed, true to my sign Virgo I could think of no one better than myself to guide you through the journey from co-ed to coveted, a journey that I’m actually beginning now.
Before you run to your closet and start throwing away everything that screams undergrad and book it to your nearest J Crew, take a deep breath and inventory your sartorial influences. As you get older the things that influence you change, or should change, due mostly in part to the fact that you’re experiences should have broadened your range of things to draw inspiration from. When I was 21 my style crushes were J Lo, Simple Life Nicole Richie and Carrie Bradshaw, which made for a very trend focused schizophrenic closet. Now that I’m rounding the corner to 27 I love Nicole Richie even more, especially since she’s toned it down a bit, but I’m also a huge fan of Bianca Jagger, Anna Dello Russo and Genevieve Jones with a little bit of 90s grunge/indigenous/art deco thrown in, which makes for an even more nutty wardrobe that actually works. Just because your influences have changed doesn’t mean that you should throw out all of the clothes you’ve collected during your “not a girl not yet a woman” stage. I still have quite a bit of stuff from college that still fits me and style personality, with a few tweaks. So once you’ve gotten a hold on your style personality, its time to physically inventory your closet.
Mix up a batch of margaritas, or pop open the bubbly, crank up your favorite Pandora station and go at your closet like a surgeon doing lipo. First figure out what you actually wear, if you’ve worn something in the past month or so leave it where it hangs because you obviously love it. Stuff that you haven’t worn for 6 months should not be chucked but reevaluated to figure out why you haven’t worn it. If its too big or too small, toss it! If you bought it to pair with something and you still haven’t found its mate, toss it! If you have no idea how to wear it, toss it! The only things you should keep from your 6 month pile are things that you know how to work into your wardrobe, unless you have a stylish friend who can help you figure it out. After your 6 month pile, move on to the things you haven’t worn in a year and TOSS THEM! If you haven’t worn something in a year you obviously don’t know that you have it/how to wear it/it probably doesn’t fit. Now that you have some empty hangers and a pile of clothes on your floor, grab those rejects and list them on ebay. You’d be surprised at how much money I’ve made selling my cast offs on ebay. If having an online yard sale isn’t your thing, gather your girls together for a clothes swap and get some new goods for the price of your old rejects. Be careful with this and only invite pals who you know have great taste or they’ll clean you out and you’ll be left with nothing.
Once you’ve cleaned your closet and earned a little cash from selling the stuff you absolutely didn’t need or want, hit the mall yall! The thing about building a wardrobe is that you want to look for pieces that work together to create a couple of looks not just pieces. Try to create an outfit that can be broken up into three more outfits. In all honesty I’m a piece shopper but before I buy anything I always ask myself “What else will I wear this with?” if I can’t answer that I leave it. Times are too hard for 20 somethings these days for us to go out and waste money on things that we’ll only wear once, NAGL!
Unless you are rolling in the dough, or a guest on TLC’s What Not To Wear, going through each of these steps and building a wardrobe that is worthy of The Coveteur takes time-ever wonder why they feature so many fashion people, people who work in fashion get freebies and a crash course in style from the moment they start interning. Not only do you need the money to replace everything but you need the time to develop your personal style. If you’re anything like me, you’ll be on your way to owning a coveted closet in no time, as soon as that salary position comes through.
