ashes to ashes: emma, revisited

The other day, while I was in the general Marylebone area, doing errands and dropping off some flowers for Roz, I of course brought my camera, as I always do. I was thinking that maybe I'm getting too choosy about street shooting - I used to shoot everyone - but even so, the things I chose to shoot that day were windows, dogs, construction workers.. finally as I got off the bus and was walking the rest of the way home, I saw, in the twilight, a girl at a distance who had some good style.





And it was the delightful Emma! Who I had met, and shot, last February ('the eyes have it, revisited'). She goes to college in the area near where we live. It was funny actually because I was JUST thinking about her the day before. She said if she knew she'd have run into me she'd have made an effort to look less scruffy, but that's what I love about it. The hole in her tights. The effortlessness.

This is happening to me all the time now. I'll meet a friend for lunch or coffee, and I'll shoot them, but even if I originally met that friend thru approaching them on the street to shoot for my blog, still it feels like shooting fish. I mean, I'm not going up to many new strangers on the street, and the ones I do want to shoot, I already have. I'm shooting re-runs. I know we've had this conversation already and I can tell that the people who came here strictly for street style have moved on, and the ones who still visit - bless your cotton socks - get it about that I'm not doing just street style, but still, I'm amazed that my favourite people are often people I've already shot.

Which leads me to the question: have I exhausted all potential style icons in the Chelsea/South Kensington area?







It's funny, tho, in hindsight: these other images which I shot before running into Emma, especially the boots in the window at Ash, on Marylebone High Street, all feel kind of.. compatible, somehow, with her style.

I can't hear the word 'Ash' without thinking of Bowie's song Ashes to Ashes, which is worth clicking on, it's a great song and video. Someone wrote: 'Can't hear this song without thinking of that bit in the Young Ones where they're at a funeral and the undertaker reads from the book saying "ashes to ashes" at which point Neil interjects saying "funk to funkie".  Don't know why that springs to mind everytime but it does.'




ANYWAY. I'm going out shortly, and I'll bring my camera. Are there any trends in particular you'd like me to scout down? Let's put it another way: what are you really into wearing these days? For me, it's mostly comfortably knitted stuff, leggings and shades of camel and black and white and sometimes, for fun, a bit of hot pink accent. The looks I'm loving the most haven't changed that much, really, since last winter: leather and lace, masculine and feminine, some fur, some tweed, something old, something new and borrowed and blue.. just getting that balance down right. Or, what feels right for you. Not trying too hard and not thinking about it too much.

One thing I'm not seeing anywhere is the aviator jacket. But I could have told you that. Wish I could have bet on that one. One thing we fashionistas do not like is being told what to wear! The leopard, however... that's another story. Coming soon to a theatre near you. xoxo