Monday, 26 July 2010

"Oh dear I cannot tease you about that. What a shame for I dearly love to laugh."

Humour is a strange thing.

I was reminded of this fact on the tube the other night when an admittedly drunken man began to insult a boy sat in front of him for the comedic benefit of his friends, and it was one of the saddest sights I have witnessed in a long time. It got me thinking about the types of humour and its questionable intentions.

Political correctness has attempted to stamp out selfish humour at the expense of others but has in turn spouted out a whole new avenue of taking the piss, by taking the piss out of not being allowed to take the piss. If that makes sense...

Fashion has picked up on this to great effect, whether its styling to a stereotype or breaking down taboo barriers with high fashion, but the best sort of humour remains to be the kind created through light-heartiness and the act of not taking yourself too seriously. Lady GaGa and Katy Perry have kept the tabloids colourful with their brave and wonderful creations, Henry Holland perked up the fashion world for a few seasons with his cheeky slogans, while M.I.A and Agnes Deyn have taken mis-matching to a new level of fun. Even when designers are poking fun at popular culture or attempting to reinvent the worst fashion faux pas of all time, catwalks are always brought alive by the best accessory of all; a smile.



Of course, this comedic value is not purely for its consumers. It has been translated into a multi-million pound industry spanning the likes of fashion, films and writing. This fact highlights the sad but undeniable hypocrisy in humour; the desire to increase the apparent enjoyment of others is gained through the selfish need for attention.

The boy on the tube swapped carriages at the next stop.

Sunday, 20 June 2010

Best Fashion Films

A true fashion film should not only be an inspirational enjoyment, but also an accessible form of documenting the zeitgeist and lifestyle of a poignant era.

1. Factory Girl
1960's
A huge personal favourite of mine. Documenting the life of Edie Sedgwick, one of the very first New York socialites and her "mod" inspired glamour.

2. Control
1970's
Thoughtfully filmed in black and white, this film explores the life and death of Joy Division star Ian Curtis, and the post-punk, early grunge environment he was surrounded by.

3. Worried About The Boy
1980's
Set in the centre of London, this is the story of Boy George and how he was accepted into, and contributed to the "mod-revival" movement.

4. This is England
1980's
A film illustrating the "skin-head" subculture, beginnings of 90's grunge, and the relevance of image and belonging.

5. Sex and the City
1990-2000's
Although the films have become more of an advertising avenue and yes, admittedly the series was a million times better, it is hard to ignore the social documentation that this fashion phenomenon is achieving; one that we will surely look back on in years to come.

The Morning After The Night Before

Everything is better when it's slightly dishevelled; I think this is why I love "the-morning-after-the-night-before". Experiences are drowned in haziness and personal bubbles become less transparent, hence a lack of realisation for the need of effort. Which is a good thing, it brings the perfectionists down to my level. Faded t-shirts, limp hair, snagged tights and sunglasses for the faint-hearted.

I am probably low maintenance to a fault with my laziness resulting in messy "bed-head"(not from a bottle), an occassional lick of mascara and outfits thoughtfully hand-picked from the catastrophe of my bedroom floor.

I've met many people with an enviable ability to relax into this look with undoubtable style. But in terms of people with a little more prestige, model Daisy Lowe and performer Florence Welch are definitely ones to watch for inspiration. You cannot help but admire Florence's tendancy to juxtapose last nights make up with timelessly ornate pieces and Daisy's less is more approach to her complexion.



To conclude this rather lengthy post, a beautiful song, perfect for winding down the country lanes with a car full of great people individually contemplating the disjointed memories of the night before...



Monday, 7 June 2010

Gareth Pugh to replace McQueen?!


Slightly cold off the press I know, but while going through revision hell at the moment, I have sought solace in the soul saving 4oD, namely a 7 year old series “Fashion House”. A spawn of this program was Gareth Hughes, who in my eyes proved himself to be more of a vulgar attention-seeking sculptor than a fashion designer. I then discovered to my horror that a couple of indie mag features later, he has been named the favourite to keep the McQueen flame alight.

Admittedly, his recent work has evolved into the new “sky-high” fashion favoured by Lady GaGa and the such like, but this already strong and established sense of fashion image will surely backfire on the McQueen brand resulting in identity chaos?

….I stand in the hope of correction.

Sunday, 6 June 2010

inconnue-(french adj.)-nameless, unknown.

After deciding to jump on the blogging band wagon, the next hurdle was choosing a name, a mean feat for my indecisive nature! Although the subject of many of my posts will undoubtably revolve around my passion for style and culture, I refused to give into the "fashionista" sterotype. So I turned to one of my closest friends, whose love of all things french came up with "Inconnue". So I decided to trust her. Shes called Amy Spencer and she can make beautiful music, you should really check her out...and thats an order!
http://www.myspace.com/amyspencermusic