Style in Sweden

Every fashionista was shocked when the news about Alexander McQueen’s suicide came out. The fashion world has definitely lost one of its greatest talents.

McQueen was known as the bad boy and rebellion in the fashion industry as he was able to interpret often antique themes in a futuristic way like no one else. Always one step ahead! Always next level! Always provocative!

When it comes to trends, McQueen is currently most influential with the pattern houndstooth, which he brought back in his autumn/winter collection 2009. You see it everywhere in every size. I have for instance a coat in houndstooth.

I think rebellions are important in every kind of group, society and system as they question traditional ways of thinking and show alternatives.

Sweden’s most successful designers are no rebellions. Compared with McQueen, they are almost a little bit boring. I don’t want that every Swedish designer becomes totally avant-garde but shouldn’t there be one who is wild and crazy? Swedish designers are fantastic but I think they are shy in an international comparison. Very Swedish somehow! Or as they say in Swedish “lagom är bäst”, which  means something like “moderation is best”.

The saying is linked to the idea of equality. Everybody is supposed to be equal. Don’t think that you are better than the other ones! Equality is important and should be one of the major aims of a society but sometimes I have the feeling that the aspect of diversity is getting lost in Sweden. As if the saying was: don’t think that you are different than the other ones!

When I was new in Sweden we discussed in my film class that many Swedes consider it is cool to be unswedish (osvensk). At that time I couldn’t understand at all why. Not because I thought that everything in Sweden was so fantastic but I was wondering how a culture could be cool or not cool. Today I understand what my classmates and teacher meant. People who want to be unswedish are tired of sameness and monotony.

Regarding fashion, I think Sweden really needs a rebellion or bad boy/girl who dares to be different and unique: someone like McQueen. Such a rebellion would contribute alternative fashion and also alternative ways of thinking, which could increase diversity in other areas, too.

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Robyn is not only known for being one of Sweden’s greatest and most successful musicians at the moment but also for her unique style. Last weekend she even got the prize for style icon of the decade at the ELLE awards.

I think she really deserves the prize because she is always a step ahead and creates trends. In particular her short and platinum blond haircut has been copied by many girls and also guys. I also think that her gender-neutral style is very representative for the 00 decade in Sweden where women with boyish bodies and hairless men have ruled the runways and nightclubs.

Regarding Sweden’s most fashionable men, The Hives should have been awarded. I think their style is like a Macbook… black and white, iconic, simple and always up to date.

Photo 1 from: Hanky

Photo 2 from: Luger

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Pete Doherty should play in Stockholm and Malmö last weekend. SHOULD. Of course, he couldn’t make it because he lost his passport and was “sick”. I smirked when I read about the cancelled concerts and thought about my experiences with the scandal-ridden British rock star. I tried seeing him twice.

The first time he didn’t show up because he was “sick”. The second time he was about eight hours late. When he asked the public to throw money on the scene I decided that I would never go to one of his concerts again. He said that he was so poor and really needed the money.

Anyway, because of Pete Doherty’s visit to Sweden the City newspaper published an article about Swedish bad boys on Friday. The only guy City came up with was the musician Andreas Kleerup. Yes, the guy who did the song “With every heartbeat” with Robyn. The reason for his bad image was his statement “Some people smoke. Other people smoke other stuff” and some rumours about cocaine abuse.

OK, Pete Doherty and Andreas Kleerup have in some way a similar style. A little bit fucked up. A little bit “I don’t care”. But is Kleerup really a classical bad boy? I think he is a real Swede-heart compared to Pete Doherty. No scandals. No anorexic supermodel girlfriends. No fights with band members. The fact that Kleerup has maybe secretly smoked a joint on the toilet doesn’t make him a bad boy, isn’t it? At least not outside Sweden!

But this is something that I like about Sweden. People are so good and innocent…and they always start their concerts in time…

Photo from: Brocco Lee

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People from the south of Sweden often say that Stockholm is full of brats who just think about expensive fashion, slicked back hair and fancy nightclubs. Even if a person doesn’t fulfil this stereotypical picture of a person living in Stockholm he or she is often considered snobbish because of the dialect.

I don’t care for Swedish dialects and if people sound snobbish. However, when some guys from Stockholm and Gothenburg started to party regularly with me and my friends a few weeks ago I realised how much more guys from bigger cities in Sweden care for fashion.

We went out on Friday and during the pre-party one of the new guys changed his shirt eight times (I counted!) while the other ones were talking about their great purple t-shirts.

I wouldn’t say that my friends who are from the south or smaller towns in Sweden don’t care for clothes but they seemed to be more relaxed. Some of them are these typical “jeans plus band t-shirt guys” and some of them have a very classic style. They usually wear a shirt and a tie when they go out. I think they need at most five minutes to get dressed before a party (OK, ten if they have to search in their laundry mountains).

I don’t like clichés and of course not every Swedish guy from a big city changes his shirt eight times before he goes out. However, I think there is a quite remarkable difference how guys from rural regions compared to the ones from cities value clothing and style.

This difference is nothing new but I think it is more remarkable in Sweden than in other countries such as Germany when it comes to guys.

In the end my friend changed his shirt a ninth time and took the one that he tried the second time. He said it would fit best to the topic of the party. By the way, the topic was rainbow…

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Jimmy Choo launches a collection for H&M on November 14 including mostly shoes and accessories. The pieces embody really everything that you can associate with the 80s: leather, glitter, animal prints, fur and heavy jewellery. With the mix of rhinestones and studs the collection is very chic and glamorous but at the same time edgy and cool. Perfect for a night out on the town!

Jimmy Choo’s collection will just be sold in certain H&M stores in Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmö and Uppsala and on the internet. There will even be a queue system out of the shops because of the great popularity of Jimmy Choo (can it be more Swedish?). In other words, get up early if you want to have a pair of real Jimmy Choo shoes or one of the fantastic clutches.

The collection also includes men’s wear. However, apart from the biker boots I think the pieces are not very exciting. The design is very classic (I think almost too classic for H&M) and the colours range is very dark and simple including mostly black and brown.

However, I like Jimmy Choo’s collection. There is just one thing that really confuses me. Why does it include so many sandals and ballerina flats when the winter is coming and it’s getting colder every day? Are Swedish girls somehow resistant towards cold weather or am I such a wimp?! Actually I often think about that when I am at nightclubs during winter. I always have like ten layers of clothes on me plus warm boots and many Swedish girls wear sandals and short dresses.

How do they do that? Do they secretly change their clothes in the restroom or do they just don’t care? I’ve always wanted to ask some of them but I have changed my mind every time because I don’t want to sound like a 40-year old mother who doesn’t understand young people anymore.

Anyway, if you are not cold in sandals when it’s freezing outside and if you want to have shoes or accessories in the style of 80s you shouldn’t miss the great queue party out of H&M this month.

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Sweden’s best bloggers were awarded by Veckorevyn last weekend and this year’s great winner is the 18-year old Foki who moved from Thailand to Sweden seven years ago. I think her blog and fashion style is very interesting and cool as it reflects her Asian background but at the same time many Swedish details.

In particular her outfit at the prize gala summarises this combination. On the one hand, a very dressed up Swedish girl wearing a tube top from Gino Trikot, a mini skirt from Melba and a hair bow from Monki (altogether Swedish shops). On the other hand, her neon pink and neon blue outfit clearly differs from the dark dresses of most other girls as it has this colourful Asian touch.

Her blog has a similar focus: Swedish with Asian influences. I like this style because I think it is very important to keep the roots as an immigrant. Sometimes I meet people who want to become more Svensson than the Swedes and I never understand why. Sure, integration is important but do we have to dance around a maypole and sing songs about little frogs?? Don’t misunderstand me. Celebrating midsummer is fun but I think that not even Swedish people expect us to become hardcore Svenssons. My impression is that many Swedes rather enjoy it if people from other countries can contribute new aspects to the culture of this country.

I think it is much more exciting to mix cultures than to copy them. Do it the Foki way! Even though her clothes and the content of her blog are a little bit too girly for my taste I think she does a great job when combining different cultures.

Congratulations, Grattis and Glückwunsch from Mareike!

Picture from Stockholm streetstyle feber

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Film critics have praised Noomi Rapace for her role as Lisbeth Salander in the movies “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” and the recently launched “The Girl who played with Fire”. Now Swedish ELLE even considers the 29-year old actress as Sweden’s new style icon.

I agree that Noomi looks interesting. Her face somehow reminds me of the 1980s Kate Bush and she is definitely a breath of fresh air in Sweden’s entertainment world. On the other hand, I am not sure if I really see a style icon. I mean what is typical for Noomi Rapace? I am thinking of something like Lykke Li’s hair bun or the 1960s style of The Hives. A particular feature that everybody relates to a person and that becomes so popular that people imitate it.

Isn’t it rather Lisbeth Salander who is the style icon? I think the character in Stieg Larsson’s Millennium trilogy is so modern and interesting that it definitely has the potential to become a style icon in Sweden.

Lisbeth Salander embodies many characteristics that young people are striving for. She is independent, smart, mysterious, an updated feminist and a modern Pippi Longstocking. Similar is her style. She is mostly dressed in black, often wears clothes that neither are typical male nor typical female and looks edgy and hard and at the same time soft and pretty.

Her piercings and tattoos are of course a question of taste. Either you like it or you hate. Personally, I took out my piercings a long time ago and I don’t want them back. But I think they really suit Noomi Rapace as Lisbeth Salander.

However, I am not really convinced that Noomi Rapace is Sweden’s next big style icon. She is an excellent actress and has charisma but I don’t see anything special when it comes to her style. She seems to be one of these celebrities who don’t care so much for clothes but still look fantastic. Or is this image maybe that certain je ne sais quoi that makes her a style icon?

Noomi Rapace in the latest ELLE.

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I wasn’t surprised that Swedish lifestyle magazine Café gave the prize for best-dressed man to The Hives singer Pelle Almqvist this year. His style is chic and Rock ’n’ Roll at the same time, which I think is really cool. I love the 1960s look of The Hives. The best thing about Pelle’s style is his new haircut as it looks like a combination of Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly.

It is just somehow strange that only Pelle won this prize. I mean the other band members wear exactly the same outfits on stage. However, they are not jealous. “I told them about the prize when we were eating a falafel at home in Fagersta. But they just think it’s cool. They are quite comfortable with pushing Pelle so that he can deal with stuff like that”, told Pelle Café.

Pelle Almqvist. Chic and…

…Rock ‘n’ Roll.

Best-dressed Swedish woman is actress Josephine Bornebusch known from for instance the Swedish comedy programme “Parlamentet”. The prize for international style icon went to actress Malin Åkerman who was in the films “The Proposal” and “Watchmen”. Jonny Johansson from the Swedish label Acne received the prize for best designer 2009 and this year’s newcomer is the label “Uniforms for the Dedicated”, which is an international platform for musicians, designers and illustrators.

Josephine Bornebusch.

Malin Åkerman.

Uniforms for the Dedicated.

Further prizes awarded by Café in 2009:

Sport’s label: J. Lindberg’s Sky

Online shop: www.fever.se

Accessory label: Happy Socks

Sunglasses: Persol

Jeans Label: The Local Firm

Shoe label: Dr. Martens

Pictures from Calle Stoltz/ Magzine Café

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