Words by Chelsea Green
Photos courtesy of Jayne Min
How long have you been running your blog, “Stop It Right Now“?
Since January 2009.
What is the meaning of the name?
It’s just a thing my friends and I would say when something was really outlandish, either really crazy good or really crazy nooooo. The more serious it is, the longer the pause between words. I would categorize SIRN and GTFOH as synonyms.
What made you create SIRN?
I had a lot of time on my hands back then and a lot of images, so it gave me something to do – much like a junior high slam book, except digitally.
Where do you find inspiration for your outfits?
In the shower – seriously the best time and place to come up with outfits.
What does it take to stay creative, inventive, and ahead of the game when it comes to fashion?
I was just talking to my friend last night about how sometimes it blows to be a “creative” person. It sucks a lot of time out of your life.
Say, if you were a regular person who was cold and needed a sweatshirt for real life functional purposes, you would just walk into whatever nearest store and get one that was warm and fit ok.
Done.
The creative type? Needs to research online, compare and contrast with other brands, pick a shade of blue that is just so. It’s a blessing and curse. It’s a constant battle to stay on top of things. But in the end I think creativity comes from a deep-seeded place and as long as you stay true to who you are and really have a vision for yourself, you’re never really playing the game.
Who are some of your style icons?
Marlene Dietrich, Diane Keaton, Francoise Hardy, Tilda Swinton, Bob Vila
Do you think the internet has influenced the way people dress?
Completely, 1000%. So much so that it’s influenced the apparel industry as a whole. I come from the in-between generation of cell phones not existing to now tweeting some girl I don’t know in Bangladesh on my iPhone. It’s crazy. Kids these days have instant gratification, and information moves so fast, they don’t know what it’s like to have to go home to call someone or to wait for an Eastbay catalog to come out to phone order some tennis shoes. There’s access to everything instantly now, so the evolving element of fashion and personal style is at warp speed. It seems harder to be an individual now.
What are some of your favorite fashion websites?
When I first started blogging I didn’t really know anything about fashion blogs so I knew of maybe three. But then as mine gained momentum it swelled into reading a hundred! But now I only read a few, partially because I have no time anymore. I mostly go to more design/art/mens fashion sites though because of work. I need something that grabs me besides sparkly pictures of cute girls.
When did your fascination with skateboarding begin? Does it influence the way you dress?
It all started in elementary school because of my brother (typical). I’ve always kind of idolized everything he did so I would just blindly follow. And wouldn’t you know it, one day I was knee deep in Think, Foundation, and Toy Machine stuff. When other girls had pictures of Jared Leto up on the wall I had sequences of Geoff Rowley and Heath Kirchart. It totally influenced me in every way – music, friends, clothes. There’s always a tomboy, 90s skate rat element to my closet. I know I wouldn’t be who I am today without skateboarding. It was really my first love.
What are you up to when you’re not blogging?
Working 50% of the time, commuting 30%, keeping up with family duties 10%, sleeping 5%, having a life 3%, and trying to blog even if it’s just a tiny sliver of the life pie.
Who are some of your favorite places to shop? Designers? Brands/labels?
Mostly online and eBay. I’m insanely obsessed with finding the best deal, but also insanely not into physically shopping in real life, so researching like a maniac and doing it from the comfort of my own home is ideal. eBay is really the front runner, but some other favorites are Barneys, Opening Ceremony, Creatures of Comfort, Scout, Stand Up Comedy, La Garconne, Satine, and Mohawk General Store. If you ask my bank account, I have an over abundance of brands I like. Good design is hard to resist! Belgian, Scandinavian, British, Japanese…I love them all. Pheobe Philo, Ann-Sofie Back, Wacko Maria, Dries Van Noten, Jun Takahashi, JW Anderson, Ann Demeulemeester, Margiela, Rei Kawakubo to name a few.
Do you have a favorite piece in your wardrobe? Why do you hold onto it?
I don’t have a favorite, they’re all special either because they were a crazy find at the end of a long hunt, or because they’re totally ordinary and lived in. I don’t buy things for the sake of buying things. I don’t like amassing stuff. It either has to move me or be completely useful. Don’t get me wrong, some of them are limited or runway pieces so I would be devastated if my house were to burn down and I lost all of them. But, I do believe taste evolves and things can always be rebuilt or revamped. Starting from scratch would be interesting.
What is an important piece that everyone should have in his or her closet? Why?
Black overdye jeans. They go with everything and they can be high or low. And they’re one of the few things that look the same whether expensive or cheap.
What are some great trends happening now? What about classic trends that will never die?
Minimalism and clean design are really refreshing now after a lot of uber trendy crazy bohemian madness. Classic silhouettes will be here forever. The Pant or The Shirt will never be eradicated, so you can never go wrong with those. Always good to have one good pant, one good shirt, one good coat that are good quality and fit really well that you can wear forever. You can always buy stupid shoes and resell them when you realize sequin Bugs Bunny is not doing it for you anymore.
Is there any trend that you wish never happened, or would go away?
Glasses without lenses. If you have a pair, you deserve to get Three Stooges poked in your eyes. Embrace good vision, people.
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