Misstropolis

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

MISSion: Define Style, part 1

by Alisa Neely

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From: Alisa Neely, Style Editor, Misstropolis
Date: Feb 12, 2007 7:26:41 AM EST
To: Robin Hauck, Editor, Misstropolis
Subject: STYLE Section

I’ve got it. The best way to talk about what style means and why style matters in the launch issue, is to get it right from the horses’ mouths. (Clothes horses!) Just kidding, I mean we’ll ask the most stylish people in Boston.

From: Robin Hauck
Date: Feb 12, 2007 11:18:57 AM EST
To: Alisa Neely
Subject: STYLE Section

Love it. Very Sartorialist-ian of you. So many cool people to ask though – let’s make it a monthly piece!

(I know he’s not from Boston, but Yves (S.L.) does make a good point: “Fashions fade, style is eternal.” Might fit somewhere in the piece…)

From: Alisa Neely
Date: Feb 12, 2007 2:26:35 PM EST
To: Robin Hauck
Subject: STYLE Section

Um, yeah, we’ll see. What did you do, google style?

I’m having Tina from Stels and Larissa, who does makeup for Stila and all kinds of other cool things, contribute to the 1st piece. They both have amazing style, not only personal, but life and career too…

From: Robin Hauck
Date: Feb 13, 2007 1:40:25 AM EST
To: Alisa Neely
Subject: Ok, but I can’t believe you think I googled style!

It was a quotes site.

From: Tina Burgos, Owner Stels
Date: March 3, 2007 11:46:58 AM EST
To: Alisa Neely, Style Editor, Misstropolis
Subject: my definition of style

To me, the concept of style is somewhat easy to define: it’s the expression of one’s personal tastes. Style can manifest itself in quite a few mediums - the music we listen to, the way we walk down the street, the clothes we put on our back. The most challenging thing about style is that many people don’t know how to define it for themselves. And even if one does have a strong sense of her own style, it constantly evolves.

The thing to remember is that everyone has a sense of style; it’s just a matter of figuring out what that means.

Hope this is helpful!
Tina

From: Larissa Mills, makeup artist, Stilla
Date: February 24, 2007 8:58:49 PM EST
To: Alisa Neely, Style Editor, Misstropolis
Subject: What is Style? (this was harder than I thought it would be!)

I wish I could say style is always tasteful, but it’s not. It isn’t always current either; some of the most stylish women I know haven’t shopped since 1982. It’s definitely not about spending a lot of money, and it’s not about matching your purse to your shoes. Sometimes style doesn’t even look good. True style can’t be copied and there’s no formula for it. And no matter how much money you throw at an unstylish gal, she still won’t be stylish - she’ll just have on a nice outfit. Style implies something about the woman herself, an authenticity that doesn’t come from a label. Stylish women can wear a paper bag and make other women want to wear a paper bag too.

Kids have style. They dress for themselves and delight in their choices regardless of what Vogue says in the latest issue. When my 2 1/2 year old comes downstairs in a pink tutu, purple sweatshirt, wrinkled tights and boots, grinning ear to ear and twirling around to show me her latest ensemble, I melt. Somehow no matter how quirky or ridiculous it would be on anyone else, it always seems to look good on her. In fact, sometimes the more ridiculous the more stylish it seems.

Real style is about the woman, not the clothes. Confidence, Effortlessness, Guts. Vogue put it best when describing Coco Chanel in 1954: “the essence of The Chanel Look was Chanel herself.” I couldn’t agree more.

Stel’s on Newbury Street - http://www.stelsinc.com/
Stila Cosmetics - http://www.stilacosmetics.com/