Sustainable Styling for Gang Of Youths & White Lies
By Costume Designer Freddie Kemp
Styling can often mean a lot of buying and returning from well-known retailers. It’s something I’ve had to do a lot, but often it can be wasteful, stressful, and costly (especially working on music promos where there’s often a lot of movement and outdoor environments).
We’re all actively trying to make changes to be kinder to the planet, but personally, I didn’t want that to feel exclusive to my private life. So, over the last couple of years, I’ve been making some changes to the way I work too. The goal was to never compromise on the quality of the work I put out, but if I can do it in a more sustainable way, then that will be the deciding factor in the clothing decisions I make.
The three areas I focus on are Charity shops, Hiring & Collecting Vintage. These three have featured heavily in two recent music promos I’ve worked on for the bands: Gang of Youths & White Lies.
London is incredible for finding gems in charity shops. I keep my favourite places close to my chest, but areas like Marylebone, Notting Hill, Westbourne Park & Chelsea, I visit frequently and have found loads of pieces I cherish. They get used for work and also worn personally.
When looking to hire, I can’t recommend The Costume Studio in Hackney highly enough. They have a great selection for any period or genre and the team’s knowledge is extensive. As a stylist, you can often feel like you should know it all when it comes to clothes, but I’ve found you’re most likely to gain period-specific knowledge when asked to hit a brief. So do the research, but also don’t be afraid to ask those who specialise or have been doing it for a long time.
As for vintage, I’ve been collecting for around 18 months now, so still new to it. It’s an investment, but one I’ve found really pays off. It allows me to have an extensive wardrobe to draw on when time is short, or budgets are tight. It takes a good eye to get right. And whilst mine is still being trained, I have a couple of partners I trust who know I’m always searching for good pieces. Having connections through Europe as well as London is a real asset. Check out @faunt.le.roy on Instagram if you’re interested in shopping this way. Izzy has a gift for finding stand out pieces!
When thinking about what to collect or search for, there are two keys for me. One is the old cliché that style is permanent. There are certain pieces, especially within Menswear, that will always look good. And the other is knowing that fashion is cyclical. If something is well made, has character and a story it’s worth keeping. Even it starts to feel a little irrelevant one day it’ll come back, and you’ll be glad you held on to it.
Styling like this definitely takes more time, often costs a little more and will push you outside your comfort zone, but I’ve found it always leads to the work I’m most proud of. Clothes should always tell a story.
I’ve highlighted a few key pieces from the Gang of Youths video that were sourced in this way to show them in action:
