Q – Questionable Choice of Style Icon/Influence
We always have someone we look up to or a hero be it someone close to you like your brother/sister, mother/father or friend but also people we don’t know and see only on TV, in Films or in the press. So when applying this to fashion many people will have a style icon whose style they appreciate and attempt to emulate or at least take inspiration from. Sadly these days, being famous or some form of celebrity tends to allow you to be a style influence to the regular public, partly because of the way in which celebrities are portrayed in various media be it on shows or in magazines. For starters most people that make up modern celebrities have nothing of any merit or any talent, they are simply famous for being an arsehole (see any Big Brother/reality TV show contestant) but even those who are a step above and have some talent aren’t much more of a valid choice for inspiration. Even the ‘A-list’ of celebrities still look rubbish more often than not and many of these will have stylists to avoid being unfashionable. All in all, just because someone is famous doesn’t dictate that they have any sense of style nor should you try to emulate them in style or the manner in which they act (though I’m mainly referring to younger children/teenagers in terms of re-enacting what celebrities do). The worst offenders I would say are Lady Gaga, Sarah Jessica Parker, Jodie Marsh, Katie ‘Jordan’ Price, Rhianna, Katy Perry, in fact a lot of female celebrities. As for the guys I do not understand Karl Lagerfeld’s neo-undertaker look, Russell Brand, Kanye West, Johnny Depp, Mickey Rourke and Noel Fielding. There are infinitely more but those are just the ones that just pop into my head and come up in a search for ‘worst dressed celebrities’. I would also include anyone from a reality TV or talent show. Ultimately your style should be your own whether you care for fashion or not but if you do then as with anything you are likely to look for inspiration and modify it to fit your character, so just make sure you choose someone worth emulating. On your head be it.
Exceptions where this faux pas is acceptable
When you follow someone or take inspiration from someone who has genuine style.