Fashion designers don’t follow fashion
![[ unlocked padlock image -- 'cos we're unlocking some fashion secrets here ]](http://www.thebargainqueen.com/images/padlock_unlocked.gif)
Part three of my series on the fashion industry’s biggest secret.
Yesterday, we saw that the fashion editors who push new trends rarely follow fashion trends themselves.
Today, we’ll take a look at the designers who’ve had the most influence on fashion trends for the last decade. Surprisingly, they don’t wear the latest look each year either.
Miuccia Prada doesn’t follow fashion
Miuccia Prada, the second most powerful woman in fashion, is said to define each season’s fashions with her compelling designs. But while she’s sparked many fashion trends, her own look barely changes.
![[ Miuccia Prada's style, 2000, 2005 and 2006 ]](http://www.thebargainqueen.com/images/photos/miuccia_prada.jpg)
(Images: Style.com)
Is that the same black cardigan in all three photos? It could almost be!
In each photo, she’s chosen to complement it with a flared below-the-knee skirt, heels and one or two carefully chosen pieces of jewellery. Her hair is always shoulder length and pulled back from her face. She looks like a stylish, well-dressed woman, with her own style… and she ignores most of the trends she creates to keep her own style.
Marc Jacobs doesn’t follow fashion
From Grunge to Retro, Marc Jacobs’ influence on the last 20 years of fashion trends has been enormous.
But see how little his own look changes from year to year:
![[ Marc Jacobs style in 2001, 2004 and 2007 ]](http://www.thebargainqueen.com/images/photos/marc_jacobs.jpg)
(Images: Style.com)
He almost always works a ‘too cool to care’ look that suggests he’s so busy making fabulous clothes for other people that he doesn’t have time to fuss over his own clothes. His look is deliberately ordinary: sneakers, khakis, jeans, t-shirts, blue button-downs — all items that could have been borrowed from a student’s wardrobe. His hair varies in length, but it looks more like he forgets to cut it than deliberate changes in style.
It’s interesting to see such a consistent anti-fashion look on one of fashion’s hottest trend-makers, and speaks volumes about the disconnect between the styles that are pushed and the way hip people really dress.
Tom Ford doesn’t follow fashion
Tom Ford retains his place in my fashion heart, despite his years of designer unemployment. His 90s Gucci looks were incredibly influential, and it’s sad that his particular take on sexiness is now missing from the catwalks.
But when he’s not creating trends, he’s busy ignoring them. His personal uniform is so entrenched that when he wears something different, it’s newsworthy.
![[ Tom Ford's style, 2000 and 2004 ]](http://www.thebargainqueen.com/images/photos/tom_ford.jpg)
(Images, L-R: Style.com, AskMen.com)
His uniform consists of a black suit, crisp white shirt worn open, close-cropped hair and two-day stubble. And he always, always looks hot — a state that most dedicated fashion followers can only aspire to.
Tomorrow: fashion icons don’t follow fashion either… so who does?
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Hi BQ
I’ve just started reading your blog and love it!! This series is fab and something I have always pondered. I often look at fashion and style icons and admire their [constant] looks.
Cheers
Inspired.
No Karl Lagerfeld?!
I have been reading your blog for a couple of months, and I am really enjoying this series right now! Excellent! Thanks for taking the time to put this together - it is great food for thought!
Thanks Inspired One! I’m a big fan of constant looks too. Or rather, I love people who know exactly who they are — so much more alluring than chasing all the latest styles.
Shopping Sherpa, thanks for the suggestion. Karl Lagerfeld is another great example — he always wears the same style, i.e. his style, even though he designs 3 or 4 different collections each season.
Kathy F., thank you so much for your kind words, and I’m glad you found it useful.
CHURRRRRRRRRCH! you DID that, girl. I get so irate with everyone looking the same, wearing the same kind of outfit in the same kind of way. UGH!
I love this post and totally agree. I am a designer, and the same goes for me. I prefer to wear a comfortable uniform of sorts everyday.
Heh, Marc Jacobs does dress like a nerd gamer.
He does indeed Colin!
i am a fashion student/designer myself, but i hardly ever follow “trends”. i feel that once you’ve come to a point in your life that you know what you like, what looks good on you etc, you’ve found your own style, and that is your best fashionable self.
Thank you for highlighting that consistent individual style is perhaps true fashion.
I’m from L.A. and was recently in NYC. I love how fashionable and stylish City girls (and guys) are, but noticed on the third day of observing the well dressed, that they all started to look the same, merely dressed in different colors…
I think fashion designers can get away with it because they’re artists.
Good point, Lani!
My wardrobe is rather eclectic and I can’t imagine wearing such similar outfits day in and day out.
I’m a creative person, and I’ve certainly considered that that may be why I try to be creative in my outfits. However, maybe those designers feel less pressured to show their creativity in their own clothes because they show such creativity and skill in what they design for others.
Granted, even my style is still rather formulaic if you look past all the different colors and cuts: neutral classic pieces, bright accessories, lots of solid colors instead of patterns, dresses and skirts instead of pants, and a little twist whether it be a nod to my inner goth with a black choker or a pair of sassy, leopard print ballet flats.
I know my style and what I want. The trouble is, I often can’t find it in the stores. All the stores carry the same trendy style. If it isn’t “in” you can’t find it!
P.S. I think many of the current trends are ghastly!! Thin cheap material — dizzying busy prints in horrid colors!
Hi Lydia,
That’s great that you know what you want, even if it can be frustrating! I have a specific style in mind for myself, too. Getting there has been slow, though, because I’m having the same issues that you’re having. I’m not really a print girl, at least not when it comes to tops. And I still try to keep prints simple if I wear them on skirts.
I keep an eye on the trends, though, because every season there’s usually something that works for me. For example, I’ve enjoyed wide cinch belts (since I have a long torso), pencil skirts, hats, bateau necklines, and purple. I’m still in need of some more basic items, though.
If you’re looking for anything specific, let me know and I’ll see what I can find.