Read Surveys (By Author)
Loucile
1. When do you feel at your most attractive?
Wearing a dress, in the evening, with low lighting
2. Do you notice women on the street? If so, what sort of women do you tend to notice or admire?
Yes --> mostly androgynous looks and classy older ladies
3. What are some things you admire about how other women present themselves?
Their level of confidence
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?
Beginning of high school, I started accepting how I looked and stopped wanting to wear makeup that hid my imperfections
5. What are some shopping rules you wouldn’t necessarily recommend to others but which you follow?
I would always recommend not buying from fast fashion and other non-ethical brands, including luxury brands. I follow that rule. It's sometimes hard but always worth it.
6. What are some rules about dressing you follow, but you wouldn't necessarily recommend to others?
I follow some stupid rules about coordinating colors and shapes that I learnt as a child and that are maybe a bit outdated
7. What is the most transformative conversation you have ever had on the subject of fashion or style?
I don't talk about it a lot, but my friends often encourage me to be as bold as I feel like
8. Do you have a unified way of approaching your life, work, relationships, finances, chores, etc.? Please explain.
Yes, in the sense that I always listen to myself and what feels right. Cheesy but it has worked so far. I don't try to be someone I am not but still force myself to engage more with things I care about
9. Are there any clothing (or related) items that you have in multiple? Why do you think you keep buying this thing?
I have a black turtleneck and a green one. They are great and go with everything. I love turtlenecks.
10. Have you ever successfully given someone a present of jewelry or clothing that you continue to feel good about?
No, I don't gift jewelry/clothes
11. Is there any fashion trend you’ve refused to participate in and why?
The idea of the trend. If I don't like it, I don't participate. If the trend doesn't like it but I do, I wear it. Trends are a way to make us buy more, fuck that.
12. Can you say a bit about how your mother’s body and style has been passed down to you, or not?
I don't have my mother's slim figure, but I have her love of black and dark colours
13. Have you stolen, borrowed or adapted any dressing ideas or actual items from friends or family?
I steal whatever's left from my mother's 1980s incredible closet. We are not into fashion, but we are into beautiful, timeless pieces
14. Was there a point in your life when your style changed dramatically? What happened?
No, it evolved very organically
15. Is there anything political about the way you dress?
The personal is political
16. Please describe your body.
X shaped, slightly disproportionate
17. Please describe your mind.
Oddly organised, always wandering
18. Please describe your emotions.
In check
19. What are you wearing on your body and face, and how is your hair done, right at this moment?
Old jumper, leggings, hair down
20. In what way is this stuff important, if at all?
It is the way people see you and to a degree, how you see yourself. It matters, but it's not an end in itself
21. With whom do you talk about clothes?
Everyone, but not a lot
22. How do institutions affect the way you dress?
I am at war with fast fashion companies, so they do affect the way I dress.
23. Do you think you have taste or style? Which one is more important? What do these words mean to you?
I have a little sense of style, and more taste. I think?
24. Do you remember the biggest waste of money you ever made on an item of clothing?
My prom dress, but it was handmade by a struggling seamstress, so maybe it wasn't a waste
25. Are there any dressing tricks you’ve invented or learned that make you feel like you’re getting away with something?
French tuck
26. Do you have style in any areas of your life aside from fashion?
Perhaps
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?
Yes, every time I leave the house and have to meet people
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?
Yes
Yes
It comes from listening to my wishes and needs, but also other people. Overanalysing is my discernment
29. Did your parents teach you things about clothing, care for your clothing, dressing or style? What lessons do you remember? Or did you just pick things up?
Yes, to care for your possessions, and to have a timeless style
30. What sorts of things do you do, clothing or make-up or hair- wise, to feel sexy or alluring?
Curling my hair, wearing dresses and heels
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?
I'd like to be both, but I don't think I am
32. If dressing were the only thing you did, and you were considered an expert and asked to explain your style philosophy, what would you say?
Timeless, no synthetic fibers and only organic fabric, comfortable but classy?
33. What is really beautiful, for you, in general?
Confidence and balance
34. What do you consider very ugly?
Trends
35. Are you generally a good judge of whether what you buy will end up being worn? Have you figured out how to know in advance?
Yes, by spending a lot of time in the dressing room
36. When you look at yourself before going out, and you are trying to see yourself from the outside, can you describe a bit about what this “other person” is like? What do they like, dislike, what sorts of judgments do they have? Is this “outer eye” based on someone you know or once knew?
I look cold and distant, hard to get to know, awkward
37. What is your process getting dressed in the morning? What are you considering?
Weather, menstrual cycle, laundry, being comfortable and/or trying to impress someone
38. What are you trying to achieve when you dress?
Looking like myself, reflecting what I want people to see in me
39. What, for you, is the difference between dressing and dressing up?
Depends
40. If you had to wear a “uniform” what would it look like?
Turtleneck, skirt, my old low Doc Martens
41. What would you say is “you” and what would you say is “not you”?
Me --> dark colours, simple shapes
Not me --> trainers
42. What is your cultural background and how has that influenced how you dress?
French, I dress very French
43. Do you remember a time in your life when you dressed quite differently from how you do now? Can you describe it and what it was all about for you?
No
44. What sorts of things do you do, clothing, make-up or hair-wise, to feel professional?
Less bold than usual
45. How do you conform to or rebel against the dress expectations at your workplace?
I'm a student I am freeeee
46. Do you have a dress code, a school uniform, or a uniform that you wear for an extracurricular activity?
No
47. Are there ways in which you conform to or rebel against these uniforms?
/
48. Do you find it comforting or constraining to have a uniform?
Constraining
49. What is an archetypal outfit for you; one that you could have happily worn at any point in your life? What do you like about it?
Striped shirt, high waisted trousers.
Simple, slightly androgynous
50. Do you ever wish you were a man or could dress like a man or had a man’s body? Was there ever a time in the past?
I love men's clothes so yes
51. If there was one country or culture or era that you had to live in, fashion-wise, what would it be?
60s London
52. Do you consider yourself photogenic?
Not at all
53. When you see yourself in photographs, what do you think?
I want to destroy them
54. Are there any figures from culture, past or present, whose style you admire or have drawn from?
Françoise Hardy
55. Have you ever had a dream that involved clothes?
Going to school naked of course
56. What would be a difficult or uncomfortable look for you to try and achieve?
Sexy lingerie
57. If you were totally comfortable with your body, or your body was a bit closer to what you wish it was like, what would you wear?
Sexy lingerie
58. Is there anyone that you are trying to attract or repel when you dress?
No one in particular, or everyone
59. Are there any dressing rules you’d want to convey to other women?
Do whatever you fucking want, I don't care. Listen to yourself
60. What do you think of perfume? Do you wear it?
I wear organic, ethical perfume and have said goodbye to nice luxury brands that put the planet and its inhabitants in grave danger (too bad, because I loved them, they smelled nice)
61. What are some things you need to do to your body or clothes in order to feel presentable?
Wash them
62. How does makeup fit into all this for you?
When I wear makeup, it's mascara and sometimes lipstick. Nothing more, no more wanting to hide the circles under my eyes
63. Is there a certain look you feel you’re expected to like that you have absolutely no interest in? What is it? Why aren’t you interested?
Trainers, they're ugly. What the fuck do people like about them, they have become so out of shape
64. Can you describe in a basic way what you own, clothing and jewelry-wise?
Classic, minimal
65. What is your favorite piece of clothing or jewelry that you own?
My three band ring, I got it for my 18th birthday and wear it everyday
66. Tell us about something in your closet that you keep but never wear. What is it, why don’t you wear it, and why do you keep it?
Old socks almost falling apart. I am not throwing something away that I can still wear but I don't wear them so as not to break them
67. Looking back at all your purchases over the past five to fifteen years, can you generalize about what sorts of things were the most valuable to buy?
Coats, they last and cost more
68. Is there an item of clothing that you once owned, but no longer own, and still think about or wish you had back? What was it, what happened to it, and why do you want it back?
The panda trousers I wore as a baby
69. If you had to throw out all your clothes but keep one thing, what would you keep?
Underwear
70. Building up your wardrobe from nothing, what would you do differently this time?
No synthetic fibers, only organic stuff, but I've said that before
71. What’s the first “investment” item you bought? Do you still own or wear it?
My current coat. Yes
Also my swimsuit, it's made of recycled ocean plastic and costs a lot
72. Was there ever an important or paradigm-shifting purchase in your life?
That coat
73. What item of clothing are you still (or have you forever been) on the hunt for?
JEANS WITHOUT ELASTICS THAT FIT
Also vintage or organic. Impossible for my body shape
74. What are your closet and drawers like? Do you keep things neat, etc?
Somewhat organised
75. Were you ever given a present of clothing or jewelry that especially touched you?
Yes?
76. Did you ever buy an article of clothing without giving it much thought, only to have it prove much more valuable as time went on? What was the item and what happened?
No
77. How and when do you shop for clothes?
Rarely, when I need them
78. Do you like to smell a certain way?
Good
79. How does how you dress play into your ambitions for yourself?
I want people to see a certain side of me
80. How does money fit into all this?
I don't buy a lot but when I do it's an investment generally
81. Is there an article of clothing, a piece of make-up, or an accessory that you carry with you or wear every day?
My 2 rings, my (mother's) watch
Underwear + socks
82. Did anyone ever say anything to you that made you see yourself differently, on a physical and especially sartorial level?
My mother told me I had my grandmother's hips. It still hurts years later
83. Do you remember the first time you were conscious of what you were wearing? Can you describe this moment and what it was about?
Primary school, annoyed to wear my sister's old clothes
What’s your birth date? Where were you born and where do you live now?
3rd of June 1998 Brittany France
London
Say anything you like about your cultural/ethnic/economic background.
Timelessness
What kind of work do you do?
Student in Contemporary Literature
Are you single, married, do you have kids, etc.?
Single
Please say anything you like about yourself that might put this survey into some sort of context.
I like my short(ish) hair?
How do you feel after filling out this survey?
Interested to know what other people responded