Since I started writing this column, one of the questions people – yes, people just like you – most frequently ask me, whether it’s via Facebook or in person in a dark, skuzzy corner of The Library, is: Where do you get your inspiration, other than surveying the campus for all the fashion wrecks or wonders? Well, that’s easy: the Internet.
As I promised earlier, I want to share with you some of my favorite Web sites I constantly consult, probably more than textbooks or lest I admit it, Vogue. You should sally over to them stat, and make your bookmarks menu as stylish as I know you are!
1. Pursepage.com: This page is dedicated to, well, you guessed it, handbags and purses. The author is incredibly savvy about pulling the latest bag breeds from lookbooks and Web sites to ensure you’ll be swinging that swag over your shoulder. What’s even better is she places links of where to buy or get the featured bags, so acquiring them is really only another click away. But do be cautious: She picks extremely high-priced gems, so rather than dropping three grand, I suggest using this for inspiration of what type and color of purse/bag to purchase this season.
2. Thesartorialist.com: Talk about reinvention of the documentary. This sly guy is featured on style.com, the home of Vogue, and is frequently seen in GQ magazine for his photography prowess and capturing the latest styles on random betches who’ve taken to the street. While you may not catch him wandering Northrop Mall any time soon, be sure to take note of the trends he analyzes Ö and let’s just say you will NOT see (f)Uggs anywhere on his site.
3. Gofugyourself.com: By now you all know my slight obsesh with bad fashion, well, celebrities and spotting bad fashion. These two take a Web form in the above site. Here you’ll find washed-ups, has-beens and even some A-listers sporting their stylists’ clothing decision catastrophes. The captions these authors scribe to accompany the pics are reason enough to journey to it, trust me!
4. Retrotogo.com: We all know by now just how fervent the retro trend has come to be. Lego-inspired iPod chargers? This place has got ’em. Victorian-style Valentine’s cards? Those, too! Basically, the gurus behind this online outlet, based in Europe, sweep the Internet to find the best, chicest home and fashion items that epitomize vintage shopping. If you think it would just be easier to go to garage sales, think again, mes amis.
5.Thebudgetfashionista.com: Truly hilarious and helpful, Kathryn Finney’s Web site is quite possibly one of the most useful for a budding fashionisto/a who happens to also go to college. This woman takes fashion and makes it accessible by finding the most bargain-tastic merchandise on the market. I love, too, that one of her favorite activities is “plotting” ways to make Marc Jacobs create a line for Wal-Mart. See! She’s a dreamer just like me, so you know she’s fab.
For a more local bent, try Alishops.com or Mspmag.com/style to get some ideas on great shopping in the Twin Cities, when of course, you aren’t consulting me.
On the subject of consulting me, PLEASE DO. I love helping others, and when I lived in the residence halls, peeps be knocking down my door for style advice all the time, whether they were going on a first date or just sallying out to The Gay ’90s for minor night! One of my spring goals is to field and solve your fashion quandaries right here, in Where Life Meets Style. So whether it’s “what to wear and where to find it” or something as simple as “boxers or briefs,” let me know! I promise I won’t judge Ö well, not too harshly. Stay stylish, and WRITE ME!
-Ask Aaron for style advice at [email protected], and you too could appear in “Where Life Meets Style!”