This week’s look is inspired by one of my all-time favourite movies, Almost Famous. I have focused in particular on the lead female character, Penny Lane, played by Kate Hudson. This movie sprung to my mind after seeing, in my opinion, the horrific Grammy red-carpet dresses this week. I pine the loss of the rocker age where style was so funky, eclectic and glam in a low-key way, not a try-hard way. The Grammys represent today’s musicians, and Almost Famous takes a look into the music scene in the ’60s. The movie follows a young writer touring with a rock band who is finding their success. The whole movie incorporates the fab tunes of the era. Penny Lane is a groupie of the band and catches the eye of both the lead singer of the band, and the main character, the writer.
Penny’s style is more than just typical ’60s groupie style. Yes, some elements are there: crop tops, fur coats, jeans, peasant tops, etc. I like to think she has more spunk though than your average groupie. Her personality is so electric, which resonates in her style. I think perhaps it’s the eclectic manner in which she puts things together, that nobody else may have thought of; coincidentally that always seems to work. Her natural curly mane and minimal make-up also help her out big time to not look over-the-top.
For my look inspired by Penny, I have taken her fun, eclectic and very casual-glam vibe, rather than specifically copying pieces. The first piece I came up with was this super-cute set of overalls by Aussie label Friend of Mine. Friend of Mine exudes fun, carefree chic. I also couldn’t resist having another Friend of Mine piece to go under the overalls. I picked this Midwest is Best T as it seemed born to go with them. The cute slogan also screams a bit of Penny’s quirk to me.
The first pairing came as a surprise, as I wasn’t planning on having a fur-like coat—it seems too literal. I could not resist this utterly beautiful jacket by Acne Studios, however. The muted tone, the design lines and everything about it is stunning and modern, and I think the colour and shape would contrast and complement the overalls to a T. Be sure to check out Acne’s current collection: everything is modern perfection.
When contemplating shoes for this look, I just had a vision of mules, or a mule-like shoe. Perhaps this is purely because they are currently making the rounds of the fashion élite, but I like to think they just go oh-so-well with the shorty-short overalls. Very Rumi Neely of me. I picked these mule-ish booties by Stella McCartney, as I love the baby-pink tone and the modern design with the wood and metal heel. The wood reflects elements of the wedges of the ’60s and the ’70s whereas the metal cut-out is truly 2014.
Penny definitely had a cuteness to her style so I decided to incorporate this, with a pair of fluffy, but not frilly, socks. I love the look of booties with higher socks, although I am completely avoiding the cliché frill. This off-white, fluffy, mid-high pair is perfect.
Penny had a hippie element so I had to add one to this look, as I am such a bohemian fan myself. This wicked bag by Free People caught my eye as modern, funky and bohemian. I’m digging it so much I may get one for myself!
The last element of Penny’s style was an ever-so-slight mod. These earrings by Marni, therefore, come in: they have a funky ’60s shape, a mixture of textiles and textures, including ’70s-style wood. Check out Marni’s entire collection of earrings if you are a chunky earring fan as you will be in heaven, as I was.
The last touch, as per usual, was nails. Penny was a hippie no-polish type girl. Although I’m kind of a hippie myself, I still can’t roll with that. Therefore, I decided to modernize it with a contrast-colour nail. I love forest green, especially paired with pale pink and various shades of beige and white, so I chose this shade. These are all colours I coincidentally tend to wear a lot. In terms of make-up, I wouldn’t go any further than Penny’s look. There is no point trying to modernize a simple, beautiful and natural look that works. So try this look with loose, natural curls with a mid-part and oh-so-minimal make-up with a little mascara and gloss.
What do you think of my modern interpretation of Penny’s style?—Anna Deans