ELECTRIC YOUTH

RYGGRAD

2011-04-20T00:02:00.000-07:00

Holy crap. To say that I have been busy would be a massive understatement... For those of you who don't know already, in October I partnered with a girl from Stockholm to create our love child fashion label, RYGGRAD. Trying to juggle my position at the magazine as well as this new line has taught me a whole new level of multi-tasking and patience among many other things. I can't wait to reveal everything to you guys but for now I have to keep things a little on the "low". Check below for a little background info about RYGGRAD and a sneak peek at our Fall 2011 Look Book!

RYGGRAD: (n) "derived from the Swedish word meaning spine; spinal cord; backbone; to have backbone."

"RYGGRAD stands for the fearless instinct embedded in all of us, the one too many people often forget to listen to. If you strip away everything that defines who we are, we are left with just two things, our instinct and our backbone. RYGGRAD stands for that moment in your life where you realize if you want to have it all, you have to be willing to risk it all."

these photos are not to be copied or distributed with out proper citing and credit to RYGGRAD INC. and www.myelectricyouth.com

Head to www.ryggradfashion.com for more images from behind the scenes, editorial spreads we love and a first look of our collection!

AND... make sure to follow us on TWITTER and FACEBOOK for instant updates!

i want to live between the sunset and the sea.

2011-04-05T22:45:00.000-07:00

images via googleimages, sosillyboy.tumblr, hardtoexplain.blogspot

outfit crush: Shu Pei

2011-03-24T01:32:00.000-07:00

Ok I would give my left arm for that Burberry gorgeously crafted butterscotch leather jacket and I would give my right arm for those Prada brogues... She rocks my socks.

arizona muse and ysl

2011-03-20T11:45:00.000-07:00

Holy mother of campaign videos. I have watched this approximately six times since I discovered it and each time it gets better... don't take my word for it, find out for yourself below:

sunday swag.

2011-03-19T18:46:00.000-07:00

This outfit is a little weird but I think it would look pretty rad for a casual Sunday sippin lattes in Venice. Can you dig it?

images via netaporter.com and mytheresa.com

peter phillips: metallic magic.

2011-03-18T15:15:00.000-07:00

Believe you me, metallic nails, eyes and yes, even lips are going to explode for AW 2011-2012. I don't know about you, but I will be sporting a heavy silver lid the second temperatures drop and fall creeps its way in.

the wrist game.

2011-03-18T00:11:00.000-07:00

Let me first confess something to you... If fashion was a religion, I would convert... and my deity of choice would definitely be Tommy Ton. (For those of you who are reading this and don't know who TT is... you should probably check yourself before I wreck yourself.) Anyways, TT is so fuggin talented and I recently read an article about how he got started and it made me feel like high-fiving him right through my computer screen. He has the ability to see fashion the way very few are capable of; he looks beyond the styling and past the complete outfit, honing in on the smallest, most intricate details. These details are sometimes so minute that even the girl donning them might not even realize the apocalyptic decision she made when dressing that morning. These little intricacies and subtle accents are what make fashion so fascinating. With your body as a blank canvas, the opportunities, mixtures and styling concoctions one can conjure up are ENDLESS.

With photo cred to none other than TT (and Nam of STREETFSN... he is also amazing FYI) Here are few detail shots which truthfully give me an itch to decorate my wrist like an evergreen in December. I really love the mix of brights and neons with grungier metals, so unexpected but complimentary at the same time. BUT, I want to know...how do YOU feel about this new trend? Are piling on colorful bracelets strictly for the "Summer Camp Counselor"?... or is this a cool and chic new way to splash youthfulness in your wardrobe?

images via jakandjil & streetfsn

the return of calvin.

2011-03-15T21:46:00.000-07:00

These three girls steal my heart every damn time. I met Ruby when she was about 16 years old... I hired her for a fashion preview for Louis Vuitton here in Los Angeles. I immediately knew she would be HUGE, her attitude is soooo cool and her look is sooo translatable... unreal to see how far she has come, well deserved success always tastes the best!

Side Note: I know I haven't posted in a while but, it is hard to talk about anything in light of what is happening in Japan. I would like for anyone who is reading this to keep perspective on their own lives, there is an entire nation bearing devastation far greater than any bad day you might be having. PLEASE, text REDCROSS to 90999 to donate and continue to keep Japan in your prayers, they need everyone, everywhere to do everything possible. <3

an outfit for an ipad.

2011-03-08T21:22:00.000-08:00

Not gunna lie, I am a total closet tech geek. I am strangely intrigued by computers, programming and technological devices so I guess this outfit was inspired by my inner dweeb and of course, THE NEW IPAD which I am hoping appears in my mailbox very, very soon. (hint hint)

sweater: topshop, shorts: topshop, sandals: acne, clutch: phillip lim, sunnies: the row, backpack: alexander wang, ipad deux via apple.com.

anna dello russo twirling about.

2011-03-03T13:24:00.000-08:00

although most of us would like to think that street style photos are captured with natural, swift perfection. There is a little more to it than that as the infamous Anna demonstrates below.

video via elinkling blog

so fresh and so calvin clean clean.

2011-03-02T21:00:00.000-08:00

I am vibing the shizzle out of Calvin Klein circa 1990s right now and I can't help but ~~feel~~ hope there is going to be a second coming of that CK cool. (Especially with all these new ads popping up which display some of fashion's most recognizable faces in an attempt to reignite the love for the brand's signature fragrance.) AND, as you can probablyyyyyyyy see from my last, ever so galactic post....I am also vibing the shizzle outta space cadet chic.... So, my only request to the fashion gods is that this futurist style + CK cool make a love child with the feel and attitude depicted in the pics below. Eatchaa heart out.

google images, stoleninspiration, tumblr, fashiongonerogue

the other side of the moon.

2011-02-27T01:21:00.000-08:00

inspiration images via fashiongonerogue,google images

clothing images via netaporter, asos, topshop

the queen of porno chic.

2011-02-23T23:51:00.000-08:00

"It’s difficult as the editor of a magazine to be totally yourself because you’re a bit frightened. Now I think I go back where I was ten years ago, so I get younger, which is always good. Younger with dreams and younger with energy. Younger with risk, because now it will be my own risk; it won’t be Vogue’s risk. Always I will be a risky woman. I will keep this legend."

-Carine Roitfeld

If you have a quicky I would highly recommend checking out this article by Dirk Standen for style.com. He really gets into the heart and soul of Carine and why she left Vogue even touching on her many tiffs over the past few years including ones with Emmanuelle Alt and Nicolas Ghesquière. Oh, and her casual lunches with Riccardo Tisci and Karl Lagerfeld (no big deal). click HERE for more words from the queen of porno chic.

if you don't love yourself.

2011-02-22T12:19:00.000-08:00

Far too often I watch girls ~~step~~ leap from one relationship into the arms of yet another relationship with out even a moment's hesitation in between. The U-haul collects their belongings from one man's apartment and delivers them to the next future ex-boyfriend's. Although this may (rarely) be just a coincidence that you "met him while things were going badly with your current boyfriend", I highly doubt it. My guess is that as soon as things started to fall apart with your current man, you flung yourself at the nearest "nice guy" with hopes that he would snatch up the pieces to your broken heart before you ever felt the impact.

Although I am not against people in relationships, as I have been in quite a few myself, I am wondering this... What is so scary about being alone? I find that it is literally crucial in the development of self to sometimes be... well, alone. I get it, the definition in itself is frightening with words such as isolated and apart from others but, I am by no means encouraging you to lock yourself in solitary confinement post-breakup just to get to know yourself because chances are, you will end up with schizophrenia. However, I am indeed encouraging women of the world to take a breather, shed the desperation and try on that single girl swagger.

Being single does not make you pathetic, lonely, unwanted or ugly. Being single makes you a girl who knows what she wants and wont settle for anything less. Being single means loving yourself and being confident enough in yourself to not lower your standards for the first guy who shows you attention just because you only feel a sense of self-worth when in a relationship. Take time to get to know who you are as an individual and I can guarantee you will like who you are as a partner that much more because no one is going to love you if you don't love yourself.

disclaimer: Love is an amazing, life changing thing and if you find it, hold on to it dearly but if you lose it, don't go searching for it... find it within yourself first and love will find you again.

tickle my fancy.

2011-02-19T18:50:00.000-08:00

images via jaknjil, oraclefox, googleimage, gustavklimt, banksy, etc-alltherest.blogspot.com, thekooples.com/blog

video steals the fashion scene with Rodarte + Elle Fanning

2011-02-08T13:01:00.000-08:00

Elle Fanning: Rodarte's Muse on Nowness.com.

ready, set, co.

2011-02-04T19:02:00.000-08:00

There is, quite literally, nothing that gets me more jazzed than when fashion and film come crashing together in a jizzfest of cashmere and cue-cards. Stephanie Danan and Justin Kern took a leap out of entertainment and into fashion with their new line "Co" set to debut at New York fashion week this Feb.

From knitted furs to silk staples this collection makes even the plainest Jane look tres chic. Check out their TDF(to die for) film below directed by the cinematic genius Daryl Wein and starting french femme Elodie Bouchez. Eat your heart out.

video via style.com

butterflies and shutterbugs

2011-02-03T22:12:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, I can't explain it... things just inspire me. Like when you get butterflies in your stomach; you have no logical explanation why it's happening but there you are, face to face with a man you've known for 30 seconds and you feel like you're going to vomit and cartwheel at the exact same moment. Well, for me, this kind of internal sensation is exactly the feeling I get when I see something like a photograph or a garment that just feels right. It is inexplainable, undefinable and down right fantastic. Some call it intuition, I call it being good at my job. (Plus, I use my hyper-intuitive vibes as a weapon against humanity not fashion.) Well my friends, here are some photos that are currently possessing that unattainable, sensational IT-ness and needless to say, inspiration to moi.

images via knighttcat,viktorvautier, tfs, google images

clean slate

2011-02-01T01:03:00.000-08:00

I hate the color pink. It reminds me of everything about my fellow femmes that I quite literally despise. I am not girly and I can't even pretend to be. HOWEVER, blush is not "pink" in my book and I totally dig these sandy shades for spring so, heres my idea of how to be feminine with out looking like a pansy.

ring: dior, shoes: lanvin, bra: la perla, sunnies: illesteva, bag: mulberry, top: miu miu, shorts: rag&bone

fashion sense + two cents.

2011-01-30T14:11:00.000-08:00

Time flies when you're having ~~fun~~ a life.

14 months later and here I am, ready to write again. I wish I had a better excuse for my extensive hiatus but I really only have my job, my unrelenting itch to travel and a few male distractions to blame... (We will get to that later).

So why am I getting back on the blogging horse? One reason: my mentor, of sorts, has encouraged me to "be heard" with a blog of "fashion and fuck yous", as she so eloquently put it. The thing is, I am not afraid to say what you are thinking. I ~~love~~ die for fashion and although there are more fashion blogs than one cares to acknowledge, there aren't enough blogs that say something or anything for that matter. Fashion is so much more than the clothes we wear and there is something to be said about that.

So, join me as I talk about high heels and heart breaks because my fashion finds and life mistakes are now your personal entertainment. Feel free to email me (myelectricyouth@gmail.com) if you want my personal opinion, advise on fashion or even where to buy the best pizza in Los Angeles (Village Pizza, for the record.) I don't know everything about anything but I do know something about a lot and I am at your service.

L

the paradox

2009-10-11T19:31:00.000-07:00

As this marathon month of fashion comes to a crawling stop, the models retreat to their home base, the streets from New York all the way to Milan swallow fashionista, returning back to their brisk and routine selves, cafés along the Avenue des Champs-Élysées become less crowded and only the vague musk of Chanel No. 5 remains lingering in the air. And although it is universally accepted that the fashion industry NEVER sleeps, at this very moment, this winding down of the most anticipated month of the year, designers, editors, stylists, and even Karl Lagerfeld, takes one giant deep breath. In that moment of universal clarity, it gives the rest of us a second to catch up, blog our asses off, and get ready for whats ahead.

Per usual, I spend the entire month of September tearing pages, printing looks, gawking at blogs, and virtually submerging myself into a land that consists of a lot of fashion, a lot more coffee, and absolute solidarity. I watch style.com shows on repeat, analyzing each look, trend, theme, idea that hits that runway with the hope that I will have one of those "ah-ha!" moments and find myself speaking the language of the designers themselves. Silhouettes from Vuitton, shoes from Galliano, shoulders from Balmain, and essence from Chanel make my heart actually stop beating momentarily. And as I too, take the post-September breath, I am left with one question, one idea that I just can't seem to get out of my head. Year after year we see variation in style whether it be grandiose or minute but there has to be one thing that never changes in a women's wardrobe. And no, it is not the little black dress because in my opinion the new Hervé Léger is making that LDB look pretty damn boring. And then it hits me, that "ah-ha!" moment I was hoping to find on the runway, I found in a place much more unexpected. Recently, I have been wearing something that I didn't find hanging in my closet, but rather something that has been ignited inside me, causing a radiance that even the best bronzer in the world can't provide. This feeling, radiance, and sheer bliss that even Stella, Marc, Karl, and Emilio at their best can't harvest with in my heart. And voila!... yes, ladies and gentlemen, here it is: the one thing that will ALWAYS look good on a woman is love. And when love and fashion come together, you better believe the results are extraordinary. So thank you, to a particular person who has made me realize that even the best dressed woman in the world can look that much better if she is drenched in love. Here are a few photos that are the ultimate paradox, delicately beautiful and brutally inspirational.