Blogger Jane Aldridge For Urban Outfitters

[apertures]

i'm not really a fan of the blog but for those of you who are complaining about her lack of design skill and the fact that her inspiration is very obvious.... the shoes are branded with HER name, obviously for fans of her and her blog. isn't the point of this to make what she has accessible to the public? hence why she would recreate popular styles that she owns and her fans lust after?

 

[masquerade]

Congratulations to Jane, that's really a great opportunity. She's 17 though? How can she afford a sea of shoes at that age? Again, my fellow TFS-ers have me very envious.

typical spoiled rich girl who has access to mommy and daddy's money unchecked. sorry, i don't see anything admirable in her style. anyone could have a decent collection of shoes with that kind of money. its a bit obscene IMO but that is sorta a whole different topic.

as for the shoes, they are blatant ripoffs. I don't know how someone can sell ripoffs like that only to use the money they make from it to buy the real thing. Its sorta hypocritcal. If you won't wear a knockoff, why sell it.

 

[retailqueen]

so is she off limits? this forum micro-analyzes every single designer from Karl lagarfield to J Lo but we are supposed to to give her high-fives simply because she is a forum member?

umm no, sorry this isn't going to happen from me. she is not a shoe designer and her shoes do not interest me. She may have an interesting POV on style but should go to school 1st like most designers do cause so far it's been their done that for the collection.

 

[chaneladdict]

I totally agree with you masquerade!

 

[Meg]

I don't understand how criticizing her parents income has anything to do with it. Having money clearly doesn't mean you can build an interesting shoe collection (I don't even think I have to say Paris Hilton to get my point across). If anything, I think she's a great example that style is something you build, not something that money can buy. She has a lot of interesting pieces, and yes her mum buys them, or she wears her mum stuff. So? Is that a crime? Should she burn the money and run to wal-mart to prove her authenticity? I agree she's not Nicholas Kirkwood or a trained shoe designer. But no, not everyone who has access to money has style. Given her age, I find her quite bold and interesting. I enjoy her blog - she's not trying to tell us about every new designer or every trend. It's just documenting her inspiration, her buys, her style and if you like it - great- if not, that's okay too.

Of course her shoes are inspired by her own collection, but it's hardly different than anything else UO sells. They might have even asked her 'why don't you do a capsule collection of some of your favorite styles'. They might not have and she might have just copied. We don't know, but the fact that we don't know isn't license to assume the worst and criticize. I'd much rather she did a collaboration than Miley Cyrus whine on about how she is bringing high fashion to "Middle America" via a denim line for wal-mart.

 

[masquerade]

^I disagree. Her parents wealth has everything to do with it. Its a lot easier to look fashionable in Dries than it is in Walmart. Its a lot more admirable to me if someone has rocking style coming from nothing. Notice in her blog almost every purchase is a double of what her mom owns/buys. She doesn't have a unique wardrobe, she is aping her mom. Granted, her mom has great style (her outfits are much more focused than Janes), but that doesn't make someone stylish. Again, its a lot easier to be stylish when you are taught from a young age.

Of course we don't know the circumstances which this collection was made, but anyone reading her blog knows she does not shop at Urban Outfitters. She wears CDG and Anne D shoes which these are blatant knockoffs of.

But all this doesn't even matter. Even if she was the most original, stylish person in the world, the shoes are still cheap knockoffs.

 

[Florecita86]

typical spoiled rich girl who has access to mommy and daddy's money unchecked. sorry, i don't see anything admirable in her style. anyone could have a decent collection of shoes with that kind of money. its a bit obscene IMO but that is sorta a whole different topic.

as for the shoes, they are blatant ripoffs. I don't know how someone can sell ripoffs like that only to use the money they make from it to buy the real thing. Its sorta hypocritcal. If you won't wear a knockoff, why sell it.

I totally agree with you. It seems like just about anyone can be a designer these days

 

[thesiren]

i wish her mom had a line of something....

 

[Meg]

Well just because you have money doesn't mean you buy Dries. Again, I present you exhibit A - Paris Hilton. I mean, Dries is a 'fashion' brand. It's not 'oh look at me - I"m wearing Dries, I'm wearing CdG, Yohji, etc.' Her mother used to own a vintage fashion shop (prior to their online one) - of course she's going to be a huge influence on her daughters style. How is that a bad thing? I dress like her mom - her mom has awesome style. If I were in Jane's position I would totally raid her mother's closet. I agree that simply having great/beautiful/designer clothing doesn't translate into being a designer, and yes it is unfair that those with no official design training are approached to do these collections while great young designers suffer, but that is completely separate from attacking someone's style because they can afford to buy designer clothing as a teenager. And I have see Jane's purchases from Urban Outfitters, Salvation Army, Etsy, and general vintage so I think that point is false. Yes, being able to pull together great outfits solely from vintage finds/wal-mart/whatever can be more difficult than having access to designer clothing, but it doesn't provide you with more fashion merit. Those who have access to expensive clothing routinely display what poor taste they have in dressing themselves. What impresses me about Jane's style is her mix of designer, vintage, and unique clothing.

 

[FASHIONLOVA]

i agree with educo. i think all those who went to fashion school would too.
getting some blogger to do a shoe line is like telling those who went to school for yrs, well u were stupid enough to go to school when all u had to do is to have a blog. but oh well...

and her designs are poorly executed. i was expecting much better for someone who loves fashion so much.
i think she s just a mini version of her mom, who has the real style.
jane sometimes wears things not suited for a 16 yr old

 

[Zarina]

Money doesn't buy style, but it certainly helps a lot. You can still buy the quirky vintage items and the best from the highstreet shops, but you have also access to some true pieces of art and the best quality.

I think Jane has a great sense of style, but I still wonder if someone with the same sense of style but only owning second hand and highstreet would become so popular and get that job?

I am myself trained and working as a musician, and I am a bit fed up with the common opinion that in creative fields anybody can do as well as the profs, e.g. X-factor, Britain's Got Talent etc. No one would ask just somebody to do dental work

Jane's shoes for UO are clearly rip-offs, and I doubt if she would ever wear them herself. (Maybe she has to).

 

[leyla m.]

come over to monaco where literally everyone is born into money.. and see for yourself how style is a far idea from everyone's mond here..
you can count the stylish people on one hand.
and yes, they know their rick owens from their margiela and do buy nicholas kirkwood but STYLE? as sad as it is, not everyone who wears these pieces and can afford them has it.
in jane's case, her mum has tremendous style and if anything she must be her true inspiration but yeah whatever. i repeat myself, in todays age and given the position she is in (with her famous blog etc) she deserves it more than any nonsense celebrity who actually has NO CLUE about fashion but still gets to do a line for whoever



i still dont know why so many dont understand how she got to do this line and why it looks like some of the shoes she owns herself (prada et al).. it is just obvious, no?

MARKETING and this collection has its TARGET MARKET. if you don't like it or approve then you are obviously not the person they had in mind when coming up with this project

 

[luckyme]

^Its a lot easier to look fashionable in Dries than it is in Walmart. Its a lot more admirable to me if someone has rocking style coming from nothing.

bull, confident self image is what it's about, leave Dries out of this and places like Target/Walmart as well, all are treasures. Your lack of tact is abruptly misplaced and inappropriate here. you're misguided in lumping "looking fashionable" with 'style or flair" two different animals, the later has nothing to do with the coin in your pocket and most certainly does not depend on the admiration of others, including yourself. believe me, jane has got it, and would no matter what, you have to ask yourself, do i?

 

[masquerade]

bull, confident self image is what it's about, leave Dries out of this and places like Target/Walmart as well, all are treasures. Your lack of tact is abruptly misplaced and inappropriate here. you're misguided in lumping "looking fashionable" with 'style or flair" two different animals, the later has nothing to do with the coin in your pocket and most certainly does not depend on the admiration of others, including yourself. believe me, jane has got it, and would no matter what, you have to ask yourself, do i?

For rambling on about bull and tact, you sure did take two lines out of context from my post and harped on them. Its interesting that several people are commenting on the fact that I mentioned her money, but are ignoring that she is apeing her stylish mother. Although, I guess that is what you mean by the "admiration of others". To say that she has style, end of story, seems narrow to me. While it is true that TFS has a relatively uniform idea of what is "stylish", that is not the end all definition of the word. I am not denying that she carries herself with confidence, anyone willing to dedicate a blog to just their own outfits is confident, but that doesn't mean everyone must feel that she is fashionable.

I seem to have struck some chord with you and you are taking this comment very personally. I am sorry if anything I said individually insulted you, as my comments were specifically about Jane, her mother, and her wardrobe. I would hope that Jane, as someone who has put herself out as a blogger and "shoe designer" can take criticism and us haters.

 

[luckyme]

apology accepted. now lets get back on topic about the shoes...

 

[Thefrenchy]

Does Jane still visit tFS? That'd be great if she could come to this thread and tell us about the whole process.

 

[Hanne]

^ I believe so.. she often credits images from tFS

 

[luckyme]

great idea thefrency, it would be fascinating to hear about the process, from concept to production.

 

[nanker_phledge]

I don't see how the 'it's hOw tHe MArket wORks' way of thinking makes it acceptable.

I do think that most people (as in the interesting/creative ones) in the fashion industry need to have worked for years to get that kind of work opportunity, even more so when it comes to design (regardless of it being UO or not), so clearly that's not because she's gifted nor because she deserves it.She has a great style, that was clearly 'inspired' by her mother's.So what's her merit exactly ?
I'm not saying she should have turned down the opportunity, I'm just saying that people who have a little more respect for work/merit-value have a reason to be upset.

It gets even more upsetting when you look at the results.

 

[Working Girl]

I can't believe someone with a blog got to have this opportunity. Good for her.
The shoes don't wow me. Times have really changed. Save college money, just start a blog.