April 7, 2008

Euro-phile: Five reasons to love the English

This week, The Stylephile is in Europe!
In his 2005 book "The Angry Island", writer AA Gill labels his English countrymen "some of the most objectionable people you could wish to avoid," adding that "they have a unique national habit of bringing out the worst in each other. I can't think of any other nation that has to be separated from itself for its own good—every collection of five Englishmen needs a foreigner to stop it beoming a social heath hazard."
I, unlike Mr. Gill, believe there are countless, innumerable things to love about the English.
At least five, which I have listed below for your convenience.
1. The Lou Doillon collection for Lee Cooper. Ok, so she's only half British (her mom is Jane Birkin), but this 25-year-old fashion natural works the quirky Brit chic look like a pro, beating Sienna at her own game, and giving Chloe Sevigny a run for her money in the global hipster stakes. Check out her new, oddly underhyped capsule collection for British denim house Lee Cooper, launched this Easter. That's her, modeling the collection in the photo. Sickening, right? She'll be designing for Lee for three years using The Artful Dodger as her primary inspiration, apparently.
2. The House of Lords has a blog
England's oldest, wealthiest and grumpiest politicos live in the House of Lords, occasionally turning up to vote on issues of national policy, and to take naps in the rather comfy plush red seating. And now they have a blog. They've called it "Lords of the Blog", in true imperial manner. Hear, hear!
3. The dry shampoo craze
According to ~~legend~~ fact, the English have always abhorred showering/brushing teeth/lotion etc., so it should come as no surprise to learn that dry shampoo is enjoying a revival in Britannia, with retailers reporting a startling 45% rise in sales of powdery hair cleaners. Bumble and Bumble makes a fine dry shampoo for greasy-headed types, which you can buy here.
4. Brits are adopting Americanisms like "oh my god that's soooo fierce", "awesome!" and "you suck", all of which sound very funny when said in a Cockney accent.
5. Sofia's Diary: England's stylish answer to Lonelygirl15
It's not just Americans who love to watch adolescent soap opera/monologues on the internet as if there weren't other, more productive things to do. Oh no. Sofia Taylor is a well-behaved, rather boring teenager whose catchphrase is "You think your life sucks? Watch mine." (see #4 on this list.), and she's a rising star of British made-for-web TV. She's the kind of kid who refuses to burn CDs for her friends because it's against the law, and who won't hook up with a young cutie called Josh, which all makes for rather dull television. She does love wearing Issey Miyake though, and for that reason alone, we'll keep watching.

April 7, 2008 in FASHION | Permalink

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