Archive for August, 2011
Chicago has a serious love affair with the dark side of fashion embodied by Rick Owens and Gareth Pugh. Perhaps it’s the cold industrialism of the urban environment with its exposed steel structures, or maybe a reaction against the city’s cheerful affinity for bright colors. Most likely it’s the work of local fashion emporium Bonnie & Clyde’s. The boutique’s racks are exclusively filled with pieces designed to outfit post-apocalyptic fashion warriors.
I ran into Travis the other day at AllSaints where he now works. We chatted about the killer leather pants I bought and how unfortunate it is that I must wait a couple more months before I can rock them on the streets. Then casually, mid-conversation (like it was no big deal), he dropped a bombshell. “I got the pants,” he said. “What pants?” I asked, mildly distracted by the look and feel of Italian leather in my hands. “THE pants, the Gareth Pughs.” I let out a minor scream (and turned some heads) before exclaiming “you MUST let me photograph you in them as soon as humanly possible!”
I knew exactly which Gareth Pugh pants. A few months ago we had had a conversation about this exact pair. Earlier in the summer I ran into him while shopping on State Street. I excitedly told him about my first visit to Bonnie & Clyde’s, a store that he had recommended several times. I shared how I couldn’t resist trying on these delightfully shiny shredded leggings, despite the fact that purchasing them was not even in the realm of possibility that day. I just needed to see them on my body.
Travis told me that he not only was obsessed with the same pair of pants, he actually wore them in the Bonnie & Clyde’s fashion show in May and was watching them like a hawk, waiting for them to go on sale. For fashion obsessed college students, end-of-season sales are often times our only entree into the world of high fashion. Fast forward a few months to now and his patience clearly paid off, which is why I am even more happy than usual to present these photographs of Travis in his new Gareth Pugh pants to you.
Shae Peppler of the fashion blog Vanilla Fringe and I met up last week so I could photograph her for my blog. I first met Shae in April at a fashion show to benefit breast cancer research and to increase awareness of the disease, which you can read about here. Shae is a sports reporter and has covered Chicago teams for big networks like ABC and the Big Ten Network.
Shae’s current love and infatuation in life is Vanilla Fringe. Like most fashion bloggers, she will tell you that blogging has completely taken over her life. She has a really strong sense of personal style and is a pro at putting together really interesting outfits.
You can follow Shae on twitter, @vanillafringe, and make sure to ‘like’ Vanilla Fringe on Facebook too!
