By Gabby Neal
@gabbyneal___
Street style is something we’re all obsessed with. We all want to look good but not that good. Striving to be the girl who can throw on whatever and look as gorgeous as ever (without the effort of course). Similar to the ‘no make up, make up look’. A look we all spend more time on and put more effort into than when we’re actually trying to impress.
It goes without saying that models are blessed creatures with a confidence that just seems to ooze out of them. Yes it’s cliché, but they can literally throw on anything and make it look so-damn-good! Given it is their job – but it’s no wonder we’ve all turned to them for inspiration. We want to be them, wear what they’re wearing and to be seen as just as cool as them.
And the designers have conned onto this. They see the influence these models have through social media and the power of their “Street Style” and ”Model Off Duty” looks. They’ve acknowledged that they have such high exposure and are using it to their advantage.
Gone are the days their job was to just turn up, work the camera and get the shot. No. Models have now become an advertising platform for designers in their spare time. Designers know they can wear clothes in such a way that they look desirable and at the same time – attainable.
So it’s no coincidence (thanks to fast fashion) that what we see models wearing eventually trickle down into stores. The rip offs of course… but it’s not just single products, it’s trends too; skinny jeans, ripped jeans, big sunnies, logo tee’s, shirt dresses, platform shoes, denim jackets, leather jackets – everyone can get a slice of the “high fashion”, “it girl” action.
Remember the “Ain’t No Wifey” singlet Cara Delevigne wore that one time? Did we not see it everyyywhere else only weeks later? How about the ripped jeans and band tees? It all starts somewhere.
So why is it that we have such a fascination with the “model off duty”?
It’s because we’re so accustomed to models wearing these amazing designs in magazines and at events and we finally see them in something that we could wear ourselves. The model off duty appears (and kind of actually is) an attainable look. It’s a look made up of mix and match, clothes that sometimes aren’t seen as “acceptable” to wear on the street. However it’s only after we’ve seen a fashionable model wear them that we change our mind. So of course we rush to the shops and search for something similar if not identical, to wear ourselves. The “Model Off Duty” can be easily and affordably replicated.
