Signature style

I've been thinking for a long time now about signature style, be it a whole look or a signature piece. There are certain combinations that call to mind a specific person - a bob and dark sunglasses? That's Anna Wintour. Ponytail, suit and leather gloves? Kaiser Karl Lagerfeld. There are hundreds of other examples, but the bottom line is that these people have found a look that defines them, and for better or worse, stuck with it.

This is something I just can't do right now, though I've played with the notion before. The reason I can't do it is that I vacillate wildly between styles based on mood and season. Sometimes I want to be Very Serious And Wealthy Eurochic (often in the colder months), and then other times, like now, I'm leaning more towards cute, vaguely gyaru looks, as typified by Xiaxue, Cheesie and Jenny. And these two things are crazily incompatible as far as I can tell - sure, there will be various Euro collections that are cute (the Louis Vuitton-Murakami collaboration springs to mind) but by almost by definition, cute fashion is not French chic. The crossover is, I suppose, motte-kei style as seen in CanCam magazine, but it's not something I always feel like.

So basically, I haven't settled on a signature style for life. And that's OK - it just means I need clothes to indulge both styles. So that's what I'm working towards once I get back to shopping - clothes from both styles, with some pieces that can overlap the two, like a cute ruffled trenchcoat or similar.

I do feel that I should point out, though, that the other two lovelies who run this blog have particular styles that, to me, are very easy to see. Sometimes I'll be shopping and find something that I know Tris would love, and occasionally if I'm shopping with Ant, even he will point something out as "just like something Ish would buy". So maybe I do have a style that other people can categorize, but I can't? Perhaps it's an external thing. I hope if I do, that it's not too unflattering.

Now, off to YesStyle for some window shopping.