Stockholm street style

There must be something in the air in the Swedish capital.

A whiff of understated chic.

An atmosphere of personal invention.

These images from Stockholm Street Style are evidence of a prevalent creative mood.

Style that is nonchalant.

Where casual and dandy do not only meet on the same street.





But find themselves with the same person, like this gentleman.

Who is as likely to wear a boutonniere and green leather gloves as a casual hat.

Even so, notice the enormous laces of his shoes. Something unexpected with his monochromatic outfit.

This next ensemble is so common but still it is worn somewhat differently.

Is it just his bearing, his confidence?

Is it just the sunlight?

Even these torn jeans are ubiquitous.

But just take a look at those boots!

Yes, it must be the air.

A connivance of simplicity and pizzaz.

Effortless expression.

Unforced idiosyncracies

Always with light humor and steady enjoyment.

Gustav Broström from Stockholm

Gustav appears again on Stockholm Street Style, after being spotted by Scott Schuman.

What's more, we discover that he also blogs for a site called Mode Man.



I especially like his entry on biker boots. Besides that, he has good catalogue-like selections on specific items, looks constructed from separate pieces, notes on editorials, and even street shoots.



This is him with punk hair inspired by Hedi Slimane.



More of Gustav from his Lookbook page

Wear your bling on your sleeve

Or rather, on your jacket's bust, lapels, and shoulders. Here is an ingenious way of going military without resorting to epaulets.




For the women out there, you can use brooches instead of medals, shown exemplarily by Jane Aldridge.




As inspired by the Fall 2010 lookbook of J. Crew.

I don't think the possibilities stop here. Can you think of anything else you can pin on your jacket?


Top image from Stockholm Street Style

Weekly inspiration: Coats and cardigans

Things get a bit strange and sometimes overwrought, during these weeks of transitioning from summer to fall.

Linus is snapped here during a sunny day in Paris, with his Lanvin coat, which looks almost as light as a windbreaker. Though I thought I loved his hair best, I changed my mind. I like the fragility of his necklace.

Shoes, Hudson; pants; Raf Simons; tee; Alexander McQueen; bag, Balenciaga; sunglasses, Ray Ban




Greg from Reykjavík combines a traditionally patterned cardigan with what looks like a giant money-print tee. With the hat and the casual jeans, the total look is nordic hillbilly.




Finally there's Wiktor from Copenhagen, whose outfit just escapes description or category. Like an awkward Macaulay Culkin who's finally discovered he loved fashion, so made a mad dash to all the things he could grab in the closets of his mother, father, older sister and brother, not to mention his spinster aunt.

But it miraculously makes sense — the old necklace and the leopard print shorts with the preppy shirt, tee, and coat. Though the top and bottom parts of this picture seem to belong to two different people, the fact that they are both Wiktor makes him an amazing individual.

Happy weekend!

Color lessons: green, red, and old rose

Violet and green has always been an interesting combination for me. Not because they make you look like an eggplant, but because they complement each other in a way that is not obvious.

Both have the blue pigment, enabling them to be equally dominant. It makes perfect sense then to include the color blue in a green and violet outfit. With the three colors making everything heavy, the gray in Nick's shirt and shoes soften the effect.



I don't think I've seen these shades of green on cropped shorts and boat shoes. The sight of pastels is refreshing, especially if the hues are seldom used. Tea green, mint green, celadon?

Just make sure you have strong colors like those of the brown belt and Alex's backpack to balance out light tones. Too bad that just when I decided I wanted tailored shorts, Manila's summer season also resolved to crop its duration.



With black are the three primary colors, with the red shirt seemingly overpowering blue and yellow — or gold in this case. But without the blue floral pattern of the belt, the outfit would fall flat, and without the gold belt buckle, necklace, and bracelet, there wouldn't be any coherence either.



I may be mistaken, but this seems like old rose, complemented by a huge turquoise ring, which looks antique. It's quite fitting that Rasmus's old rose shirt is creased and his purse, made from distressed leather. Even his shoes look vintage. They match — you've guessed it — his of-the-moment iPhone.



Photos from Stil in Berlin, Stockholm Street Style, and The Sartorialist