Vintage Issue

Vintage Issue

about a girl CELEBRATING WOMEN OF ALL SHADES, SHAPES AND SIZES

EDITOR’S LETTER VINTAGE INSPIRES In all honesty, I have only just developed an interest in hunting for authentic vintage pieces. For a long time I disregarded vintage shopping because I didn’t find it justifiable to pay a high price for worn and sometimes damaged goods.

I found it more rewarding to rummage through the closets of my mother, grandmother and auntie’s wardrobe and inherit vintage clothing.

That was of course until I bought my first vintage piece. It wasn’t anything grand but it intrigued me because although it was once owned by a complete stranger, it still created in me a sense of nostalgia. It is a simple mustard yellow cropped t-shirt. On it is a linear childlike drawing of a black girl with cornrow braids, with brightly coloured sequences representing the beads that dangle from her loose plaits. It reminded me of myself as a young girl running around the island in the 80’s with my plaits and beads; I also remember owning t-shirts with the same designs. I wondered who owned it, where they were from and what they were like? I believe that’s the beauty of finding one-off vintage pieces. It’s the fact that you have no clue about the person it belonged

Vintage Issue

to but you feel connected to them because owning their belongings means you possess the same sense of style. For the sake of styling ideas I also like looking at Vintage fashion photographs. I love that in eras past, fashion was solely about complimenting a women’s body.

It wasn’t about a must-have trend or popular designer. It was about how the clothes fitted the female form which is why clothing on models in old-school fashion vintage photographs look more flattering. My favourite old-school image is of my auntie who modelled in the 80s. The outfit is so simple yet accentuates her subtle curves.

I find it amazing that it was possible to create an alluring image with no reliance on post-production but simply her great features, the right angle and lighting. That’s the beauty of authenticity and why it continues to inspire us, because no matter how advanced and developed the world gets, we will still be intrigued by something created with limited resources. This issue feature’s the work of those who continue to be inspired by past era’s.

Founding Editor Kered Clement

Editor Kered Clement Sub Editor Darcel de Vlugt Creative Director Vanesha Ramdoyal Contributing Photographers Ana Barreira and Shamayim Cover Sonia Hindi shot by Emillie Muller Hair & Make-up Natasa Milosevic

about a girl CELEBRATING WOMEN OF ALL SHADES, SHAPES AND SIZES

contents

04 Complexd beauty

46 Complexd man

0 Complexd style

Complexd lifestyle

22 Complexd profiles

58 Complexd travel

34 Complexd Features

Complexd ideas

40 Complexd fashion

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about a girl the girl next door she was known to all, her man stood hand some, debonair and tall, but he knew his luck for he’d share, with girls of all ages and colour of hair. ‘You b r u t e , ’

unfaithful

she’d utter to him, ‘I’ll get my

revenge, don’t think me too dim!’

But a pause she took and a deep breath to think.

On a high she’d walk and

leave their love to sink.

The story unfolds......

By Emily Goldthorpe

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The Girl Next Door Photography Caitlin Bellah Styling Erlinda Denise Makeup Shelly Samia Hair Saima Bhamani Model Kendra with Ford LA

White Bow Sweater Wardrobechick.com Skirt Revamp Necklace Stylist own

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Vintage Sweater Express Bra Shareen Vintage Skirt Wardrobechick.com Belt/Bracelet Stylist own

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Sweater thankyoumart.com Shirt Crossroads.com Skirt Wardrobechick.com Belt Stylist own Ring LFStores.com

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My e g a t n i V Finds

TAG: MIRIAM HUSTLE: STUDENT HOMETOWN: SPAIN ‘I stole this denim waistcoat from my boyfriend. It has all the original badges and customisation from the mod rocker who owned it. I’m fond of the fit but not too keen on the lingering smell of sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll.’

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TAG: CLAIRE DUKE-WOOLLEY HUSTLE: GRAPHIC DESIGNER HOMETOWN: ESSEX ‘I used to work for an amazing Vintage shop called Steinberg & Tolkien which had pieces from costume designers who worked in Hollywood. When the shop closed down I got my hands on some enviable dresses like this 1920’s flapper dress and 1950’s hat.

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TAG: NATALIE BROWN HUSTLE: PR GRADUATE HOMETOWN: SWEDEN ‘The jacket is vintage YSL and I found this dress is a vintage shop in Paris. Teamed with my 50’s straw hat I call this look schoolgirl chic.

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TAG: EMILY GOLDTHORPE HUSTLE: WRITER HOMETOWN: LONDON ‘I couldn’t believe my luck when I got this Alexander McQueen coat in a charity shop for £120. It cinches in at the waist, with a plunge neckline and sharp shoulders. It goes perfect with my £1 vintage bowler hat.’

Photography Ana Barreira - www.anabarreira.com Make-up Mireille Paulo - www.prettyluscious.com

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Photography/Vintage Styling Emilie Muller Model Keeley Sheppard @ NEVS London Hair & Make-up Eva Roncay

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Model Sonia Hindi Hair & Make-up Natasa Milosevic

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Model Viivi Kapanen @ FM LONDON Hair & Make-up Eva Roncay Top Josefine Wing Mint Siren SS11 collection

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Model Nency Nence Hair & Make-up Natasa Milosevic

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GIGI British/Canadian-Indian Gurmeet Grewal’s intrigue for foreign languages and addiction to travelling makes her one of the most diverse buyers of Vintage pieces. She sources clothing, accessories and footwear from London to LA, Stockholm to San Diego, Berlin to Brussels and Munich to Milano. Her newly launched online boutique Gigi Vintage offers an eclectic range of unique pieces that keeps in tone with current trends.

‘Own a piece of fashion’s past with a large chunk of fashion’s future’.

I love everything Vintage... but my absolute favourite era is the 1980s. Electro-punk, tight body con dresses, shoulder pads galore and big hair are totally what I’m all about! I truly believe in vintage as sustainable fashion. It continues to inspire today’s catwalks and high street collections, so you can own a piece of fashion’s past with a large chunk of fashion’s future.

I launched Gigi Vintage... three months ago. I believe that vintage clothing has a positive environmental impact, great craftsmanship and historical value. But I have failed to find a

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vintage boutique relevant to young catwalk trends. In my opinion, many vintage stores sell a mishmash of products with dresses being un-commercial lengths and not being modernised to fit in with today’s trends. My aim is to continue to stock amazing oneoff pieces comparable to products sold by fashionable high street stores.

GiGi Vintage is unique because... I view, select and purchase stock in person. I check the authenticity of the product to ensure it is a genuine vintage article. Secondly, I look at the styling and how it

fits in with current and upcoming trends. If necessary I modernise some pieces without detracting from what makes them so unique in the first place. Finally I go through and inspect each selected item to check for any flaws, given that quality is paramount to my brand.

Being my own boss is... hard work in the sense that my entire life revolves around my job. I’m solely responsible for everything that goes on within the business and as a result, I have to make sure that I’m always on the ball. This means very long hours and often

working throughout the night and over weekends in order to meet deadlines. Having said that, it is also amazing! I love being in total control of everything.

It’s just incredible being able to express myself and my interests so ardently through my work. More importantly, I find it so rewarding to have achieved all this through my own efforts. Since launching the positive reaction has been overwhelming, this gives me great confidence in my business and what I have set out to achieve.

[Visit www.gigivintage.co.uk]

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Photography SHAMAYIM www.shamayim.net Styling Tr3y Stylez www.tr3ystylez.com Shoes John Ashford www.johnashford.ws Makeup Shon Sanks Model Gemmy @ MUSE NYC Photographer’s assistant Ivory Miller

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CHEAY ROCHELLE Keisha Brown - Fashion Designer Losing her sister who supported her passion for the arts at a young age came as a blow for designer Keisha Brown.

Her sister’s passing has instilled in her the drive to push forward and be at her very best. Her sophisticated design construction displays a dedication to her trade in which she creates pieces with classic cuts and quirky details that add a recognisable signature.

Name: Keisha Brown Age: 21 Place of birth: Montego Bay, JAMAICA Current residence: Brooklyn, New York My signature style... is weird, artsy and full of elegant silhouettes.

I like using unique printed fabrics and adding small details like hand beading. I love to dress women that love to play with clothes and like to create a different character every day, as if she’s playing dress up.

My Fall/Winter 2010 collection... is inspired by vintage sofas. I always remember the vintage sofa in my grandmother’s living room – I was so in love with the texture and print of the fabric.

Generally I love the 1800s for the patterns and classical styles.

The hardest part of being a fashion designer... is getting your name out there and grabbing the attention of the right people. I try to do as many fashion shows as I can and attend network events to promote my label. I figure that someone will find me and have 100% interest in my movement. I would love to have the opportunity to dress Michelle Obama, Corinne Bailey Rae and Solange Knowles.

My favourite quote/proverb is... Do not dwell in the past. Do not dream of the future. Concentrate the mind on the present moment.’

The 4 words that describe my life are...

Exhausting; Delightful; Mysterious; Calm [Visit www.cheayrochelle. carbonmade.com]

“ My Fall/

Winter 2010 collection is inspired by vintage sofas ”

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Illustrations by Priscila Molin

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PRISCILA MOLIN Priscila Molin - Fashion Designer I am Italian/Brazilian. My father’s family migrated from Italy to Brazil generations ago while my mum’s family is from the north east of Brazil, descendants of the native Amazonian Indians. The vibrancy and colours of the Brazilian lifestyle help to inspire the prints and silhouettes of my designs. I play between the formal feminine style of vintage European influences and a more laid back and casual beach lifestyle of my homeland, Brazil.

Name: Priscila Molin Age: 31 Place of birth: Alto Parana, Brazil Current residence: London My designs... are beautiful and comfortable everyday pieces that exude a youthful and individual chic/ feminine look. I love to incorporate vintage inspirations into the development of my print and textiles especially that of the late 1920s, which signified freedom from the formfitting garments of the past and heralded a new era of looser and more shapeless silhouettes.

I have a desire to... always create something meaningful, something that the owner of the garment will appreciate and relate to in a fond way. Things that intrigue and inspire me are beauty, nature, people in the street and antiques.

My latest collection is... an

exploration into illustrative print design. The Magical Florist collection is inspired by vintage and Art Nouveau postcards, old hand-written letters and print signage. I was particularly influenced by the whimsical nature of the characters portrayed.

The fashion industry is… extremely competitive so the challenge is to try to create something that is unique and individual but also viable commercially. The hardest part is breaking through the invisible barrier of obscurity and having people recognise your work.

I want to create… a small but innovative fashion label; one that is dedicated to creating a unique and special collection of recognisable designs and one that will help to shape the lifestyle of my customers through the enjoyment they get from wearing them.

“ I play between the

formal feminine style of vintage European influences and a more laid back and casual beach lifestyle of my homeland Brazil ”

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Image by Eoin Whelan

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Elizabeth Eamer Elizabeth Eamer - The Conversationalist Whilst on the coach ride down to Bargate Gallery in Southampton – courtesy of the artist – I eagerly anticipated the Solo exhibition of Elizabeth Eamer. I glanced back and forth between my BlackBerry and other art enthusiasts on the journey. With a coach of people to entertain me, I was still more intrigued with when the next BlackBerry message would PING. Titled ‘The Conversationalist’, the exhibition evoked thoughts in me as to whether we are still conversing on a human level or being distracted by techno savvy apparatus.

We speak to Eamer about her complex ink drawings inspired by the Mass Observation projects of the 1930s.

For as long as I can remember…

I have made stuff, but I didn’t have the confidence to go down the Fine Art route until I did my Masters in Fine Art Printmaking. After working for three years as a graphic designer I took the plunge and did an MA at the Royal College of Art. The Conversationalist was about... collecting data about people’s mannerisms and conversations.

I am hugely interested in the art of conversation and body language and how this is recorded and represented, taken out of the context that it was originally in. This sets the basis for a lot of my work.

From my observations… I have learnt that if I have something really important to communicate to someone, I need to see them in person. I am not a master

of language and my attitudes and mannerisms communicate far more than my words.

Human communication… has declined in the 21st century.

With all the new forms of electronic communication, I can’t see how it hasn’t! It has highlighted to me the importance of physically seeing someone when you talk to him or her. Yes, communication is faster and more immediate… but there is so much that is misconstrued.

In the near future… I am hoping to bring this interactive exhibition to London.

But Bargate Monument Gallery was such an amazing building to take over.

“ Yes, communication

is faster and more immediate… but there is so much that is misconstrued. ”

Visit Elizabeth Eamer [www.elizabetheamer.com]

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Forgotten Spaces, Forgotten Bodies - Observation

by Mitha Firth Bargate Gallery is an historical building, whose exterior is untouched. A monument, rooted in the history of the city that has been closed for so long and no longer speaks to the city’s inhabitants, absorbed in their daily routines. As access was prohibited to the general public, the building came to be forgotten and existed – temporarily – only as a memory encrusted with the nostalgia for past grandeur. Conversations were halted, conversations out of which a sense of identity would have linked them to this place.

This exhibition focuses on the

different kinds of conversations that we have everyday – with ourselves, with others, and with places that we find ourselves in.

By occupying Bargate, Eamer highlights the re-discovery of a once forgotten space and the new conversations this rediscovery incite. Not only are they observations of how it is we converse with the world (through subtle gestures that soon enough will be forgotten) but also how, at the same time, nothing is more telling of who we are than the passing looks and touches that we create this delicate bond with.

MY FAMILY

MY FATHER AND MY THREE AUNTIES

Simret Cheema-Innis Writer/Videographer

I

’m now 25 years old and I am compelled to lay out my life cards on the table to determine whether I have conformed to those conventional rules of my parents. But it’s interesting to understand how they have lived their lives. What have they learnt and how has life panned out for them? My father has lived a different life to that which his parents may have expected, dominated by women, travel and a strong work ethic. A third generation Jamaican, my father was brought up in a religious household, where faith and education were key expectations. Although my grandparents hold my father in high esteem, it’s evident that he has let them down in

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the faith department, as 50 years on my father remains unmarried. However, in my grandparents’ time it was common for success and good living to be measured through religion, education, family and maintaining a home. Growing up, my father has always demonstrated a calm exterior, providing me with the opportunity to pursue a career that is often deemed as unstable.

Having travelled with him extensively, I have been enriched culturally from a young age and I continue to embrace other cultures through my work and travel. I am proud to say that the qualities I hold as a person are simply down to knowing my family values me.

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ME AND MY MOTHER

MY FATHER’S MOTHER

This picture is of me and my mother. Born in India and raised in the UK, my mother adapted to the Western world and abided by the rules of a traditional Indian household until the day she wanted to start a family.

Expected to have an arranged marriage, my mother stood up for the right to choose whom she wanted to be with and was removed from her family. I face my mother to ask her how this affected her.

‘Although I came from a religious family, it was not on my list. We are the keepers of our own lives, but having guidance along the way does contribute to the people that we become even though I could not abide

by all of the expectations. I would say don’t be envious in life as it is a destructive characteristic. I’ve always told you kids not be envious because I know how much heartache it has caused people. If you’re going to do something, do it well as it opens up horizons and gives you the opportunity to become a richer person. I am a great believer of “everything happens for a reason”.

If you have goodness and you share it with others you get goodness back. Human beings are not the same otherwise we wouldn’t have had a Hitler or a Mohandas Gandhi.’

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A SALON BUSINESS POSTCARD OF MY MOTHER AVICE, ME AS A BABY, MY BROTHER SIVA AND FATHER DEREK.

Kered Clement Founding Editor

B

orn in Grenada, my parents came to the UK at a young age when their mothers sent for them after migrating and settling in Britain. Finding their feet as young West Indians, they immersed themselves in the Black hair industry, which was just booming in the early 80s. My father worked for Splinters, central London’s

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first Black hair salon, while my mother was training at the prestigious Browns hair salon nearby. Aiming to be the top of their trade, on my father’s client list was a young Naomi Campbell and, on my mother’s, Stevie Wonder.

Coming from a tiny island in the Caribbean they crossed paths as their popularity grew in the industry. They united

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and set up a three-story salon in London then moved back to Grenada to run a chain of salons and train those who wanted to learn hairdressing. From the age of eight I wanted to work. I started voluntarily sweeping up hair and got promoted to receptionist by the time I was nine.

I guess my parents’ drive and ambition instilled in me a

strong work ethic that taught me to dream big and work hard for what you want in life. In those crucial years when I should have been idly playing in the sand, I was observing how my parents managed a family business and built client loyalty. Now I can’t imagine being anything but my own boss. It must be hereditary.

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MY MOTHER AT 16 SPORTING A LONG RED DRESS AND OUTSTANDING AFRO.

Growing up with my humble great-grandmother, my mother learned how to love and nurture.

With my grandparents building a new life in the UK with my uncles and aunties who were just babies, my mother and eldest uncle were left to live in the rural countryside of Grenada learning to cook, clean and wash clothes in the river – life skills that gave them both substance of character and disregard for material things.

I most certainly believe that my mother’s upbringing has contributed to my morals, values and headstrong mindset. When my mother moved to the UK to join the rest of the family it was a major learning curve. In the

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1960s, crime wasn’t prevalent throughout the Caribbean, giving youngsters more freedom. In the UK when Black communities were just beginning to be accepted and skinhead culture was still lurking, adapting to an enclosed lifestyle was difficult for her. My grandfather’s strict regime and the undeveloped mother-daughter bond between her and my grandmother meant my mother rebelled and sought to experience life with no female guidance.

She fell pregnant with my brother at a young age and to this day has always encouraged me to learn, travel and pursue my goals before taking on the responsibility of marriage and kids.

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MY GRANDMOTHER SITTING ON THE FAR RIGHT.

My grandmother grew up in rural Grenada with her grandfather, whose ancestors had travelled from India.

Marrying my grandfather at a very young age, she moved into his family home and domesticated herself by learning, through my great grandmother, how to maintain a good home. With contraception being nonexistent for women, my grandmother had five children. Maintaining the role of Wife, Housewife and Mother, she has never travelled to exotic destinations or experienced different lifestyles but what strikes me about my grandmother is that she is a strong-willed Superwoman. I still hope that I will possess even half of the strength she has. In

my early teens, when I was developing strong opinions and rebelled by refusing to stand in the kitchen with her and learn to cook, I now realise that combining domestic skills with an education and career aspirations is something one must juggle to maintain an organised and healthy lifestyle. When life throws everything at you at once, what better women are there to look up to than the ones who raised more than three children, kept their marriages together, worked, cooked and cleaned all at once? My grandmother’s generation may not have had high-flying careers, but they are indeed Masters at multitasking.

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UNFAITHFUL

Photography Leslie Andrews Styling Leslie Andrews Hair & Make-up Jessica Mayeux Model Rachel Validum of Look Modelling Agency All clothing courtesy of: Bow & Arrows Vintage Boutique

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A Magnificent Contraption Name: Gerald Jenkins Age: 43 Occupation: Photographer Place of birth: New Zealand Current residence: London When I was eighteen... I took a photograph of a band without their disguises. I knew no one else had a picture like it. That picture helped in creating my own personal identity.

After studying Film & Television at University and realising I had no personal experience to draw on, I became a freelance photographic assistant until 1990 before stepping out on my own.

I’d like to think I probably could make a film now.

I use… a Linhof 5x4, Pentax 645s and a Leica circa 1953 owned by my grandfather. I think of cameras as musical instruments. The Linhof 5x4 camera takes a single film plate and requires an extremely physical approach to operate during the focusing, composition and film-loading process. During the course of setting up the shot and having dialogue with the person you are going to photograph, a deep understanding of what you are trying to achieve is developed between you and the subject.

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By the time I actually press the button and capture the moment there is a subconscious agreement between me and the subject, whereby we mirror each other in a confirmed goal.

I like capturing... indigenous cultures.

I was ten when we moved to Australia and wanted to learn from an Aboriginal perspective. Unfortunately, their culture was virtually invisible and I never felt truly settled there. I think people need to see that these cultures are still practised.

Generally, people are the most amazing subjects. Hopefully those who view my images can see that the tide is not always going in one direction. There is always someone out there who is swimming against it.

For the past year... I’ve been working with the American jazz band the Sun Ra Arkestra, photographing the members, which has led me to shoot a beauty/ fashion story inspired by them and their music. I continue to work on a music book Bathing Whiskey that I am currently writing. I am also finishing layouts of a book on Notting Hill Carnival.

Gerald Jenkins [www.geraldjenkins.co.uk]

love photographing ‘Iwomen in an empowering manner where they are not victimised. It is important to me that they like the way they are portrayed and it helps me understand the eternal beauty within the female psyche.

’

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Images by Gerald Jenkins

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DEBONAIR

Photography Frank Rubio Styling Carlos Davis @ MC2 Creative Management Hair Stylist Carlos Vera for VisionofVera.com Make-up Artist Cory Bauer @ Ford Artists for Nars Cosmetics Model Marie-Charlotte Mahul @ Next Models Assistant Nikki Rotunda Assistant Hair Stylist Pablo Hernandez Clothing Silk Flower Skirt Alexander Berardi Suede Hair Band Lilla at www.anthropologie.com Ring Odanis Valdez Polonia

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[LEFT] Red Shift Dress Adriana Cobo Ring Maria Camila Mesa Earrings Malili Otoya [CENTRE] Pleated Dress Disaya Necklace & Ring Maria Camila Mesa at www.voguette.com [RIGHT] High Waisted Panty Brief Stretsis Flower Head Piece Lilla at www.Anthropologie.com Bracelet Odanis Valdez Polonia

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Retrospective T

he Orla Kiely Flagship store located on Monmouth Street in Covent Garden creates somewhat of a stir. Tourists and locals alike stop to peer through the window into a colourful world of repeat prints that have no regard for the dull British weather. Most of them stop with amazement as to how this bold decor manages to work so well together.

More often than not they are drawn into the store with an overwhelming sense of nostalgia by the modern designs that are almost too authentic.

Orla Kiely has managed to build a successful brand with a print that has engraved itself into the visual psyche,

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rendering it instantly recognisable.

The colour palettes used throughout her collection and in the shop interior are evidence of her upbringing in Ireland near the sea, where moss-covered beach stones and mustard gorge shrubs on green hill tops met grey skies.

Her interest in vintage design and continued observation of the world has developed a following that consumes sentimental items that fit into their 21st century lifestyle.

Designer Top Tip: ‘You have to develop a keen eye to find the treasures among the less desirable items’ – Pattern Book. Orla Kiely - [www.orlakiely.com]

‘Retro is more about the anonymous furniture, clothing, textiles and bric-a-brac that you might find on a market stall than it is about the more famous pieces’ – Pattern Book, Orla Kiely

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Images by Frederique Rapier www.frederiquerapier.com

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Road Trip

Diary of Liz Johnson Artur

I

’m a Ghanaian/Russian, born in Sofia, Bulgaria and now residing in London. For me, photography is a way to find out about culture. I use different analogue cameras (digital files, well, they came fast but no one knows how long they can survive) to capture faces, gestures, movement and style, all in one moment. I look my subjects in the eye and if they don’t look away, I take my picture. I don’t believe

in the perfect shot; in order to understand the big picture, one needs to zoom in on the elements that make up the whole. I just want my images to convey the beauty of human nature. I am working on a film about Afro/Russians, a story that is still waiting to be told. If you know where you come from, there is a whole world out there. Here’s what I have seen so far... [www.lizjohnsonartur.com]

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The Bold and the Beautiful – Peckham, London

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Coney Island

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Kingston, Jamaica 64 complexd

DanCehall in London

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New York

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Moscow

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Passing through LA

Zimbabwe 68 complexd

London, Carnival

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The Story Unfolds

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Photography Craig Fleming www.craig-fleming.com Styling Natalie Green www.nataliegreenstyling.com Make up Laura Gingell Model Monica Wong

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Colorblind Cards

Complexd speaks to Co-founder of the UK’s first multicultural card company, Jessica Huie.

I realised... there was an absence on the high-street of greeting cards featuring people of colour after I’d been looking tirelessly for a card for my daughter Monet. I thought if it doesn’t exist, I’d better change that!

I chose the name Colorblind Cards... because it seemed the perfect choice for me to reinforce the fact that colour or race should not be relevant. I wanted the brand to be for everyone but I also knew it would give an alternative to the Black and mixed-race community.

The main obstacle... was to get the stockists to believe there was a big enough market to make the range successful. The biggest card/gift retailers in the UK Clintons Cards put us on the shelves for a test try.

I was humbled by the support from the community who went out and bought the cards proving there was a demand for more representative cards.

The cards are… a platform to illustrate the diversity of our society and provide a much-needed balance in a limited market. We use children and adults of all ethnicities as models and we are broadening the range year by year.

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The central ethos... is all about unity and beauty being something much deeper than aesthetic.

The Colorblind gift line... will be available on www.colorblindcards.com from October, which includes magnets and mugs featuring some of our bestselling designs with bags, kids’ T-shirts and baby grows available later on.

for daily update visit www.complexdblog.com