Pictured above from left to right, Christene Barberich, Piera Gelardi, Laura Brown, Aya Kanai & Preetma Singh for Refinery29 Style Stalking
I attended Refinery29’s panel discussion on the arrival of their new book Style Stalking, at Apple Store Soho on Wednesday, and was very pleasantly surprised with the inspiration I got from this board of smart, successful women. Surprisingly though, not much of the hour-long discussion actually discussed much of the book, but offered a few tidbits of information. The authors of Style Stalking, editor-in-chief Christene Barberich and executive creative director, Piera Gelardi, spoke of the depth of their street style book, how it goes beyond what someone is wearing, to style being the truest form of self expression. I couldn’t agree more. My style looks exactly how I feel each day, whether I am sad and wearing loose, baggy clothes, or if I am very excited and wearing bright patterns. Everyone in the discussion, who, by the way all rocked the lobs, expressed their own feelings about style, with some conversations getting a bit more philosophical.
Preetma Singh, the market director at Nylon, who rocks amazing green hair, got especially deep, having gone from the finance world into fashion. She says it is okay to be happy with prioritizing relationships, but it is also okay to prioritize your work. It is okay to be happy with working a 9-to-5 job everyday, and it is also okay to go out there and chase your dreams, which is what she did. She even discussed dyeing her hair green since her highlights were turning that hue anyways, saying it was a risk she took, but she didn’t care if other people liked it, as long as she did, and if she didn’t then they she can dye it back. Everyone needs to live their life according to what makes them happy; there is no right or wrong way to go about your life and your job. This was refreshing to me and helped me to be more aware of my priorities and going about living a life that I am proud of and happy to live.
Cosmopolitan’s fashion director, Aya Kanai, discussed her path, having come from Nylon and moving to a magazine with a completely different audience. She said her style is most closely reflected by Nylon, rather than the more sexy look of a Cosmopolitan reader, but that she has no problem targeting to her new audience. As long as you know who your product is intended for and you are marketing to them, then you are on the right track.
One last point the girls made, that got me thinking and ready to clean out my closet, is about “closet purging.” Christene says she does this often, where she will go through her clothes and get rid of what she doesn’t love or doesn’t wear anymore. She says it helps to try things on so you really know how it looks on you, especially clothes you haven’t worn in a long time. It won’t always look as good on you as you might think. Aya goes through her closet once a year by putting all of her clothing on a clothes rack and looking through at her wardrobe through the eye of a shopper. If she wouldn’t buy it, then it’s time to get rid of it. Laura Brown, executive editor of Harper’s Bazaar, says it’s good to let go and dispose of what you don’t want anymore, whether it is your closet or other things in life, you need to get rid of the old to make space for the new. HINT: If you want to go find their unwanted clothing, they all donate often to Beacon’s Closet in the city.
I hope I was able to depict just a glimmer of their inspiration and tips through my blog post and that you feel more encouraged to go out there and embrace your personal style. You can also listen to the podcast of this event on iTunes, which should be up soon from Apple Store Soho.
Here is a short summary of their event. http://www.refinery29.com/2014/10/76594/refinery29-style-stalking-apple-store-soho
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