The Real Fashion Icons

   Lately, I've heard some people talking about fashion icons and I've even seen a top made by a famous Romanian fashion magazine of fashion icons and, sadly, I came to the conclusion that the concept of " Fashion Icon" is misunderstood. To make it clear from the beginning, not any celebrity can be taken as a fashion standard.

   Lets try to answer to these questions: What does Fashion Icon mean?
                                                                Who are the real Fashion Icons?

  

   In my view, it is really important to remain objective while talking about Fashion Icons. We should know that not everyone in the magazines or on the TV is a fashion etalon; even if we admire someone, we should reflect on the reason we have this sympathy and not anything that person does for good. As I said, reflection is really constructive. This is available for fashion, too. Unfortunatelly, not every public person takes into account hiring a stylist. A lot of celebrities wear expensive clothing which looks bad because they believe they have an amazing personal style. A professional never does this.

   What does Fashion Icon mean? Well, in my opinion, a Fashion Icon is a person who is accepted by almost every fashion critic as being a well dressed person, someone who usually appears in the Best Dressed section( not one who accidentally dresses well), a person with a genuine personal style that not only fits his/ her body, but also his/ her personality and attitude, a person whose style is definitely unmistakeable!

   Examples of Fashion Icons( this is just my opinion, if you don't agree, feel free to comment):

- Coco Chanel( The One and The Only!)

- Audrey Hepburn( we all know that Hubert de Givenchy in person took care that miss Hepburn will always look... Iconic!; she is believed to be the most elegant and the best dressed female of all times, she has never been dethroned; her pictures became " archetypal")

- Lisa Fonssagrives

- Anna Wintour( her style is unmistakeable: large sunglasses, helmet haircut, her image is also... Iconic!)

- Anna dello Russo( " shoe maniac"; eccentric)

- Carine Roitfeld( ex-model; muse to Tom Ford at Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent; associated with Versace and Calvin Klein)

- Miroslava Duma

- Ulyana Sergeenko( dramatic, theatrical style)

- Daphne Guinness

  











   Romanian Fashion Icons: unfortunately, I can only think of one right now- Iulia Albu.

   Iulia Albu is a fashion editor and a fashion blogger( http://www.theflappergirlchronicle.ro/). After she graduated from the Law School, she attended the Fashion Design section at the Univeristy of Arts. Almost all of her outfits are designed by her. Her last name comes from her ex-husband, one of the best Romanian designers, Mihai Albu, from whom she has learned a lot, she admitted in some public speech. It's a pity that in Romania she is more famous because of her divorce and for having a hen as a pet, rather than being a fashion icon and a very active person in the Romanian fashion journalism and events. She describes herself as " Flapper Girl" and in an article on her blog she wrote that her style was highly influenced by her aunt, Ileana Focșa ( actress).





   














   Who do you consider is worth being " labeled" as a Fashion Icon? Please let me know.

   See you soon,
   Love, A.

Eccentric

   " Eccentric"- unconventional in appearance or behaviour [ Oxford Dictionary] ... in other words, " eccentric" can be defined as " special", " amazing", " iconic" ...
  
   I had this topic in mind from three days ago, after walking down the streets and noticing few people whom I would like to describe as " different", people who left a strong impression on the others, but unfortunately not a positive one as they have left on me.
   I am sure that all of us have wondered at least once why people react so coarsely when it comes to unusual. I have seen a lot of those and I decided to write this in order to prove that being different is not always odd ( though I am sure that none of those judgemental " brutes" will read this), on the contrary, it is the salt and sugar of this world. There is no use in hiding who we are, all of us have habits, hobbies or passions that to others may seem strange or inadequate; strange does not always have a negative connotation and eccentric does not refer to something bad.
   In my opinion, being " unconventional" is equivalent to showing your real self to the whole world, screaming who you are and saying " I don't care what you think about me, love me or hate me, at least I have taken my mask off". I admit it: I almost never had the courage to prove myself, to act like I don't give any damn, just do whatever I feel. I always have this self-control... which is good, but still... Instead, when it comes about clothes, I always like to " spice" things up a bit. As a famous song says, " I was raised on rock" and I kept on living on electric guitars, leather jackets and pants, big boots, bandanas and so on, especially when I was in primary school or in Highschool. In the same time, the women in my family have always been very feminine, fashionable and stylish. A lady on a bike... can you think of anything better? I would describe my actual style as classy but hardly accessorised. I don't dress to kill everyday( 10 hours of courses/ day do not allow me to do that), but any other time when I leave home I wear sober clothes, mysterious black is my ally, but heavy accessories (made of colored textile or metal). I don't look that shocking, maybe not even that eye-catching but if it had been up to me, I would have worn the Eiffel Tower as a hat. I am not that kind, I somehow( I don't know why) care if I " offend" the others.
   I am not here to talk about my personal style tonight, but about the eccentrics. Imagine the world without them: art wihtout Salvador Dali`, Barcelone without Antoni Gaudi, rock music without Jim Morrison or Ozzy Osbourne, Fashion without Coco Chanel( one of the first women who dressed up in pants) or John Galliano. They are all special and amazing and iconic as I said at the begining. In Fashion, there can be as much eccentricity as you like, only one condition: do not become kitsch ! Clothing is the first choice of an eccentric, then there comes the attitude and then the passions.
    Here are some examples of eccentricity from 3 women I admire for their personal, powerful style: Daphne Guiness, Anna Dello Russo and Lady Gaga:


Daphne Guiness                                                                                                                      Anna Dello Russo
                                                                                                                 

               

                                                                             

Lady Gaga