Alexa Chung really seems to have it all going for her. She’s a television personality, a model, has a Mulberry bag named after her, and in 2013, became the author of “It”, a novel filled with her writings, doodles, and style inspirations.
Chung, who is only 30 years old, seems to secure a place for herself on best dressed lists time and time again. This year, she has once again managed to score the British Fashion Award for the third year running.
However, what sets Alexa Chung apart from the rest of the fashion pack is not her young age, or even her uncanny ability to create a look that is referential, yet uniquely her own. What makes her so different from other so-called fashion “icons” is the way her personality seems to shine through any and every look that she puts together.
It’s this very keen sense of style identity that has contributed to Chung’s massive influence over what we see trending in fashion – both on city streets and online. In fact, she has started some very specific trends in fashion, all by just being herself and being inspired by the things that she holds dear. Below are a few of the things that reportedly inspire Alexa Chung style.
Jane Birkin
Chung has often talked publicly about how her personal style is equal to “ripping off Jane Birkin”. In a recent interview with Grazia magazine, she expanded on that topic, and expressed her infinite gratitude to British chanteuse Birkin “for providing her with infinite outfit ideas and the confidence to dress like a boy but act like a girl.”
Although there is certainly no possibility of Chung being mistaken for a boy any time soon, there is a tomboyish twist to her personal style that has resonated throughout the fashion world. Like Birkin, Chung favors simple pieces and a slightly boyish silhouette; flat loafers, slightly oversized jackets and cardigans, and simple pull-over knitwear all feature heavily in her wardrobe.
For Chung, this simplicity is the very foundation of her staple wardrobe. As she told Grazia, “a navy blue jumper is potentially the most boring item anyone could design, and yet it’s my most important possession.”
Wednesday Adams
Admittedly, this one might seem a little bit weird. Depending on what year you were born, you may not even have a clue as to whom or what Wednesday Adams even is.
Generational pop culture references aside, most of those who follow fashion will be able to remember the cult hit the Adams Family, and the rather gothic, morose little girl (played by Christina Ricci in the 1991 movie) who wore nothing but sober black shifts with Peter Pan collars made.
Even if you can’t recall the character, Alexa Chung will soon enough make you remember it. Alexa would have been just 8 years old when that movie came out, and she remembers it all, citing Wednesday Adams as the first person she ever saw to wear a Peter Pan collar.
When asked about her most influential style icon by Grazia, Chung gleefully cited Wednesday Adams with her “pigtails and gothic pale skin” as being her favorite style icon
But what is perhaps even more impressive about Chung’s Peter Pan collar obsession, is that she has managed to convince us that we should be wearing them too. Not long after Chung started appearing on red carpets in her Peter Pan collars, high street retailers positively exploded with them, quickly making them into a covetable modern staple that can be found on dresses, knitwear, as stand-alone accessories, and everywhere in-between.
Equestrian chic
Alexa Chung is heavily influenced by the memories of the things she owned or wore as a child, and riding ponies featured quite heavily in her childhood. It seems a natural progression then, that her love of an equestrian-inspired silhouette remains one of the chief influences in the way that she puts herself together as an adult.
Skinny trousers paired with a Chelsea ankle boot and an oversized sweatshirt or jacket has become a bit of a uniform for Chung, and it’s one that once again, has resonated well with followers of fashion. Like her affinity for Peter Pan collars, her penchant for a Chelsea boot has also heavily influenced the proliferation of similar styles that can currently be found in most main street retailers.
Chung’s personal style is an interesting marriage of derivative style referencing and personal experience. While she most certainly has more than just the three aforementioned style influences, it’s easy to see how these three particular influences have worked their way into her sartorial game.
But that’s not where it ends with Chung. What is even more impressive, the thing that keeps her on the best dressed lists year after year, is that these influences now also seem to have worked their way into our sartorial games as well.
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