The Sartorialist has said that what he does isn’t streetstyle because he photographs people that inspire him and he isn’t necessarily reflecting a true generic reality. I’m not sure whehter that is a strong enough distinction between The Sart and all the other streetstyle blogs, but nonetheless, today I bring you something that isn’t necessarily Sartorially-aspirational but has aspirations of another sort.
I decided to wander down to the Skins auditions being held in London today at Parliament Hill school and take some streetstyle snaps because a) I haven’t Bubble-cammed in a while and b) I wanted to reflect a reality that isn’t necessarily about high-fashion but exactly what you would see on a bunch of raucous Brit teens.
Not being a stage kid myself and only ever experiencing rather crusty and stale classical music auditions, I wasn’t prepared for the mass of people that showed up or the frizz of excitement/enthuasiasm in the air. It was an entirely open audition and all you have to be is 17 yrs old (they did the 16 yrs old auditions yesterday…) and they’re basically looking for anyone to be either main characters or bit parts in the third series (if you’re not Skins-savvy, the whole of the main cast has left and a new generation of Skins-peeps will be unveiled for series three…).
Of course, there was the blatant fact that I WASN’T 17 and people could immediately tell I wasn’t another auditionee but after talking to quite a few of the guys and gals who were sitting there waiting with these sticky labelled numbers on their outfits, waiting to go through some scenarios, I couldn’t help but sort of be excited for them and root for them to go through. The Skins-loving was on a high: ‘It’s the best show on TV like EVER!’, ‘It’s so real!’, ‘It’s so clever, the way it’s written.’. Obviously, some of you will disagree but there at the auditions, I was happy to let people harp on about the show despite me silently thinking there are flaws.
Onto the streetstyle snaps. It was ish as I expected but before I got there, I wondered whether people would turn up dressed up to how the casting people would want to see them. Would people try and be more ‘Skins’ and would there be Cassie/Effy clones? But it seems that people there were by and large all dressed inside their comfort zones, ranging from dressy to casual, and that was quite surprising to see really self-assured style. It was a familiar mix of vintage/charity shop, American Apparel and Topshop/Primark with a few risks taken by some that worked for them. A far cry from my youthful days of awkwardness and looking like a bit of a deconstructed tartan skirt, witch boots and vintage blouse-clad loon at sixth form.
Pretty Pretty Pretty
Great post idea, I really love how you put in effort to capture the ‘vibe’ of the moment by going out there and approaching/probing/ exploring.
why was i never that “cool” at 17?
wow Susie you have a great collection of photos!!! They dress so differently than in 10 years ago!!
K
I cannot wait for the next series of skins, even though this one only just finished. I will miss Cassie though, and her style. But I think Effy might be here to stay.
I love the girl in the red coat. I think I have her skirt in purple. I also like the girl on the 6th row down, wearing what looks like heart print tights.
A nice reflection of what girls are wearing a the moment.
Ah, Skins.
Its a bit of a debate for me. i mean, i loved the first series, and the second series has been a bit of a disapointment.
I was going to go to the auditions tommorow in Cambridge, but unfortunately as you say it is the 17s auditions, and i have missed the 15s & 16s ones [im only 15 you see].
But i am going into Cambridge anyway to pick up some bits & peices, so perhaps i will see some ‘street style’ of my own 🙂
Oh I love that you went to this!
When I read about the auditions the other day I was actually annoyed at being too old to go along. Not that I can act to save my life, it just looked fun.
Great photos. Kids are just too cool these days.
some nice looks, especially the dude with the mac and jeans
wow, the term “bubble-cammed” is so cute ^^
and i love ALL the outfits of the people you photographed! especially the first two and the second from last one.
How odd to log on and see someone I recognise from my old school…
Absolutely LOVE the white bow dress… And fantastically impressed at some of the combinations. I would never have had the guts to wear half of that at 17…
Great post, interesting to see what these kids can put together and get away with!
xxx
It is a gud show but scrapping the cast we are all so used to i wonder if it will work
ah what a cool idea, you don’t seem to get so many 17 year olds or younger on street style sites, i guess because alot of the places are clubs, but infact bloggers seem to be getting younger!
thank god theres a few snaps of girls who dont have a bmi of 7. i think some street style sites forget that and just pay attention to face and figure rather than clothes/colour/texture combination, the up-and-coming and boundary pushing.
the last girl with the red coat! I’ve been traipsing round Kings Road half my life look for a good brass-buttoned peter pan coat 🙁
What a great idea and i’m particulary interested as Skins was auditioned for and set in Bristol until now – so what a difference to see the London kids verus the Bristol kids as per auditions at Cotham School.
Makes me realise how dress styles has changed in two years. It’s great that things to evolve and go forward! So nice to see all these pics!
What a great idea and i’m particulary interested as Skins was auditioned for and set in Bristol until now – so what a difference to see the London kids verus the Bristol kids as per auditions at Cotham School.
Makes me realise how dress styles has changed in two years. It’s great that things to evolve and go forward! So nice to see all these pics!
i canNOT believe they are all seventeen! how quickly things change. i know dublin can often be a bit behind style-wise anyway but i don’t know anyone my age or older that was this stylish at seventeen. the last girls hair is great!
I love the Sart, but I think he’s crazy if he dosen’t think the Satorialist is a street style blog. I understand his distinction, but that’s pretty much what most street style bloggers do (including myself), versus trying to get get an overall “reality.” Like most, I take pictures of people that catch my eye and inspire me…but it’s still street style.
Agree with you Kristina. Ah well, who cares what it’s called! So wish I’d gone to this, i love teenagers!
Love your photos! I truly adore the spunk and quirkiness of London teen style! Sooo excited to fly over next month. I live in New York, but I’ll be interning at a fashion publication there. Can’t wait to be FULLY immersed in this city’s fashion scene.
I was never that cool when I was 17, ha. Kids today eh?
God I was no where near this well put together when I was 17!! great post Susie!
Dear god I miss the UK. Did you know that I have been a devoted viewer of Skins ever since you blogged about it, Susie? (You can’t get it in the US, but the internet is an amuhzing thing). I actually cried several times during this last season (lame). I feel like I’ve watched the characters grow up and at the same, I feel so attached to them that I have no idea whether or not I will enjoy the third series. Here’s hoping. And cute photos of the auditionees. . . they’ve all got a good sense of personal style. . .
i lovelove street style and, in all my internet travels, i’ve found that london kids in particular have the most jaunt and nerve in their dressing. i admire it a great deal and love to see what the aesthetic is as seasons change and as trends waver within a teen environment. although it is usually a time when young people are most insecure, it is also when personal style begins to take hold through experimentation.
It’s not Buffy, but it’s not that bad either…I’ll be eternally grateful to the kind soul who put the entire series online to view- I’d never have discovered the full extent of Cassie’s style cuteness otherwise. I’ll miss her…but that Effy’s a cracker.
And I wasn’t any too stylish in school either (though your outfit certainly sounds like the kind of thing I’d have worn)- it’s all part of growing up, I reckon our generation kind of had to learn for themselves- kids of today just have all the info so close at hand it’s easier for them to work out things…
Fantastic entry!
I tried watching Skins when it first started as the adverts looked quite fun, but I didn’t enjoy the first episode and never watched it again. It was something to do with the dialogue, it didn’t seem real to me, as in, the dialogue didn’t suit some of the people speaking it. I found it quite odd.
So many people showed up to that audition though! ..and I actually have that blue diamond print empire bow dress in the third photo from the top, by H&M, how strange!!
It would be amazing if any of these people you chose to photograph made it into the show!
Girl with giant white bow and red tights – clearly channelling some Blair Waldorf. A lot of those kids dress how I dress now. When I was their age (only a few years ago) I was very much into my jeans and not much else.
I’m glad that there’s going to be a new cast for the third season. If they’d tried to do an OC or Dawson’s Creek on it and following the gang through college, it just wouldn’t have worked. It had kind of stopped working as it was. The first season was phenomenal… like wow! This season, not so much. About 4 episodes were almost on par with last season. The rest were mediocre at best.
But I would give ANYTHING to be on that show!
They all look so cute. I was nowhere near looking cute at 17!
hey !!! 🙂 love you !!! i love you !!
i cant go to U.K ( yet ) but your blog is the closest 🙂 i got 🙂
you always have something up for me to look and read at 🙂 ….. about U.K
you totally amaze me !!! 🙂 and love your style 🙂
kudos ! 🙂
Whilst I think this post was an excellent idea, I must admit I am dissapointed with the results.
None of these 17 year olds are being daring in the slightest…if I passed one of them in the street I would not look twice; every teenager in London dresses like this.
Not to say that they look bad, not at all, but I wish some had been less generic.
And so in a way this post was in fact successful, in that it is a perfect representation of how London kids are dressing at the moment.
I can understand how these ‘looks’ can seem original to people living outside of London, but it takes little bravery to wear one these outfits in reality.
Sorry to be so negative, and I still think that it worked well as a post, just made me a little depressed about the style of much of ‘young London’
Great pictures. Those young ‘uns really have some style!
I agree with Dulcie to an extent – more than a touch of the exactitudes – but I don’t think there’s anything bad in that at all – they all look fab, and like they have a lot of fun in their clothes, and wear it damn well.
Why weren’t we this cool when we were 17? I asked my sister the same the other day, and agree with her answer – digital cameras! I think I only had my picture taken about twice a year or on special occasions, and so was no way near as conscious of what I wore. Ah, sometimes I have a pang of nostalgia for the simple innocent days, pre-SATC, pre-Heat/Now/every free paper’s celeb spread, pre-Primark … with my genuine army surplus combats and tight tees… but only sometimes! x
This is why I did say it was ‘reflective of a reality’… they look cute/put-together and slightly predictable but the fact of the matter is at 17 yrs old, there aren’t that many risk-takers and being part of the ‘pack’ is important…. they might be striving for individuality which is a good thing but the results are that they sort of blend in with each other….Exactitudionality and all of that…still, I’m thinking that when they area few years older their style will really come into their own….
So much more imagination here than in the 17s in my neighborhood. I bet these kids were falling all over themselves to be Bubble Cammed.
i was just kicking myself that i didn’t know about this, i would have turned up myself! i’m not 17 but i pass off as one every day (bloody tobacconists should get their eyes checked) but these guys don’t look 17! i’m sure i didn’t look like that when i was their age, sigh.
We have a similar show here in Canada called Degrassi Junior High. It was on in the eighties and they brought it back in the 2000’s with a whole new generation/cast and it is HUGE in North America now. I think as long as they keep the “feel” of the show it can remain a success.
Love this post! I really am not keen on skins though, I tried to watch it and tried to like it, but no. They all look so old for 17.
thanks so much for this. i miss london!
Great post idea 🙂 I really enjoyed seeing the street style pictures.
That muta been fun! lots of cute and stylish girls 🙂
my sister is one the top right. they all look awesome though.