Gold Fever

Style magazines always say that if you’re going to try the cowboy/Navajo trend you should only use a couple of pieces, so you don’t end up looking like you’re wearing a Halloween costume. If you share this belief, I strongly encourage you to stop reading right here… unless you want to have a stroke (LOL).

But, come on – you already know me! First of all, I never use the word trends – I prefer to call them themes, and the cowboy theme is one of my all-time favourites (this is kind of turning into a cowboy-themed blog already LOL). And second: I must have said this like a thousand times already, but for me fashion is about commitment. If I’m wearing a cowboy-themed outfit, I don’t mind looking like I’ve just run away from a Cyrus family reunion (LOL), as long as the look’s integrity is preserved ^^

So, no more excuses!

I started this outfit with my beige fringed T-shirt from Bershka (there’s a chance you might remember it from one of my shopping posts). I didn’t have that much time to plan this outfit, so my initial idea was to create an adaptation of my winter cowboy outfit. I wanted to combine the T-shirt with a pair of white jeans, my classic cowboy hat (in case you’re wondering: yes – I sleep with it on LOL) and a couple of cool necklaces, very much like I did in winter.

It surprises me when I realize how I’ve grown to love off-the-shoulder T-shirts in the last couple of years. I didn’t really have anything against them before, but you know my dress code is quite UAE-friendly, when it comes down to my skin-showing policy (LOL), so I just didn’t like the idea very much. It’s not that I hate my body or anything like that, but I just believe that clothes were invented for a reason.

However, when Bill Kaulitz (who else could it be?) started wearing off-the-shoulder T-shirts and sweaters in late 2010 (that brief period before he fully embraced the homeless/trucker aesthetic in 2011 LOL) he made me change my mind in some aspects (he has the ability to do that every once in a while). One more time, I said to myself: “If he can do it, maybe I can do it too!”

…and the truth is I can! :D

The mix looked quite cool. However, I wasn’t that convinced about the white jeans. I felt like they clashed with the T-shirt too much. I decided to replace them for something in the brown/beige/earth colour range… and, of course, my brand new golden jeans were the first thing that came to my mind.

[I think you can consider you are obsessed with a piece of clothing from the moment you’ve used it twice in a row].

Once I was satisfied with the clothes, I went on with the task of picking the accessories, which basically consisted in putting on every necklace I found around the house (LOL). I’m especially happy about having found a use for my vintage wooden cross from Montserrat. It looks so cool in the context of this outfit (well – it always looks cool LOL)! I was positively surprised.

I also added a wooden bracelet to the mix, and I finished the look with my olive trainers (they were exactly the same colour as my nail polish!).

I was extremely happy with my cowboy overload! As I usually do, I grabbed a denim jacket in case it got cold at some point of the day, but I didn’t really get to use it.

The funny thing is there actually is something in this look that makes me think of Miley Cirus (LOL). I’m not a fan of Miley (or her choices in fashion), but I couldn’t help thinking about her and her dreamcatcher tattoo while I was putting this look together. There’s something very L.A. in the way the tribal jewellery interacts with the cowboy elements. I’m not a fan of L.A. either, but when summer comes to Spain, everything starts to feel a lot like California (LOL), so I’m not surprised all these images keep coming to my mind.

 

[Some of these pictures were actually taken in Barcelona, but I’m not telling you which LOL]

Oh, and guess what album I bought that day…

The music doesn’t have a lot to do with California (aside from the fact that some of it was recorded there), but the cover (an iconic photo by Anton Corbjin – who else? LOL) matches my agave plants perfectly :D

Now, the only question is: will I be able to put up an outfit without using my golden jeans and/or some of my cowboy hats any time in the near future? We’ll see…

T-shirt: Bershka

Jeans: MNG

Trainers: Alma en Pena

Cowboy hat: unknown

Necklaces: unknwon/CCC

Wooden cross: souvenir from Montserrat

Bracelet: unknown

Denim jacket: Bershka

A Cowboy In The Court Of Louis XIV

OK, I have to admit I got a little Personal-Jesus-ed after my last shopping post.

When I got on the task of creating a new outfit, cowboys were all I had in my mind. However, I didn’t want this to be just another classical cowboy look. I had my purple cowboy hat and my purple velvet trousers and I asked myself: “What can I do to turn this into something different?”

Once again, the answer came through Depeche Mode.

It’s funny, because they really seem to share my curious fetishist love for catholic aesthetics, or at least they did in the Songs Of Faith And Devotion era. I purchased that album quite recently and was instantly killed by the pictures in the booklet. Good Lord!

It was probably that what lead me to review my beautiful rosary collection (I have around thirty different pieces in it! LOL) in search of a couple that could fit in with the look I was planning. I chose them using the colours of the hat as a reference: black, purple and white. In fact, that combination of colours determined the palette of the whole outfit as well.

I didn’t have any black in my pick of rosaries, so instead I got it in my shirt. My first idea was to use one of my black cowboy shirts, but it seemed a bit too predictable. Instead, I decided to take a risk and add some royalty to the look with a frilled shirt.

I was very satisfied with the result.

I picked the blazer by process of elimination: it was the only one that had something purple on it (LOL). That blazer is a super cool vintage piece I purchased at Humana. I like calling it Jimmy Page jacket because it strongly reminds me of the ultra-flashy suits he used to wear in the 1970s. Remember that gorgeous dragon suit?

The boots were quite an easy choice: I only have two pairs of cowboy boots, and only one of them is black. I wasn’t sure about how (fake) leather would match an outfit based on velvet, but I just said to myself: “if you never take any risks, where’s the fun?” And the funny part is that these don’t only look like biker/cowboy boots, but they also have a certain something that reminds me of musketeers’ boots.

Of course, the star accessory in this outfit is my black velvet belt with tassels. I introduced it in my previous post, so the fact that I’ve found a use for it so quickly (with me, this is as quick as it gets – LOL) makes me kind of proud. I wanted something that was western and baroque at the same time and that’s exactly what I got ^^

The way I see it, the character in this outfit is quite a bizarre cross between a cowboy, a musketeer and a mariachi. It might sound strange, but it works – it all started back in Europe, right? ;) I just recombined the pieces at my will ^^

In case you are wondering, I have to say that hat was meant as a Carnival accessory. I bought it just for fun at first, but you know how these things go… (LOL). And if anyone ever tells you that a purple zebra print cowboy hat is not suitable for street wear, you know they are a liar (yep – that was a quote from L.A. Woman :P).

By the way, this is what I wore for Christmas dinner. I’m not a big fan of family reunions, so wearing something really fancy always makes me feel better. It’s a bit of a statement – something like: “I am here doing what I have to, but I play by my own rules.”

…which reminds me there’s still something I haven’t said to you:

Happy New Year! ^^

Shirt: MNG

Trousers: MNG

Boots: In Extenso

Blazer: Sita Murt (purchased at Humana)

Hat: unknown (purchased at Carrefour)

Belt: MNG

Shopping #3: Cowboys & Tweed

From left to right:

Tweed jacket. No, it’s not Chanel (LOL) – just the good old Mango. It might look a little traditional when pictured on its own, but you can bet it won’t look like that on me (:P). I love tweed, and, even though it’s not very present in my wardrobe, there’s always room in my Outfit Gallery for some late-80’s glamour.

Velvet belt with tassels. This one comes from Mango as well. Remember the blue tassels I got for Halloween? Well, a few days ago I saw a Japanese gothic lolita wearing this:

Looks like tassels are the next big trend in Japan (LOL), so I’ll keep this new belt close… just in case.

Fringed T-shirt. It seems like the design in Bershka has slightly improved during the last season. This is the second T-shirt I get from there in the last months, and you can believe me when I say that’s A LOT for me. I’ve always had something with cowboy fashion, but it was Depeche Mode’s video for Personal Jesus what definitively ignited my love for anything that has something to do with cowboy hats and fringe. How could I resist? (LOL)

Fringed leather belt. Yet more Mango! It looks like fringe is the theme of the day (LOL). I still find it hard to believe that these two pieces don’t belong to the same collection, but that’s the kind of funny coincidences that put that special thrill in shopping – and in life. The cowboy hat isn’t new, but it just looked cool with the rest.

Wow… I guess I’m ready to reach out and touch faith ;)

In Chains (acoustic cover)

OK, it's time for some promo!

As you already know, I'm a musician, and, as such, I do make music sometimes ;)

I can't show you any of my own songs yet because I'm still producing the demo, but in the meantime, you can listen to some live acoustic covers at my SoundCloud page.

So, don't be lazy and check it out! It's free! (LOL)