"Where Real Style Goes"

Paris, Moscow, New York, Tokyo and London - fashion capitals known for their pristine, prim and proper fashionistas and 'nistos. No doubt, if you decided to walk down London's Sloane Street, or Paris' Champs Elysees (not to mention anywhere in the other fashion capitals listed) you would be wowed by the beautiful understated luxury of rich fabrics, luscious furs and of course, drawn to the beautiful red soles of our high-power fashionistas.

That's all well and good but in all honesty, it does get rather boring. You find that more and more you can predict how people will be dressed because fashion is global and fashion capital have an image to uphold. Sadly, this image is slowly becoming the same image - no variation whatsoever. As a stylist, I seek the oddities in fashion and look to highlight their beauty and individual nature. Granted, beauty is subjective and so something I appreciate, you may think is garbage - I nevertheless aim to find the most fabulously outlandish styles and bring them to the fore!

For every prince, there is a pauper (or ten) and so for every Louboutin-donning fashionista, there is a Saucony-wearing, Skateboard-riding style icon! Want to know where to find them?

Unlike Tokyo, Paris, Moscow and New York, you needn't go to one specific area of London to find these people. All you need to do is walk. I found myself stopping constantly as I walked the streets of Ladbroke Grove because someone's sneakers caught my eye. In Brixton, I couldn't help but ask people where they got their studded jackets and their creepers because they were so cool! I can't say I've felt underdressed in my life but I most definitely felt un-stylish next to this lot! My eyes were opened to a new movement. They say the Devil makes work for idle hands but here the results were solely heavenly! Upon asking about the jackets, I was told "I was bored and decided to stud my jacket. Got the studs off e-bay..." Clearly, I'd interrupted the flow of this young man's day but I felt it was well worth it!

Too often we are obsessed with brands and how much something costs. I found, looking at the style around me, that a lot of it was homemade! That wasn't all, though. Looking at the way skaters, "indie" kids and "hipsters" dressed, I realised, though little effort may have gone into it, the results were similar to those of editorials for VIBE magazine featuring Run DMC and the styling of characters like the Fresh Prince of Bel Air and Jazzy Jeff! Surely they couldn't know about all this? The styling, the brands, the painstaking effort to create a look that would sit well on the cover of a magazine and yet remain accessible to the masses? I thought they didn't but they did!

The fact is, we don't need to be in the most expensive neighbourhoods or be in the most expensive clothes to be stylish. It's not what you wear but how you wear it. So if you're looking for real style - look to Brixton Market, Ladbroke Grove and its surrounding skateparks, Brick Lane and the night scene of Soho!

That's where real fashion goes!

Live Beautiful, Stay Vogue!
Ciao Bellissimi!
Mr. Darkwah
X

Louboutins, Gucci, Vogue! The race to London Fashion Week is on!

With  London Fashion Week hot on our heels, it is only right that we acknowledge and focus on the trend-setters in Young British Mens Fashion. This blog post shall herald a fashion designer, praise a model who epitomises the designer's message, and exalt the best-dressed youthful icon of our time. Are you ready for the Gospel according to Jay?

The designers are clearly the risk-takers and pioneers in this love triangle. They deliver to the consumers what is en-vogue, taking into account the needs of customers whilst adding edge and vibrance to every item of clothing.It's a hard life being a designer - having to give the critics something to talk about whilst remaining accessible enough for the masses and chic enough for the fashionistas. Fashion Week is the ultimate test of s designer's ability to adapt and evolve beyond their last collection and call it schaden freude, but I love watching them work!

William Richard Green, one of four designers with work being showcased at 'Selfridges' Bright Young Things, is definitely making a name for himself. With the use of his Saville Row expertise, he has a line that can be labelled as masculine, playful and daring -  everything a mans style should be! He is credited for his high-end casual menswear and his beautiful amalgam of different out-of-fashion factors that influenced his range. He stated his inspirations for 2012 were 'millwall football hooligans and British military apparel' showing a mixture of power, fun and youth. Mr Green will be one of the many designers participating in the Fashion East Installations on Wednesday 22nd February 2012. Be sure to check his work out!

Having modelled clothing for William Richard Green, Fred Perry and Ozwald Boateng, it is clear Dudley O'Shaugnessy is what the designers want. His defined cheekbones, part-time boxer physique and signature smouldering look embody the empowered, confident and nonchalant young man that we all see in fashion today. He is the man that can try new things, balance large amounts of work, and not crumble under pressure or in the spotlight as we see from his acting stints to his boxing practice. Mr O'Shaugnessy was also featured in Rihanna's dark and lusty video for her record 'We Found Love' in Autumn 2011, and is someone whose pout we will almost certainly be seeing a lot more of!

Not only has he been named GQ's best dressed Man in the UK, he has won many awards and created hits in music by use of his sheer passion and drive. It goes without saying, Tinie Tempah is able to balance individual style and still channel the image the designers and stylists who work with him want to portray. He is someone who is diverse in the music game , and is able to use his choice of attire as a canvas to express this. Bravo Tinie Tempah!

Stay Stylish Always, 

Jay