I’m by no means a fashionista. I don’t follow fashion designers (although I have some favorites), I rarely read fashion magazines, I don’t think I’d ever spend more than $50 on a bag. But since high school I’ve loved fashion photography. I used to go to Barnes & Noble and sit with a stack of fashion mags, W and Vogue were my favorite, looking through them mainly for the ads. I loved the styling of the shoots, from the very simple to elaborate, the hair, the makeup, the posing of the models, the sets, the styling of the outfits, I loved it all. I still do.
My love was never so much about the clothes as it was about having a look, a sense of style and personal expression. And that love extended beyond just the images, but into my closet and my life. What I wear has always been important to me. It may seem silly, but every day I put a lot of thought into what I’ll wear (although lately there’s not a lot of choice in my closet), even if it’s just a pair of jeans, and a t-shirt. It’s always been that way for me.
To me, style is the simplest and most visible form of artistic self-expression. What you wear sends a message about yourself to the world. I take care in choosing what I wear because I want to tell the world very specific things about myself. Caring about how I look tells the world that I care about it. To me, it’s like dressing up for your significant other, you do it because you want to look nice for them to show them you love them. I dress for the world because I want to look nice for the people around me, because I love this world so much.
Josh thinks I’m ridiculous because I would never leave the house in sweatpants or without a full face of makeup, but I just cannot do it. It just seems disrespectful, and I would feel self-conscious. I know that most people don’t think in these terms. A lot of people just see clothes as utilitarian, and probably would think that I’m vain or that I care too much about what people think. But it’s not vanity, it’s self-expression. I’ve always thought of myself as an artist (I know, I know, as if this post weren’t getting pretentious enough) and my job as an artist is to create beauty in the world. And I think the first place I can start that is with myself.
Well, enough with me being obnoxious, here are some of my favorite sources of style inspiration:
The Stylish Underground - A blog with only images of celebrities with great style.
Salt & Prep – A new blog from Seattle Senior Portrait Photographer Michelle Moore showcasing some great teen style.
Minihipster - A kid’s style site, I read it mostly for the cuteness factor.
All Things Lovely – The blog of Delaware Photographer Kristen Nichols, featuring her photography, as well as design and fashion posts. (p.s. I love her boudoir photography!)
Oh Joy! - A great all around style and design blog. My favorite posts are the This & That posts.
The Sartorialist - Love this street style blog by fashion industry veteran, Scott Schuman.
Hi Styley – My very favorite! I’m in love with this LA street style blog. We Angelinos sure do know how to look good.
Those are just some of my favorites. Maybe someday I’ll give you a post about my own style. We’ll see if I’m brave enough for that!
