Inspired by Style: The Strokes
My favorite musicians often inspire my style like with this particular look where I took influence from Julian Casablancas of The Strokes.
Music is my lifeblood, even more so than fashion. I know that's probably not what you want to hear from a fashion blogger who has made it her life goal to make it to Elle magazine or follow in blogger extraordinaire Chiara Ferragni's footsteps, but music constantly swirls in my head leaving me in a haze, flowing through my veins, both intoxicating and invigorating me with staccato rhythms, violent drum beats, and ultra smooth, ethereal melodies. It's a constant inspiration in both my creative writing and style. I take cues from my favorite musicians regularly.
When I was in middle school and on my huge Green Day and Good Charlotte kick, I wore converse on the regular and lined my eyes in thick, black kohl. On the pop side, Marina and the Diamonds and Katy Perry have inspired my whimsical nature, from wearing Vivienne Westwood rubber peep-toe pumps with metallic hearts to perfume bottle clutches. My biggest inspirations, however, have to be from my two favorite bands: The Strokes and Spoon. Julian Casablancas (The Strokes) and Britt Daniel (Spoon) are both my musical idols and style icons, and this look is inspired by the former. I often take elements of Julian's casual cool from the early aughts and punk-rock, motorcycle jacket clad sensibility of today along with Britt's simple and sophisticated look and combine them with more feminine pieces, melding my style with a little bit of theirs.
This shirt always makes me think of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind when Clementine says, "Meet me in Montauk."
With the Big Guava music festival coming this weekend, marking the first time I'll get to see The Strokes live (I may pass out from excitement), I styled this OOTD with a shirt reminiscent of Julian's style circa Room on Fire, an excellent album that if you haven't heard, your should load up on Spotify stat. The shirt, which you can see in the gallery below, is an olive green mechanic's work shirt, fitted with red and white patches above mitered flap pockets. Without overanalyzing the choice of this shirt too much, I like and find kind of funny the nonchalant nature of choosing a utilitarian, workwear top from a laid-back rocker. Paired with black pants, red converse, and white belt (oh, how very early aughts that white belt is), Julian's look is representative of the music culture of the time.
Though my shirt is a little more military than mechanic, I bought it from American Eagle for its resemblance to Julian's. Also, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of my all-time favorite films, and I think, "Meet me in Montauk," every time I look at the patch on the arm's sleeve. To mirror the singer's later style, I aimed for an edgy look, incorporating metallic studding throughout in my jewelry, but I also wanted to keep things feminine. I opted to tuck my shirt into a black, pleated skater skirt rather than pants. Instead of converse, I wore DV by Dolce Vita booties. The stacked straps mirror the iconic lacing of Chucks.
“I want to be forgotten, and I don’t want to be reminded. You say, ‘Please, don’t make this harder.’ No I won’t, yet. I wanna be beside her, she want to be admired.”
My Baublebar gothic fang bib in gold exudes edgy glamour and pairs perfectly with my Juicy Couture studded, matte-black cuff and crescent moon stud earrings. To go with the utilitarian vibe of my shirt, I wore my Coach Rhyder messenger in bronze metallic leather, a favorite of mine for school and weekend errands. It's a stunner in person but also highly functional with its multiple spacious compartments and crossbody strap. I typically wear it with my Buster Le Fauve bag charm from the Coach x Gary Baseman collaboration, which I stalked for months and spent a small fortune on. This charm was one of the first pieces I bought and adds to that whimsical nature of my style I love so much. And of course, the look wouldn't be complete without my favorite Prada shades. Despite having an overwhelming amount of sunglasses, these are the only pair I seem to be wearing lately.
My Coach Rhyder messenger in metallic leather is a go-to of mine for its utilitarian vibe. I paired it with this Gary Baseman for Coach bag charm.
These DV by Dolce Vita booties are a more feminine and edgy alternative to Julian's Chuck Taylors.
Balck and gold studded jewelry add a more punk rock feel to this look, reminiscent of the singer's later style.
Alright, long post over! Clearly, I'm very excitable over music, especially when I incorporate it in to my style, as I'll be doing when I head to Big Guava this weekend. If you haven't listened to The Strokes, "What Ever Happened?" is a great track to start with. Checkout the gallery below for my inspiration as well as similar pieces to get this look yourself. Click through for links.
Has music inspired your style like it has mine? Do you have any musical style icons? Tell us in the comments below. If you're going to Big Guava, let us know! The Stitch & Strut team will be there Saturday seeking out the best festival fashion to feature on the blog.
Until Saturday...
