My week as a Street Style Star
Can a superblogger's wardrobe ever work on an ordinary person? GLAMOUR's Corrie Jackson finds out
Rex FeaturesThe Susie Bubble mash-up
WHO Susanna Lau, Londoner and ex-editor of Dazed Digital (stylebubble.co.uk).
SIGNATURE LOOK Insane riot of colour and texture. Trademark fringe and topknot
Tweet us your most fashion-fabulous looks and we will retweet our favourites #GLAMOURstreetstyle
Candice LakeThe Susie Bubble mash-up
THE LOWDOWN Whoa, this is shiny. And pink. “You look like the lovechild of a Haribo Tangfastic and Barbie,” says my husband helpfully over breakfast. Today, I’m meeting my friend’s new boyfriend. Yay! This is exactly the first impression I want to make. I try channelling cute and quirky but I feel like a Quality Street. No matter how crazily she’s dressed, Susie always pulls it off. How does she do it? At least I can walk there quickly; Susie Bubble doesn’t do heels. I decide that smiling is the key to making this sunny look work. By the time I arrive at the restaurant my face hurts. I spy my friend Jess and her new man. Once Jess has stopped laughing she introduces me. “Hello!” I smile, winningly. “Um, hello.” He looks embarrassed. I never wear hats. Should I take it off? No! Susie Bubble wouldn’t. I sit down. “Don’t you want to take your jacket off?” asks Matt. “No, it’s part of the look,” I say. Jess snorts. I look at Matt, daring him to say anything else about my outfit. He stares at his plate. On the way home I pass a building site. I smile. “Oi oi, love,” shouts one. “Penelope Pitstop called; she wants her look back.”
VERDICT It’s fun, but I feel like Elle in Legally Blonde – not a good thing
REAL-LIFE RATING 3/10
PA PhotosThe Anna Dello Russo diva-off
WHO Editor-at-large for Vogue
Japan. The Italian self-confessed
‘maximalist’ is blogosphere royalty
(annadellorusso.com).
SIGNATURE STYLE Think gold brocade
suits, watermelon headgear and
Balenciaga ballgowns. As daywear.
Candice LakeThe Anna Dello Russo diva-off
THE LOWDOWN Full disclosure: I love this. The J Crew suit is totally something I would wear and I love how the acid yellow Mulberry shirt pops. But, oh my days, what are those heels? Six inches? So that’s why fashionistas get cabs. I’m off to meet my fashion editor friend, Sarah, for brunch. By the time I get on the Tube I’m sweating. But I’m an Italian diva so I don’t take the jacket off. Or the sunglasses. People are giving me odd looks, but I don’t care. I’m a goddess. These people can kiss my J Crew-clad arse. God, it’s hot in here. Sarah’s
verdict? “The shoes are a bit Herman
Munster, but the suit rocks.” She declines to mooch around the shops with
me after, so make of that what you will.
VERDICT Love it. It’s like slipping on a divine suit of armour. I feel empowered (although my feet aren’t
speaking to me right now).
REAL-LIFE RATING 8/10
Getty Images/Samir HusseinThe Bip Ling clash-fest
WHO Bipasha Ling, Brit bloggerartist-model-DJ (bipling.com).
SIGNATURE STYLE Cute and quirky;
bold prints and killer heels.
Candice LakeThe Bip Ling clash-fest
THE LOWDOWN I’ve never been a leopard-print fan – too Bet Lynch – but it’s a Bip Ling staple so I squeeze myself into these spray-on Asos trousers. I don’t mind the jacket but the trousers + hologram heels + white bag are giving me a migraine. I leave the house doing my best superblogger strut and head to a bar. I’m the first to arrive (great!) so spend the first ten minutes failing to blend in. I really want to take the jacket off but that will totally spoil the clashing-prints vibe. The look divides my friends. “I love the red lipstick…” says one. “Take the jacket
off,” hisses another. “You look mental.” My most fashion-y friend proclaims the look “a triumph”. A few G&Ts later and
I get home from the bar wondering if this look is so bad after all. I ask my husband for his thoughts. “Half leopard, half pheasant,” he says. Yes, it really is that bad.
VERDICT I get where this is going but it’s a bit too ‘eclectic’.
REAL-LIFE RATING 6/10
Getty ImagesThe Hanneli luxe
WHO Hanneli Mustaparta, Norwegian
model-slash-street-style-photographerslash-
fashion-blogger-slash-TVpresenter. Still with me? (hanneli.com)
SIGNATURE STYLE Effortless, feminine
with an edge. Acne, Mulberry and Alexander Wang are her go-tos.
Candice LakeThe Hanneli luxe
THE LOWDOWN Hanneli is my total
girl crush. That said, leather dungarees
wouldn’t be my first choice for an outdoor screening of The Big Lebowski in the park. However! This week I’m worshipping at the altar of fashion, so leather dungarees and strappy Manolos it is. My friend Ceri looks worried. “You do know we’re going to the park?” We wait to cross the road. “Why are you standing like that?” “Like what?” “With your hip jutting out and your nose in the air?” “Shhh, I’m being all Scandi cool.” “Stop it, you look weird.” By the time we get to the park, I’m almost crippled. I’m desperate to take my shoes off but I need to keep up the insouciant vibe. People are openly staring. And it’s really warm. I never really wear leather so I’m not used to how, um, insulating it is. Halfway through the film, Ceri turns to me. “You’ve got a sweaty bottom, haven’t you?” Yes, Ceri, I have.
VERDICT Call me stupid but I love this.
I dig its screw-you impractical vibe.
REAL-LIFE RATING 7/10
Getty ImagesThe Tavi granny-off
WHO 16-year-old wunderkind Tavi
Gevinson, who launched her first blog,
Style Rookie, aged 11 (thestylerookie.com).
SIGNATURE STYLE Granny-tastic. Grey
hair, OAP specs and statement millinery.
Candice LakeThe Tavi granny-off
THE LOWDOWN Um, riiiight. This takes ten seconds to put on but that’s the only positive. I look like a demented bridesmaid. I hate pink. But don’t panic! I know what will make this better. A silver biker jacket and giant pink rose headband. This look makes me the most uncomfortable of all (and that’s saying something). On the way to my brother’s birthday lunch I stop to buy flowers. A little girl with her mum whispers: “Is she a fairy?” I wink at her and she smiles. Maybe this isn’t so bad. “Oh, I love your shoes, darling,” says my mum as I arrive. “Nanna Win used to have a pair like that.”
VERDICT A big fat no. That said, I think it’s the pink I object to mostly. If the dress were a different colour, who knows? But then I couldn’t pass as the tooth fairy, and where’s the fun in that?
REAL-LIFE RATING 4/10
Getty ImagesThe Bryanboy headache
WHO Filipino fashion blogger and
front-row fixture Bryan Grey Yambao
(bryanboy.com).
SIGNATURE STYLE Part preppy, part
gangsta – bow-ties, fur collars and OTT
sunglasses (worn simultaneously).
Candice LakeThe Bryanboy headache
THE LOWDOWN Oh my god. I can’t wear this and go outside. I’ve left this ’til last because, well, I don’t want to wear it. I put on the pantaloons (shoot me), Liberty print shirt (actually, I kind of like this) and Adidas hi-tops. Then giant, mirrored sunglasses. Right, I’m ready to hit the local deli; I’ve got friends over tonight. Outside, a crowd is forming. An old man says: “You look sweet, dear.” People give me a wide berth. Even the dog tied to a lamppost is staring. I race home (easy in these shoes, no?).
VERDICT Bryanboy, with his Lady Gaga confidence, has my utmost respect. But, for me, there’s nothing redeeming about this outfit.
REAL-LIFE RATING -100/10
This article originally appeared in the September issue of GLAMOUR.
