Global Trend Report 2009 - New York & Los Angeles

BOYS

On guys, we’re seeing a bit of a rockabilly revival. Is the never-ending Morrissey obsession to blame for this? Three out of five guys you see on the streets are sporting pompadours. Straight guys, gay guys, black guys, and even guys with Jewfros are trying to work this look. Unfortunately for them, there is nothing nastier than a curly lopsided pomp dripping hair crap all over the place. One trend that is working for all men these days is straight-leg jeans. Miraculously, ass-tight-jean sales have plummeted (most likely due to the ridiculous price tags), and men are allowing their privates to breathe once more.

Plaid button-downs, big sweaters, leather jackets, and tote bags are still a major fashion staple in ’09, but pair these oldies with some motorcycle boots or vintage Justin shoes and you’ve got yourself a young Mickey Rourke (think Motorcycle Boy in

Rumble Fish

). Extra hot points if you’re also half-Japanese.

GIRLS

Ladies have completely shocked us by dressing as slutty as they possibly can. Prudes are out, slags are in. If Kelly Bundy and early-90s Axl Rose boned and had a daughter she would look like every girl below 14th Street. She’d have long beautiful hair with half of her head shaved. Her closet would consist of several American Apparel spandex dresses (which she probably stole while working there), ripped jeans, shredded or mesh tank tops, tights with too many questionable holes, and endless denim vests and jackets in every wash imaginable. This girl would also own a few pairs of Doc Martens (black patent leather or floral), stripper heels, and maybe—just maybe—a pair of creepers. While English punk is cool or whatever, we’re really hoping this Herman Munster shoe fad doesn’t carry on for too long. Those monstrosities can make the cutest girl look like she’s a trombone player in a ska band. Gross.

NY BOY (Jesse): Acne jacket, Ralph Lauren shirt, Levi’s jeans, The Sock Man socks, vintage shoes from What Comes Around Goes Around. NY GIRL (Zoe): Vintage dress from Screaming Mimi’s, Tommy Hilfiger vest, leather cuff and tights from Trash & Vaudeville, Harley Davidson boots.

BOYS

The LA male’s fashion taste is all over the place, but when we zero in on a few staples that are as consistent today as they have been in years past—for example, “Long, Greasy Hair and Denim” and “WASPish White-Pant-Wearing Wannabe,”—and meld them together, an image of one of our current styles begins to take shape: “Christlike Prep School Figure.” You see him all haggard and unwashed, stringy hair and thick, patchy beard, and he appears to be, from the neck up, your garden-variety hippie. But this character is definitely no “flower child.” You’ll never catch the Christlike Prep wearing a hemp poncho or sporting sandals. His wardrobe invariably consists of Double RL and APC—buttoned-down oxfords, sleeves rolled up, and white Sperry loafers sans socks. He is, on the surface at least, fresh and clean, even if he hasn’t changed boxers in two and a half weeks.

GIRLS

We’ve always had a kind of a thing for deeply troubled, mentally shattered girls, especially when they look so depressed and drenched in melancholy that they take on that special ghostlike appearance of Susan Atkins. We’re suckers for a young Susan Atkins—who isn’t? Luckily, LA is a place where the pale-skinned-with-long-dark-hair-parted-in-the-middle junkie-sociopath look never really goes out of style. Maybe because it’s so simple: a pair of tight dark slacks and a white v-neck, an ill-fitting sundress—bingo! The only accessory required for this is clearly projecting that you just need a little more junk to straighten you out.

LA BOY (Alex): RRL shirt, vintage t-shirt from What Comes Around Goes Around, Calvin Klein jeans, Opening Ceremony shoes. LA GIRL (Z): Dunderdon dress, The Sock Man socks, Topshop shoes. Styling, photos, and NY text: Annette Lamothe-Ramos. LA text: Mark Schoenecker. Hair: Shane Tison