Read Surveys (By Author)
Ozlem Alkan K
1. When do you feel at your most attractive?
Lying under the sun.
2. Do you notice women on the street? If so, what sort of women do you tend to notice or admire?
Women wearing colorful, patterned clothes. Women wearing hats. The color red.
3. What are some things you admire about how other women present themselves?
I admire women in intellectual jobs, wearing clothes that don't highlight their intellect but complement it.
4. Was there a moment in your life when something “clicked” for you about fashion or dressing or make-up or hair? What? Why did it happen then, do you think?
I felt the urge to be different, to be the black sheep.
5. What are some shopping rules you wouldn’t necessarily recommend to others but which you follow?
I love online shopping when tipsy. I shop for my ideal size rather than my current size.
6. What are some rules about dressing you follow, but you wouldn't necessarily recommend to others?
I don't care about looking respectable.
7. What is the most transformative conversation you have ever had on the subject of fashion or style?
It was the one I had with myself while I was decluttering my wardrobe. I definitely figured out that I had a distinct style from the consistency and composition of my unworn clothes.
8. Do you have a unified way of approaching your life, work, relationships, finances, chores, etc.? Please explain.
No way.
9. Are there any clothing (or related) items that you have in multiple? Why do you think you keep buying this thing?
Patterned dresses. Because dresses make an outfit and patterns are endless.
10. Have you ever successfully given someone a present of jewelry or clothing that you continue to feel good about?
Yes.
11. Is there any fashion trend you’ve refused to participate in and why?
The 80s trend. Because I've already been through it once, with regret.
12. Can you say a bit about how your mother’s body and style has been passed down to you, or not?
Her clothes and body are my utopia. She was a catwalk model at the end of 50s the best time in fashion.
13. Have you stolen, borrowed or adapted any dressing ideas or actual items from friends or family?
Only during high-school and college. Regretted it deeply.
14. Was there a point in your life when your style changed dramatically? What happened?
I realized I hated the way most people dressed. They wanted to be like each other. I did not.
15. Is there anything political about the way you dress?
I leave most of my body uncovered in a Muslim country.
16. Please describe your body.
Hourglass with a bigger belly.
17. Please describe your mind.
Hourglass, having a hole on both sides.
18. Please describe your emotions.
Hourglass with a hole on top, the sand flowing uncontrollably.
19. What are you wearing on your body and face, and how is your hair done, right at this moment?
I wearing a red sleep dress with holes which was given to me as a gift by my then 7 year old daughter seven years ago, with holes on it. Today she said, mom I think it is time for you to get rid of it. Some eyeliner, blush and red lipstick from the day.
20. In what way is this stuff important, if at all?
Very important. It is the way I present myself to the outside world. It is the way I curate what I put my body in.
21. With whom do you talk about clothes?
My husband, my daughter.
22. How do institutions affect the way you dress?
I buy from only one online shop. I am totally committed.
23. Do you think you have taste or style? Which one is more important? What do these words mean to you?
I would like to think I have both. Taste is more important because a style can be tasteless but someone with taste will always have a good style.
24. Do you remember the biggest waste of money you ever made on an item of clothing?
I would prefer not to think about it.
25. Are there any dressing tricks you’ve invented or learned that make you feel like you’re getting away with something?
Cheap stuff can look just as good as the expensive clothes.
26. Do you have style in any areas of your life aside from fashion?
Of course. My home, the books I read, the movies I watch... Everything.
27. Can you recall some times when you have dressed a particular way to calm yourself or gain a sense of control over a situation that scared you?
Many. Recently it took me half an hour to find an outfit for a job interview. I was late in the end but confident. I got the job.
28. Would you say you “know what you like” in the area of fashion and clothing? If so, do you also know what you like in other areas of life, that is, are you generally good at discernment? Can you say where your discernment comes from, if you have it? Or if you don’t have it, why or why not?
It comes from a definitive taste. Elimination is everything.
31. Many people say they want to feel “comfortable,” or that they admire people who seem “confident.” What do these words really mean to you?
"Comfortable" usually means ugly. Confidence usually comes with being well groomed and in good quality, clean clothes that are not necessarily comfortable.
34. What do you consider very ugly?
Sportswear.
What’s your birth date? Where were you born and where do you live now?
April 1969, Istanbul. I still live there.
What kind of work do you do?
Author, editor.
Are you single, married, do you have kids, etc.?
Married with a daughter.
Please say anything you like about yourself that might put this survey into some sort of context.
I am positive that I am quite singular among the participants in most aspects from the way I dress to my surroundings.
How do you feel after filling out this survey?
Bored.
Bio
I am a writer in Istanbul who published her first novel in 2017, struggling to finish her second novel and also getting ready to be the editor of a new line of an established publishing house.