A Daphne Guinness identikit? An Anna Dello Russo exhibitionist? This is Michelle Harper- stylist, flamboyant brand consultant, and board-member of the FIT’s Couture Council and Tata Harper Beauty.
A regular fashion week show attendee, her signature style makes her, (for me anyway), this year’s avant-garde style icon.
She exemplifies the notion of fashion as fantasy, stating; “I appreciate The Gap and all of that. But it’s not what gets me up in the morning.”
Her style is about colour, about texture and shape. With her Japanese-esque looks, the New Yorker channels part geisha, part Dior goddess with a penchant for full skirts and fish-tails.
Her favourite designers? Alexander McQueen, Yves Saint Laurent, Zac Posen and Victor de Souza, for whom she is muse. She’s also a huge fan of fabulous millinery, citing Yazbukey, Rod Keenan and Piers Atkinson as her go-to headwear designers.
Her lithe frame and strong emphasis on make-up just as much as her clothes, make her a standout figure on the New York s scene. To me, she looks like a modern day recreation of an Utamaro subject- like she just stepped out from one of his paintings, bumped into Holly Golightly and bam!
For more insight into Michelle’s fascinating style, see her tumblr- it’s a must for incredible inspiration.
