Music CONNECTIONS to Fashion & Launching "Natalia's 'Hooks' on Looks" Blog

Music. It is an avenue for self-expression. It is individualism. It is therapy. It is a place to seek consolation and strength. It is a way to connect one with another. It tells stories from the past, present and future. It is relatable. It can be happy, sad and angry. We can learn and we can grow. It can bring about a movement. It can unite nations. It has influence. It has power.

Starting this week, I will be posting weekly blogs on Mondays that combines two of my passions. One ya’ll already know being music and the other is my love for pretty clothes, shoes and jewelry otherwise known as fashion! FULL disclaimer, I am no fashion guru nor have I done proper research/formal study. But like many girls who love clothes, jewelry and the perfect accessory, when I see a statement necklace or a pair of killer heels paired with the perfect pair of jeans I cannot help but want to emulate and look like a superstar. With that being said, I want to be Alicia Keys!

There is no doubt that music influences fashion and vice versa – they are one unit. In this day and age with social media, it is easy to click on a button to listen to our favourite music and at the same time follow our favourite artists’ day-to-day life that includes knowing what celebrities wear when they go to the grocery store. Fans of anything be it music, sports, film etc are so savvy and detail oriented these days. The music we choose to listen to is subjective as it affects us emotionally in unique and different ways. That feeling is what draws us to become fans to the artists we feel that connection with, then we want to start looking like them and then we want to BE them (again I would want nothing more than to BE Alicia Keys) and like that, fashion trends are set! Music and fashion are intertwined!

The Beatles for example in the 1960’s WERE the British invasion with rock’n’roll but they were also fashion trendsetters. The iconic Mop Top, Collarless suits, Cuban-heeled boots and during their psychedelic phase they wore florals, brighter colours known as the peacock style. The 60’s also was an era notably for funk, RnB & Bossa Nova and soul that saw turtle necks, low heeled shoes, shift dresses, and sheer topped evening gowns as seen by The Supremes, along with patterns such as polka dots, checkerboard, stripes and colour blocks. Disco in the 70s brought in the disco pants, platforms, glitz, glamour and sequence and all things lycra and spandex. 1980s with country, contemporary R&B, pop and salsa saw more accessories dominating with scarves, gloves (ahem - MJ’s infamous white sequined gloves) and Madonna's big hair. 1990s (the era that I grew up in) saw the emergence of hip hop and rap. The fashion trend then was the halter-tops, baggy and acid wash denim, crop tops with high waisted jeans. (To be clear I was that innocent, nerdy Asian girl who wore the big glasses, suspenders with the lantern pants, Mickey Mouse shirt and I could go on!)

I wasn’t at all into clothes, hair/makeup and jewelry even when I was in University for Pharmacy. I wore the same black comfy pants (they weren’t even sports pants) and the ugly brown sweater to class almost every single day – ask my pharmacy girls they can vouch for me during that sad time. It wasn’t until I started working my ass off and made my hard earned moola that I discovered the joys of self-indulgence through shopping - clothes, jewelry and shoes! BUT I don’t go crazy – I still have self-control and I’ve got a lot saved up yo – freedom 40! (Yea right Natalia!) But today is a new me (outside of my pharmacy attire ie. – I have to look somewhat nerdy and smart at work right?!). You will see through the clothes, accessories and shoes I wear, the musical influence that R&B/Neo Soul and hip-hop has on my wardrobe. For example that statement BOMBER jacket seen worn so fashionably on Ms. Alicia Keys, Pharrell, Drake, The Weeknd, Rihanna (there’s going to be one blog dedicated only to that coming soon!).

So now I would like to introduce to you the “CONNECTION” between my music and fashion on my unofficial fashion blog – I don’t want to really call it a fashion blog because have you guys actually seen the real deal fashion bloggers out there?! I'm probably not styling the right shirt with the right handbag and probably overdoing the jewelry most of the time but it doesn't matter because I feel good and I'm comfortable and what I wear makes me feel like me! So I’ll just call it Natalia’s “Hooks” on Looks – get it? Like a music hook – the part of the song that catches the listeners' ears or also known as the riff? You may or may not like what I wear similarly to how you may or may not like my music but that is absolutely A-OK! Because that’s art – it’s subjective and that is what makes us different from one another and diversity is beautiful! No offense taken!

Here is my first look! I literally wore this everyday last weekend no joke. It’s comfortable and casual. I like a combination of masculine + feminine touches to my wardrobe sometimes.

Nothing like a comfortable, relaxed pair of boyfriend fitted jeans from Zara with an equally comfortable simple black t-shirt.

BUT WAIT! This black t-shirt isn't as innocent as it looks because.....

It has a hidden and secretive back side bound together by gold chains that gives it that feminine, smexy edge. I found this shirt by glory accident at WINNERS after spending 3 hours waiting for I really don't remember but just killing time! And because summer finally decided to come to YEG, I had to bust out my sneakers.

KEDS sneakers - they're fun, cute, summery, affordable and probably the only "orange" colour of anything that I own to show my Oilers pride that weekend when we played the Ducks (I am a bandwagon Oilers fan - thank you for the great run this season!) #orangecrush#resilience

"Quick shout-out to my awesome friend Sunny who helped me take these shots!"

Here it is guys and WELCOME TO NATALIA'S HOOKS ON LOOKS!! :)