Get your style advice from the emoji underground with these daring clothing relics that poke fun at trad fashion
Taken from the autumm/Winter 2014 issue of Dazed:
Gareth Wrighton wants us to “buy it. live it. luv it.” The London-based Central Saint Martins student’s online shop and editorial platform ebaE is twisting what we know about global e-commerce while stroking our eyeballs with sharpened Emoji fingernails. ebaE looks like an abandoned shopping mall in middle America that’s been taken over by kids on bath salts. In Wrighton’s world, branded consumer relics are given love and attention, transforming them into important clothes with memories in someone else’s wardrobe. ebaE is about youth, fast fashion, and how our clothes are defined by digital communication.
Hey Bae, DIY
“ebaE is really saying, ‘Do it yourself’ because young designers and fashion communicators don’t have to follow the conventional route of getting picked up by a high-profile store anymore. It’s so exciting because a lot of young designers just need an online shop and an editorial platform to get their clothes out there on their own terms! They’re not at the mercy of advertisers or even seasons.”
Bae’s Burn Book
“What’s under my skin right now? Men’s rights activists who couldn’t understand their privilege if their life depended on it; Those special butterfly teenagers who think because they love drinking tea and reading books that they’re the fucking shit; and people who use ‘ghetto’ and ‘ratchet’ as buzz words. People are like, ‘It’s so 90s!’ about stuff that happened in the 80s or the 00s. The 90s are stressing me out, though. It’s like, Clueless, we get it, what else?”
2 fetch 4 school
“The nipple shirt sold on ebaE was born out of the legendary trendsetting status of Regina George from Mean Girls. I like that message because, at a time when Janis is trying to destroy Regina, she just owns it and inadvertently starts a school-wide trend. Let’s just all dress like Regina George.”
“buy it. live it. luv it.” – Gareth Wrighton
Calvin Klein waistband
“Inspired by the #mycalvins tag, and the general ubiquitous nature of designer pants, wearing a Calvin Klein elastic belt over your clothes proudly boasts where you buy your intimates, and confidently states, ‘I am’.”
Hawaiian shirt
“Customise loose Hawaiian shirts with your own photos and patches from your vacay. Show off your wearable holiday scrapbook as you become one with your souvenirs.”
Sandals
“Step straight off the beach and into the club with the flip flop platform heel. Also offers extra distance between the wearer and that suspect floor in the pool locker room.”
Ankle-support socks
“Neoprene ankle-support socks fit snugly over pumps, helping to relieve foot pain as you cause it. Team them with other joint supports to create a striking look suitable for long-haul flights.”
Emoji hats
“Our Emoji hat represents that it is one size fits all, everyone gets how passive *nail polish Emoji* is. I also can’t help but think of it as being like the Mockingjay salute from The Hunger Games.”
Concept, photography and styling Gareth Wrighton, Madeline Griggs and Ib Kamara