Friend Friday: Inspiration

FBFF continues to celebrate its one year birthday by asking questions that were asked a year ago.  I had not started fashion blogging back then, so I will have to go back and see the responses from a year ago.  It will be interesting to see how things have changed, or how they have stayed the same.

Which celebrity (celebrities) do you look to for fashion inspiration?

In thinking about this question and as I am writing, I’m finding a lot of my fashion inspiration comes from movies.  When I was in my mid to late teens, I followed Molly Ringwald, especially when “Pretty In Pink” was released.  I emulated her style in that movie because she didn’t wear any flourescent colors, anything ripped or sliced, and her style was very vintage with the floral vests, crocheted sweaters and granny boots.   Her style in that movie complimented the music I was listening to at the time and the soundtrack of that movie could have been the soundtrack to my life at that time.

I then turned to Meg Ryan after seeing “You’ve Got Mail” and “French Kiss”.  Her style in both of those movies was easy, not fussy and classic.  I think my love for the cardigan sweater and the shift dress really developed after seeing those movies.

My most recent and most significant fashion inspiration has come from “Sex and the City”.   This is the most creative I have been with my wardrobe, because I realize that I no longer have to provide excuses for who I am at this point in my life.  Watching “Sex and the City” just confirmed this fact for me.  I am younger than all of the ladies in SATC, so seeing the clothing they were wearing really inspired me to be more daring, more bold and to truly not be afraid to reflect your personality in your clothing style and fashion sense.

When it comes to your own personal style, what inspires you?

Creativity inspires me.  I consider myself a creative and artistic person, and I like for those things to come out in the way I dress.  I’m inspired by music, art, film, travel and photography.  I’m always looking for an interesting element to stand out of my outfit, and sometimes it’s because of something I’ve either seen, a place that I’ve been to, or something I’ve read about.  It could be a color, a photograph of a great pair of shoes or a favorite song.  Then I am inspired to create and develop an outfit around that.

How do you hope to inspire your readers?

I hope that I can inspire my readers to be creative with everything that they do in life.  This creativity can carry through to all aspects of everything you do, not just with style and fashion.  Meals, activities, vacations, party planning, or even a lazy day at home with your children can be incredibly creative.

Outside the realm of fashion who/what inspires you?

My son and husband inspire me all the time with their love and laughter.  My friends and family inspire me as well because of their warmth and loyalty.  But one of my true passions outside of fashion is music.  I was in a few different choirs from elementary all the way up to college and beyond.  I also have been playing piano since the age of 5 all the way up to around 14.  I resumed piano in high school, and played regularly until I directed my own choir (from 1995 to around 2003).

I surround myself with music no matter where I am and what I’m doing.  I must always have a music device with me at all times, whether it’s my iPod, satellite radio, or car stereo.  I have been an avid concert goer since I was 14, and still attend concerts as often as I can.  My husband does deejaying on the side, and is a musician himself (sax).  When I was pregnant I used to take my headphones or mini speakers and hold them to my stomach so that my son could hear the music I listen to.   Now, he sings all the time and loves to dance and I have to think that it’s because his parents are musically inclined.  To me, music not only inspires, but also unites.

And since Idol is ending… Which songs inspire you?

This is actually a nice transition from my previous answer, isn’t it?  I am heavily into 80’s alternative and pop music right now, so anything from that era is inspirational to me.  I remember listening to those songs during their heyday, and it’s fun to listen to them again and see where I’ve been and where I am now.  I’ll hear a song like “Melt With You” by Modern English and think “I wasn’t even driving when this song was released, and here I am now driving my son to the park with my husband…”  Those are always “Ah ha!” moments.

Fashion Beauty Friend Friday is a Google group for bloggers to converse on a given topic each week. Katy from ModlyChic sends the questions, bloggers post their responses and then add their post to the list of people sharing their thoughts on the subject matter. To get started, check out this great tutorial on Grit & Glamour here.

(Photo taken last year in Times Square)