Growing up, I was the only child for about 6 years. From that time I had recieved everything i could have ever asked for and more. I had wondrous collections of bows and swingy young dresses. As I got older from age 13 to 15 I'd say i had an interesting journey, "finding myself". I made my own awkward necklaces with the most random of beads, I constantly dyed and cut my hair. I experimented with make-up..matching the eyeshadow to correspond with my blouse. In high school I had tried on almost every, not all element of style. I wore long bohemian skirts, thinking I'd lose myself in some sort of antique rhapsody. I had bright and dark colored polos, which I paired with my father's own and even my own handmade ties. I collected skater sneakers from a young 5th grade until my last year in high school. Some part of the collection can be found in my closet somewhere today. In the middle of Junior High, I went through a special phase, as inspired by my own Father. He introduced me into a style I would never forget.."B-Boy style" What an un-forgetable stage, and especially at such a young age. Before that, my mother showed me what it was like to be a true "Beach/ Surfer Girl", at heart. We lived in a small city named Port Hueneme, just off the outskirts of Oxnard, California. Moving form city to city, and speaking to my parents sharing their knowledge, and real true human experiences, is what made me who I'am today.
As of today, I'am so fortunate that I have parents who've inspired me over the years, training me to be my own person, and never to give into the fads of tomorrow. I'am now inspired by many diverse sources. " I'am a multi-racial young woman, and I'll always embrace that." My mother was once a young woman just like I'am today. She wore football jerseys as skirts, she sometimes even made her own clothing because she came from a family where she could not get everything she wanted right away. She came from a family of 6 with 3 younger siblings, and herself. Money was tight, and that led her creativity to flow. Music inspired her to dress in a Punk Rock and New Wave fashion. Geometric accesories,mod mini skirts, tight jeans, and so many retro coordinations to think of. I admire the young woman my mother was back then, and during high school, I always stole her jewelry to have something new and fresh with my outfit. Thanks to her, I now am addicted to her 80's music and fashion sense.
My mother isn't the only one to give me heavy inspiration. My father is another special influential person in my life. He taught me certain lengths of rhythm, he introduced me to his retro "B-Boy style", he gave me ideas to add,reuse, and re-make. He is just as a creative soul as my mother. You wouldn't know it by looking at either of them, but they are special people with talented ideas. As a young adolescent, I could hear Madonna, Duran-Duran, Lighter Shade of Brown, and Black sheep all under one roof, in one day. Definitely not the typical household, but it is where I call home. My father was a beachy, street B-Boy, and a talented jock who is married to the then Madonna-esque young Punk Rocker. The product of their summer love 20 years ago? Yes, Yes Y'all..you get me.
It's not just my parents who inspire me. i listen to music, not just the mainstreamed stuff. It goes way over, and beyond. I love 80's-90's hip-hop, 80's new wave/rock, and today's techno. Looking at magazines, and mixing unheard of combinations is my specialty. I love breaking the rules. If you feel like wearing a swingy floral print skirt, with sporty Aasics, it's your call. You do what you feel. So you just do it like Nike says. Celebrities, well they have great fashion sense. You can't beat that. You think to yourself, and you say" I want her outfit so bad". It's not the end of the world. After 4 years of finding myself in a confusing journey, I know that i don't have to keep wanting. I can have that look. I have my own quirks and tricks to getting the look that I always wanted. In my own home, I never realized that all i needed could be there.I take off this, and sew it on that, cut this and make it into that..it all works out if you have that reliable creativity. So i keep at it, and I haven't stopped just yet.
