Style Aura

TWELV Magazine, a new biannual magazine based in New York City and Japan, is a magazine which focuses on fashion, music, art, culture, and philanthropy. I'm in love with TWELV partly because they employee me, but also because their soooo F*&%N dope! Hissa Igarashi doubles as editor-in-chief, as well as a stylist for the magazine. I can say a lot of amazing things about this magazine, but instead, I'm going to show you two out-of-this-world dresses inspired by Alexander McQueen, and Tilda Swinton, respectively.

In Issue 1, TWELV created the gummy bear dress which paid homage to the late Alexander McQueen. It was made up of 50,000 gummy bears and weighed 220 pounds.

And for Issue 2, TWELV sculpted the Ice Dress. This one definitely speaks for itself...

Okay, and that's all I'm giving you. If you want more, go buy one.

www.twelvmag.com

It's been quite some time since I've last blogged, and I must say, it feels good to be back at it again. Since this is my first post of 2012, I've decided to start the NEW YEAR with a post of my Inspiration this month. I'm not going to lie- I have pretty much been in a career slump. Contemplating what my next move will be, and what "great promises" the fashion industry will bring me in 2012. All the while wondering if I'll ever find full-time work in the industry that I have dedicated so much of myself to. With that being said, I have not been inspired in the New Year.

All it took was a night in and a documentary about one of my favorite Artists, Jean-Michel Basquiat. Not only am I inspired by the extraordinary talent Basquiat had, but I am inspired by the way he lived his life, the clothes he wore, the friends he had, and the parties he went to, etc.

Watching this documentary; Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child, I noticed that one of his oldschool homeboys was a man I came to know while working for one of my friends. So this is how my abundance of inspiration comes in. I did some work for Corie Humble, Designer/Owner of Corrente Handbags, a handbag company that prides itself on being made in Brooklyn, NY. I blogged about her bags in November 2010. You can see the post here, as well as a link to her website:

http://styleaura.blogspot.com/2010/10/corrente-handbags.html

http://www.shopcorrente.com/

Now, back to my multi-inspiration. While I worked for Corie back in December 2010, I got to know Jean-Michel Basquiat's old buddy, Nick Taylor aka DJ High Priest. Nick is a cool cat, if I do say so myself! He is great to converse with, and is one of those guys you can tell never passes judgement. Just calm, cool, and collective. He and his wife Ume, are a team of hat designers who own a shop in the Lower East Side, called Charm NYC. They also pride themselves on manufacturing their product in New York! You can find a link to their website below:

http://www.charmnyc.com/

I must admit, although I may not realize it, I am inspired every day living in New York City. I am inspired by the culture, diversity, style, music, art, street art, food, and endless subcultures that roam the downtown streets without going above 14th!!! So it is only natural that I am partial to such an amazing Artist such as Basquiat. Not only am I inspired by "The Radiant Child", but I am inspired by Nick and Corie, who are molding the downtown fashion scene into what it is today. I may have not been able to have hung out on the Bowery with these cool kids in the 80's, or grooved with the band-mates of Gray (Jean-Michel Basquiat, Nick Taylor, Michael Holman, Shannon Dawson, Wayne Clifford, and Vincent Gallo) at the Mudd Club, but I able to support Made in America products. I am able to take my inspiration from Jean-Michel Basquiat, Nick Taylor, Corie Humble, and New York City as a whole, to mold my own life and career into a hip downtown legacy that I can someday inspire someone else with.

Okay I'm sure you're ready for some awesome photos now...!!!

http://www.hulu.com/watch/255608/jean-michel-basquiat-the-radiant-child

Well the link above is better than any photo, you can watch the documentary for free on Hulu.com!!