BoBo Chic

[Plastic'sWife]

"Hey there's some kinda cool clothes on that site but geez does that hairy guy (one of the designers obviously) have to be in EVERY photo. It's truly bizarre and he's putting me off looking at the clothes. "

I am laughing my butt off!

 

[Plastic'sWife]

"

OK....obviously they aren't taking themselves so seriously....the dude has a stuffed animal sitting on his shoulder....I think he's in the photos to be funny.
I think the stuffed animal on the shoulder is hilarious!!"

YOU ARE SO FUNNY!
This entire thread has me laughing so hard!

 

[uliart]

The bobo chic look can be cute when its not over done People like Ash olsen look cute, but I dont know about mary-kate Its all just too much for me

 

[maybe_tonight]

I love this style, but I coined it hobo chic because it sounds better.

 

[evexa]

not my type of dressing =/

 

[czilla]

lol, hobo chic is a little different... bobo is for bohemian bourgeois, which makes so much sense. <g>

 

[Naimah]

I like it, although I've had to pull this 'look' off way before it was a look . I'll just stick to mixing thrift store finds and my little luxe pieces and handmade jewelry. Not sure how much I like it as a trend though, as I find trends a bit annoying

 

[maybe_tonight]

lol, hobo chic is a little different... bobo is for bohemian bourgeois, which makes so much sense. <g>

Well, I call what Mary-kate Olsen wears "hobo chic" because it's like what a homeless person wears, but using designer pieces. And I really like that look, I'm not making fun of it.

 

[yugen]

hey everyone. this is my first post!

my opinion about this look is lots of young people in their twenties have been dressing this way, or some version of it, for a long time, and they were by no means rich. slowly it began to become mainstream (as with everything that started out worn by every-day people) and now i feel like Mary-Kate is just a young girl who probably likes fashion and this look. i definitely think she puts a lot of thought into her outfits, and i do think she goes overboard at times.

i have always been a fan of the music, fashion, politics and art of the 60s and 70s and i just think the clothes are beautiful. i see where people are coming from when they say it is a bit insulting dressing like a homeless person, but doesn't it also bother you when celebrities wear the designer (or not) clothing and resemble "hippies" but are probably not even aware of what that stood for back in the day? There were certain ideologies they believed in, they were making statements, and IMO they had great style! those decades are the biggest influences in these looks and i think that the young people who first started bringing this trend back were more connected with that. they still are. if you are going to embrace the hippie look then at least, especially with the war going on, etc., they should have some insight in the history of it all. i'm sure some do. i guess i know now how people feel who have been into punk music since the late 70s, and, for example, avril lavigne comes around and doesn't know who someone like iggy pop is.

apologies for any redundancy.

 

[PrincessImp.]

Interesting.

Really not everyone can pull off this style. I feel that it either comes to you effortless (and you'll be considered avant-garde) or you'll just end up looking like you tried too hard.

 

[i wear a tiara]

yourbestfriend- pretty much hippie inspired clothing, clothing that looks deconstructed (holes,rips, frays), and then paired with a Chloe Paddington or Dior sunglasses, you know what I mean? Dressing like a tree hugging hippie even though you are some capitalistic upper class elitist. And spending alot of money to look like you rummaged through a thrift store.

where im from we referred to these kids at the trustafarians. i know, i know, its not correct in the technical sense of the word. but i cant tell you how many girls i know that have been dressing this way for years. when you grow up around lots of money it doesnt necessarily mean that you fit into that culture your whole life. ive gone to extremes and back. the dreadlocks and ill fitting attire with the designer bag, sunglasses and jewelry that cost more than a months rent. i think its just a phase that most wealthy kids go through. i mean, you spend your entire childhood with your mother playing dress up with you, when you get to a certain age youre sick of it. you want to dress to piss your parents off, you want to dress to make people look, and frankly, youre a little tired of being a rich kid. i mean, it gets boring to dress a certain way all the time. and just because you dont want to dress like a rich kid doesnt mean youre not gonna shop like a rich kid, because in reality thats all you know. so i guess i kinda think its more of a natural style progression. there are always gonna be kids in ripped jeans with messy hair driving their luxury cars to buy pot in the ghetto. i think its just a part of society that has gotten trendy all of a sudden. but when it stops being trendy its not gonna go away.

blah, sorry for my rant. i had a few glasses of wine and am in a chatty mood.

 

[Sylphide]

I don't understand what is inherently wrong with dislocating a style from it's political context. Pilfering from a variety of historical sources and combining them in a playful, interesting way is an aesthetic that has been popular since the early eighties (or arguably even earlier) and it's certainly not confined to fashion. I don't know, I guess I'm just sick of the "you're not authentic" rant. What's authenticity anyway?

 

[Kimkhuu]

MK olsen and whoever else obviously did not START this whole trend, it's been here for very long, just that she really helped make the trend mainstream.

 

[Kimkhuu]

I just noticed the string of celeb followers who are rooting for that "trend" : Nicole Richie (sometimes, not always), Nicky Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Jessica Simpson, Scarlett Johansson, Ashley Olsen, Mary Kate Olsen, Britney Spears (well it's not really bobo, but at times it is), Sienna Miller.......

‘Bobo’ Look Blends Counterculture With Consumerism


By RACHEL BROWN

Los Angeles Business Journal Staff



The phones at Suzanne Juul’s Beverly Hills offices have been ringing a lot over the last couple of weeks, ever since the designer’s circular scarves, called “eternity shawls,” appeared on the neck of teenage media sensation Mary-Kate Olsen.

“I am eccentric and I take risks. I walk about Beverly Hills in my pajamas,” said Juul, who just started designing three years ago. “I’m someone who does what they want and feels comfortable doing, and I think that is what the Bobo fashion scene is.”

The Bobo or “Bohemian Bourgeois” look appears shopworn, but it’s not cheap. Juul’s mohair knit shawl sells for $160 at high-end shops like the Los Angeles boutique Shop Intuition.

It’s the fashion counterpart to the Bobo lifestyle, which has been described as a blend of consumerism and counterculture.

“It is about being big time, and at the same time being artsy,” said Mark Tango, a Malibu designer who creates T-shirts worn by Olson that retail for about $100 and sometimes are made with holes and rips. “It is not a cheap style. It’s really deliberate.”

Olsen’s recent spread in The New York Times Sunday Styles section wasn’t the first time a Juul creation has been worn by celebrities. A poncho she designed was worn by Lisa Rinna of “Days of Our Lives” fame on “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” and Mary Hart sported Juul’s mohair swing coat on “Entertainment Tonight.” But this one has had the biggest impact, with more stores showing an interest in carrying the scarf-like shawls.

 

[Kimkhuu]

Kristyling: Paying to look poor By By Kristale Ivezaj | Vibe Fashion Columnist


“Poor, beautiful, homeless girl.” That’s exactly what I thought when I was walking to my car last week after my Thursday night history class in Old Main.

She had straggly strands of sunlight blond hair. Her tresses looked as if they hadn’t been washed in days.

Her jeans — old and worn — swept the floor with her every stride, and her layers of T-shirts looked outdated, over-washed, and made very little sense to me. There was a clash in patterns, cuts and designs.

I slowed my walking pace, shuffling through my purse, searching my back pockets, in hopes that are paths would meet around the same time — thinking, of course, that she would ask me for some spare change. Just when I found a few dollars, she gave me the oddest look.

Boy, did I give her one back when the violin in my head stopped playing.

I spotted her sporting a crocodile trimmed handbag in olive green from Gucci’s spring collection.

Besides being slapped in the face by the old adage “don’t judge a book by its cover,” I was hit by an expensive aroma, it was something new, something musky, yet, floral at the same time. Hints of sandalwood and Mimosa Indian Rose crept up on me when her wind met mine. I

t was Prada, and I know it when I smell it.

The beautiful stranger smelled like the 90-some dollar perfume that hit luxury department store shelves a few weeks before Christmas.

Emotions stirred from within me. I was confused, dumbfounded, and yet, delighted.

I was going to make a complete fool out of myself and offer this girl a few dollars to buy herself a warm sandwich for the evening, when she was probably rich enough to pay for my college tuition along with my all of my telephone bills and monthly car payments.

Don’t be fooled — neat, average, jean wearing, common folk of America like I was. Bobo chic is a trend that was set by New York’s Soho punks — the kids who felt it to be necessary to rebel against their khaki-wearing, horserace-betting parents.

It is a trend that has the residents of cities look like tourists; a trend that that has people paying expensive mortgages look like they are homeless; a trend that has first-class restaurant frequenters look as if they were searching through dumpsters for scraps of food.

BoBo is the marriage of two unlikely sides: Bohemian and bourgeois. It is a trend made popular by silver screen stars who all look they got dressed in the dark like the Olsen twins, Kirsten Dunst and Chloe Sevigny.

New York Times columnist David Brooks defined BoBos in his book "Bobos in Paradise" as “a breed of well-heeled consumers who bashed materialism while embracing all manner of luxury.”

Kristale Ivezaj defines it as: resale overlap, excessive jewelry (particularly necklaces, and bracelets), and a few expensive pieces like a pair of Chanel studs, or a Bradley Pashmina to bask in all of Bobo-ness glory.

Voila! You’ll look like a rich bum. That’s what all of us are aspiring to look like anyway, right?

Who wants to wake up as soon as the rooster crows and straighten their hair, layer lashes with mascara and make sure everything is pressed and clean. Not me. Not you. Why? Because we’re stylish, that’s why.

Achieving BoBo chic, is the easiest thing to do, because you’re not supposed to try or at least look like you are!

Brush your teeth, but don’t brush your hair. Wear whatever feels nice; don’t worry if it fits (it’s not supposed to). Mom’s stilettos and dad’s shirt will do just fine.

Anything over $20 is too expensive. Resale shops like Plato’s closet, The Salvation Army, Paris, LuLu’s, and Too Good to Be Through are all good places to start.

Saks, Bebe’s, Arden B, Club Monaco and Guess are not.
Scratch off all your eyebrow appointments, and don’t paint your nails — instead bite ’em.

 

[Kimkhuu]

"Bobo" Style: Where "It's Perfectly Fine To Look Like a Bag Lady"

From No Good For Me - Style plus Vice

The NY Times had an article yesterday about the rise of Mary-Kate Olsen as a "fashion star" with her brand of "bobo" chic, which is basically boho thrift-store style but with luxurious touches like beat-up Chloe bags, expensive boots and cashmere scarves. (Funny, it's usually referred to as looking like a homeless person in other publications.) There's not much to say that hasn't already been said about the article by the likes of Gawker and others in the blog netherworld. I don't know why this stuff makes news anymore, as well; rich people have been dressing up in Third World/poor people's tatters for decades, only it used to be called "rich hippie" or "trustafarian" or what have you. It's more fun gleaning subtexts of post-Marxist frisson from the piece:

The look flies in the face of the conventions of elegance that dominated fashion runways as little as a year ago. More important, it seems to address the discomfort of a younger generation with overt displays of wealth. Leslie Savan, the author of "The Sponsored Life" (Temple University Press, 1994), about advertising and American culture, calls the Olsen-influenced Bobo style "forcefully unostentatious, dressing like an unmade bed." It works for some people as a kind of aesthetic corrective. "If you can't reform your social attitudes, you can at least reform your look," Ms. Savan said, adding that for devotees, mixing the inexpensive and the expensive, the old and the new "seems to make you more interesting, mysterious, textured."

"But of course," she noted, "you are buying those qualities."


​

It's interesting how everyone throws around the terms "bag lady" to describe this aesthetic - because, you know, if a bona-fide bag lady were running around with a Balenciaga bag, some would assume that she stole it. Really, the best accessory to the "bobo" style is an anorexic body, clear skin, good hygiene and perfectly disheveled yet painstakingly highlighted hair.

 

[coralmilk]

I actually really like the whole style, but the idea of spending obscene amounts of money on it is silly.

Exactly my thoughts. I know a lot of people with a similar style except for the fact they don't wear designer clothes.

I don't spend that much money on clothes because I don't have that much money, not even close to it, but if I had I would not buy something extremely expensive that I can find for like 3 dollars at some thrift market.

What's the point of spending huge amounts of money on something that looks like it's just about to fall apart, especially if you can find something similar at a much cheaper price? I don't understand.

 

[coralmilk]

I honestly like the Casiraghis take on this whole bobo chic movement. They have a few key elements of the style, large scarves, the not dead on matching jackets, slightly messy hair. Yet they still look clean and put together. {I mean COME ON they ARE the Casiraghis! That family has impeccable style to say the least!} MK in my opinion sometimes goes overboard and looks more hobo than chic. Its one thing to look effortless and quite another to look homeless!

I am not sure about Charlotte but Andrea is def not following a trend. I've been following his style for a few years now and I can't remember him any different.

 

[Kimkhuu]

Models going for the look.

 

[Kimkhuu]

Querelle's look actually influenced the MJ show.