THE SEASON’S BEST LOOKS DONE BY ONE OF OUR FAVOURITE BLOGGERS
Story by Odessa Paloma Parker
Photo by Mark Binks
Our Art Director Barbara saw Paolina Russo hanging out at lunch time in a strip mall in the suburbs. What stood out was her style – unique, flamboyant, and totally amazing. Barbara told her to check out Plaid, and in turn she emailed us about reading her brilliant blog – Calur Villade. We couldn’t resist this tony teen’s take on fashion, and asked if we could do a spread, self-styled of course, of her in her favourite F/W 2010 looks. Enjoy!
How did your love of fashion begin?
I cannot pinpoint exactly when my love for fashion started, but even as a kid I always loved clothes and dressing up. My dad would bring magazines home from work and I used to love drawing outfits from the clothes displayed in the magazines. I guess that eventually grew into me wearing what I drew. I never liked dressing in what other kids in my class wore. I had always been bigger then my school mates, and by grade four I was already wearing women’s sizes, where everyone else wore stuff from the kid’s department. But I think what really spawned my obsession over clothes was the first time I ever went vintage and thrift shopping with my mom. I developed an appreciation for how clothes were made, the quality of the materials, small details that in the overall picture was how a look was put together.
What does fashion mean to you?
I am still on the path of figuring out everything there is to know about fashion, but really fashion is constantly evolving and there will always be something new for me to learn. Fashion as a whole motivates and pushes me to new heights. I love having the challenge of putting together my own looks from my own clothing finds, instead of just going mall shopping and picking up a look from a trendy chain store or a designer that would obviously look good. It feeds my creative hunger to go shopping in thrift and vintage stores, searching for clothes people wouldn’t necessarily find anywhere else. Also because I would have my own opinion on what I like about the clothes, not because big corporations are trying to sell that trendy look to me, but because I myself think it looks good. I have the opportunity with fashion to do something new and different from my day to day routine, putting a unique spin on my life.
Where do you like to shop?
The majority of my clothing and accessory shopping are all second-hand, ranging from thrift stores, such as Salvation Army and Value Village, to estate and garage sales. I shop second-hand because there are such a wide variety of clothes to choose from, with the oddest pieces. I also buy used clothes because it is a form of recycling instead of clothes going straight to the garbage. And it doesn’t hurt that most things are just a dollar.
From time to time I also do a little vintage shopping for clothing I may not find in thrift stores. The thing I like with shopping vintage is that everything is well taken care of, and the usual process of dry cleaning and fixing up some of the items you find at thrift is obsolete. But of course I can’t buy everything from thrift and vintage stores. There is no chance I would ever buy used socks or nylons, so I pick up most of those things from Winners or H&M. Or I could just make something I would want to wear by buying the fabric. But when there is no where else to shop, I go through my friends’ and relatives’ closets, getting pieces that they do not or cannot wear anymore. I go to a lot of lengths to get my clothes, and I consider myself a little bit of a shopaholic / hoarder.
Who are your favourite designers?
I take a lot of inspiration from designers, but my favourites vary from season to season. A few designers that I really love are Ed Meadham and Ben Kirchhoff with Meadham Kirchhoff, Luke Sales and Anna Plunkett with Romance Was Born, Kate and Laura Mulleavy with Rodarte and Rei Kawakubo with Comme Des Garçons. They are the few designers who I take inspiration from all their collections, and from season to season surprise me. They have amazing concepts when it comes to their clothing and impeccable skills working with fabrics.
Why did you choose the six looks for our shoot?
I thought that the looks I chose most reflected my own personal style. Whether it was the layering with Vivienne Westwood’s collection, or the quirkiness of Issey Miyake’s collection, I thought that all the looks touched upon something I value with my style.
If money was no object, what’s the one fashion purchase you’d make?
With out a doubt I would buy a chain of Value Villages and probably buy everything ever designed by Romance Was Born and Meadham Kirchhoff.
What’s the reaction of your school mates about your style?
I go to an art school where most people dress a little more outrageously than others, but even in the beginning people were very responsive to what I wore. It was not that my style was unaccepted but it still was something of a shock to my classmates. There is a lot of mixed review on my clothes but some people have come to appreciate it. The thing is I am not looking to impress anyone; I wear whatever I want to, and if people freak out over such a little thing as what someone wears, that is there own opinion which wouldn’t affect mine.
How do adults react to your style?
Adults usually react very shocked by what I wear. With my schoolmates, they see me every day so it is not too unusual, but I come much unexpected for adults. At first the points and the looks were not enjoyable but it is very amusing for me now. I find watching people drop their groceries or trip over just based purely on what I am wearing very entertaining.
How would you describe your style?
I am constantly tampering around with my style, and I never fully stay with a style or inspiration. Right now it is kind of a mix of 90s tackiness + chunky sweaters + layering + disco + shiny + colour. The list really could go on and on, but an aspect in my style that is always prominent is colour. It is on rare occasions that I will just wear all black or white, because I find it a little boring. But I do experiment with finding ways to make black and white more fun, with different textures and materials. I love to be very vibrant with colour and I find colour a more interesting clash when mixed together.
Are you interested in working in the fashion industry?
I am interested in doing something fashion-related in my future. The tough part now is to figure out what I want to do exactly, before that time comes. I am testing out different things right now with fashion designing, and writing and styling. I know how cut throat the business can be and how difficult it is to even get started, but the aspect of that challenge is intriguing to me. For now I am going to enjoy working on my fashion blog, as well as making clothes and writing. Practice makes perfect and I’ll just have to wait to see what is in store for the future.
What are some things you do to create such a unique look?
Three words: DIY. I am very into personal customization of my clothing, so even if someone owned the same shirt as me, I could still have something different then them because I altered it. Also I wouldn’t say that the reason for my unique look is because I buy from second-hand. Just because I do, does not mean I purchase just anything. I know when to buy something because the piece “talks to me” (which sounds crazy but is not). Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and for me the most important thing in the end is someone’s own confidence in their style. Without confidence you won’t look or feel good.
What are your style inspirations?
I could say a lot of people and designers but one of my biggest influences is my mom circa 1985. As cheesy as that sounds, looking through my mom’s closet or photos of her when she was my age is a huge influence. Her hair was amazing, the clothes she made were on point and her makeup was flawless.
Check out our shoot with Paolina as she interprets her favourite F/W 2011 looks!
