The Street Style Stars That Made Me
A tribute to my personal favorite style muses
“Style - all who have it share one thing: originality” - Diana Vreeland
The candid photos of people walking into runway shows caught my attention long before finding out what was happening behind those doors. Images of editors, models off-duty, and overall stylish people from all around the fashion capitals led me to discover some of the best dressed women that have drawn me in like a moth to a flame.
Coming off the beautiful International Women’s Day celebrations, I would like to dedicate this week’s episode, in no particular order, to the women who started it all.
Julia Sarr-Jamois @sarrjamois
Born in London to a Senegalese father and French mother, Julia is the first black Fashion Director in the history of Vogue.
Her long curly hair and eclectic style make her hard to miss and a joy to watch for inspiration. The bold use of color and truly effortless styling always motivate me to want to let my hair down and put together a great outfit in her honor. Her storytelling at British Vogue alongside excellent photographers including Tyrone Lebon, Harley Weir and Zoe Ghertner are captured beautifully with a diverse range of models.
Miroslava Duma @miroduma
Who else can show up to Dior Haute Couture show FW 2017 in a mesh Patagonia trucker hat? Or a Google merchandise T-shirt to New York Fashion Week.
The Russian street style star and former editor at Harper’s Bazaar was an endless source of inspiration in the 2010s for all the petite girls. While standing at 5 feet, her elegant style proved that petite girls could let go of all limitations and wear exactly what they wanted.
Although no longer a regular fixture of the street-style scene, the countless images on Pinterest continue to inspire many of my outfits to date.
In 2011, she founded Buro 24/7, a digital magazine on art, architecture, cinema, fashion, music and style which in 2017 acquired majority stake at System magazine. She has also invested in Reformation, Dropel Fabrics, Reward Style and Finery.
Jenny Walton @jennymwalton
No one wears vintage like Jenny does. A fashion friend in my head (because I literally messaged her on Instagram and she responded), artist, illustrator and designer, is originally from New York but currently lives in fabulous Milan. Her monthly vintage column for Vogue guides you to some of the coolest vintage finds in various price ranges. Mostly compared to Audrey Hepburn, her ability to fuse old and new makes her a unique stand out. On her Substack, you can follow along as she navigates her new life in Milan with the cutest dogs (RIP Baffi) and get more styling insights and not to mention exquisite accessorizing ideas.
Giovanna Engelbert @giovannaengelbert
Born Giovanna Battaglia, she is the street style icon that heavily inspired me to rock my skirts with T-shirts. Since then, I have never departed from that gospel and the colors and animal prints are still ever present.
Engelbert worked under the great editor Franca Sozzani at Italian Vogue before moving to New York and working at W magazine. She later joined Swarovski in 2016 and is now the Global Creative Director of Swarovski Group, a first for the company, and is now injecting freshness, sophistication and playfulness to the heritage brand.
Leandra Medine Cohen @leandramcohen
Surprise! I’m talking about her again.
Out of everyone on this list she has influenced my style choices the most. Her ManRepeller blog was an open tab on my laptop for literal years. She had me excited for maternity style with her 30-day mirror selfies when I was a just a teenager.
She was dressing for herself and didn’t feel the need to wear makeup long before it was ever trendy and turned that into a successful media company that she led for 10 years before the unfortunate events I highlighted in my last article.
Now running Cafe Leandra, a fashion style website about clothes and style as well as her Substack, you can still catch her endless styling ideas with the clothes you probably already own.
Caroline Issa @carolineissa
The chicest woman on this list with her understated, pulled together and effortless style. A true definition of je ne sais quoi. Is it her jet-black hair, defined brows or the red lipstick against her fair skin. She represents the woman I always wanted to be as a child.
Formerly a management consultant, she is now the Chief Executive and Fashion Director at Tank Fashion Magazine.
Alexa Chung @alexachung
The ultimate British “It” girl whose personal style has been extremely simple and consistent for years now. Her distinct style coupled with irresistible charisma has me under a spell that won’t break any time soon. She is also the reason I have 5 pairs of Mary-Jane shoes. It always seems like every item in her wardrobe works incredibly hard and if you owned them, yours would be complete too. Whether in dungarees or Simone Rocha, it always seems so approachable styled with her signature haircut and a pair of Converse.
I really am a cocktail of all the women I thought were cool. From cartoon/movie characters, Youtubers, the women in my personal life and those that live on my phone. This list doesn’t even represent a third of my influences and every day I get a new one to obsess over. Women are just great.