photography by shaniqwa jarvis
interview by cat callender
LFW The Daily proudly presents a back-of-the-Mercedes interview with Style Bubble’s Susanna Lau.
CC: What is your first fashion memory?
SL: Probably when I was 5 years old. I had T-Bar patent shoes in black but I really wanted them in every colour they were available in (red, navy, olive). Of course my mum said no.
CC: When did you first get interested in fashion?
SL: There wasn’t any single particular moment. I’ve always been interested in people’s personal styles especially when I was a teenager. I never thought my interests would lead to a career.
CC: Why did you decide to launch your blog?
SL: I didn’t have a plan when I started blogging five years ago. I was working in digital advertising. The job was quite dull and I thought it would be nice to start a project on the side that wouldn’t take too much of my time. It was just something fun.
CC: Do you consider yourself a fashion critic?
SL: Not really. I guess I just want to be another voice out there. I don’t really want to be someone who informs people about fashion. My blog is really about my personal taste. It is also about communicating my thoughts about the clothes, the details, the design process I am writing about. It’s very instinctive when I write. If I really really love something, the words just flow.
CC: What kind of feedback do you get from your readers?
SL: A lot of readers post comments such as, “I just like living vicariously through you.” So I suppose I like inviting them inside the fashion world in a way that isn’t intimidating.
CC: Have you been surprised by the blog’s success?
SL: I never stop and think, ‘this is amazing!’ It’s all happening so quickly. I haven’t been able to take it all in. I am surprised by how much fashion bloggers are being written about and used by brands in different ways. I’m half anxious about it too. I hope it doesn’t take away from what bloggers are or at least once were: people with opinions.
CC: Did you feel a pressure to get your outfit right when you leave the house?
SL: I’m not an outfit planner so no. I usually find something and think, ‘Now, what shall I wear that with?’ So no, I don’t feel any pressure.
CC: Do you measure an outfit’s success by how much you get photographed in it?
SL: It’s not really about that for me. I find it much more satisfying if a designer gets a press request from something I have written than having a photograph taken of me.
CC: Is your wardrobe organised?
SL: It was messy but I had a huge clear out at the beginning of the year and now have everything ordered in a floor to ceiling wall of Ikea shelving.
CC: What’s the ratio of designer to high street clothes in your wardrobe?
SL: I’d say it’s pretty much 1/3 vintage, 1/3 designer (from ebay and yoox and then the rest high street. I love Whistles, Cos, Topshop.
CC: What catches your eye when it comes to an item of clothing?
SL: Colour. I’m quite obvious like that (chuckles). Or perhaps it’s a particular design detail. I do like a strong point of view in clothes. I don’t like clothes that are overly tasteful, you know, good taste.
CC: And finally, what’s the cheekiest thing you have got up to in the back of a car?
SL: Oh no….it’s too rude. I couldn’t say!
stylebubble.co.uk
Mercedes-Benz, whose fashionable fleet of cars ensure London Fashion Weekers get around in style, is celebrating its LFW affiliation with the launch of Voices of Fashion, a daily blog with exclusive LFW updates and interviews with the designers who are the voices who define fashion. See voicesoffashion.co.uk
