Wednesday, November 28, 2007


The Origin of Species
and the evolution of Mr Marc Jacobs

I'm all for a feelgood makeover. Who doesn't secretly enjoy a good old hair-dying, wardrobe spring cleaning movie montage scene resulting in a well deserved ego boost for the slightly self pitying protagonist?

There are cases when this "ugly ducking" sequence should be left quite alone. Ugly Betty is a good example of knowing where the boundries are, she has a refreshingly geniune dis-interest of the fashion world and you certainly wouldn't find her attempting to wriggle into a rubber rollneck dress ala Amanda. This is why viewers have been so drawn to a Queens girl who didn't lose herself in the big city.

I used to think that it seemed that Marc Jacobs didn't quite get the memo about this "ugly betty balance", and that instead he indulged himself in the ultimate transformation, selling out to the LA image of perfection and leaving more than few people a little baffled.

Out shuffled Marc, the uncool bespectacled librarian-alike who along with Wes Anderson (and more recently Adam Brody's Seth Cohen) made women realise that it wasn't a gay best friend or Hans the buff Euromodel that we want, but a charming nerd who donns a bow tie and knows how to please us in the wardrobe department.
In countless interviews, Jacobs has described himself as being terribly insecure; ("The thing is, I do base a lot of my self-worth on the opinion of other people. I’m not only what I do for a living, but it is a huge part of my life, so the opinion of others, whether critics, customers, or friends, does really affect me, and that is a huge breeding ground for insecurity.") he used to hate looking at his own reflection in the mirror and he used his own clothes as something to hide behind.

Well, "unfortunately" for us, uncool bespectacled librarian-alike Marc did turn into that buff, sunned model guy, and he went a step further and got Spongebob tattooed on this arm.

The transformation didn't stop here. Oh no. A spring clean of his muses went underway too. While Sofia is still a best friend, Victoria Beckham is now on speed dial, and the weird girls he proclaimed as cool in his adverts have now had to make way for his glossier ladies.


Although I want to hold onto that image of Jacobs the Geek, for my own selfish fairytale reasons, take a look at the Marc Jacobs of 2007, and you'll notice the confidence he seems to radiate. Instead of the shy blue-shirted Marc who reluctantly waved down the runway five years ago, these days Mr Muscle zooms down the catwalk, showing off his abs and more to the point his grin!

"The funny thing is.. [with] blogs, there’s a bunch of people who’ve said, “Oh, we liked the way he used to look, when he was grungy, and now he just looks like every Chelsea queen, blah blah blah,” and I just think, You know what, I’m just going to do what makes me happy. And I’m the same exact person, so if my haircut is too Chelsea for somebody, and if I’ve changed from funny awkward ’70s reading glasses to contact lenses, and if I’m tan now and in slightly better shape, well, it’s too bad. My behavior and my likes and dislikes are the same."

27 comments:

Ali said...

i love posh being the new face of MJ. & i too love his fab evolution.

Anonymous said...

I love Marc Jacobs about as much as I love Karl Lagerfeld, and its so funny how a bit of self-remodeling can change peoples attitude. Come to think of it, wasn't KL a little chubby-lumpkins...haha.

Oh, and I love that VB is modeling for Marc Jacobs. Its nice to have your world turned upside down sometimes.

Tinsley said...

I loved reading this! You took the subject of Marc's overtalked transformation and made a completely unique and insightful post! I loved seeing pictures of his transformation too :)

great great post

Unknown said...

i miss some of retro marc's inspirations (and deffo muses, pfft) but sans shiny happy marc u wudnt realise how keraaazy as well as lovable he is! smurf hair + spongebob? i hope all mid-life crises are such a riot!

so hmm artstic progression? or a 'flustercluck'? im waitin on the vb campaign for answers
x

riz said...

Well I have to say I too liked the geeky, shy MJ.

Ella Gregory said...

I love Marc, he seems really funny from interviews I have read and what I have seen from him on TV
I actually have a joke with my friends that I am going to ask him to adopt me
This post was very well written and lovely!!!
I like the sneaky pics from his house
Ash
x x x x

Anonymous said...

I love that Marc hasn't really changed his blue shirt, and now his hair matches! Ha ha!

Lana said...

I don't like the new MJ, but I hope for him that his designer skills stay the same :). Yeah, I never noticed it, but being friends with Vic and having her on speed dial, is quite a change...

lalalallalalallablablablbalabla said...

great post :)

Bojana said...

POsh is his new muse???
What the FFFFFFF.

Really, since he changed his look, his collections have changed and I really didn't like the last Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton. At all. It has something to do with rehab. GO BACK ON DRUGS PLEASE

Haha, whatever, my stupid rant of the day :)

And, yes, red lipstick and macaroons is a web-friend's blog, and she invited me to be a guest-writer when I feel like it :)

Amylee said...

Blog très sympa. Je vais devoir me mettre sérieusement à l'anglais car il me manque du vocabulaire.
See you soon ;)

molly said...

hmm this is a very interesting post

i guess hes allowed to do what makes him happy but it is sad that when people move to a glitzy town they become obsessed with their looks

thanks for your compliments about my blog and my header
it means a lot coming from you because your blog is one of my favorites!

Andrea Martínez Maugard said...

OMG! You grew up with Bowie playing in your house all the time!!!!I love him, I love his music so I'm sooooooo jealous, you're a lucky, lucky girl!!!!!

By the way, Jacobs looks way better now but I don't like so much his actual work

A. said...

SS 07 is my favoutie marc look.
it seems a good balance between california cool & new york chic.

well, you picked the perfect place to visit for your first big america trip. it really is our best city. the only thing we have going for us :/

isnt that song divine? it reminds me too of lazy sunday afternoons. vintage shopping at the flea markets. pots of tea. mmm - could go on & on. :]

perfectly fit for this time of year; which is exactly why i added it.

xoxo

Rebecca, A Clothes Horse said...

I prefer Coppola to Posh! Bring back the quirks! What ramifications on his clothing will this transformation have into the future? If he's so concerned about his body he will focus less on design, no? I like the idea of an out of shape designer spending months locked indoors furiously sketching his ideas.

Jackie said...

He should do what makes him happy.

I think he's fabulous either way =]

Héloïse J. said...

loved the way you've written this "evolution" story. i kind of dislike him now. i'm sticking too to the old MJ-days!

Héloïse J. said...

oh! and yes i've changed it! that's the concept :)

Fashion Tidbits said...

lol. evolution.

Anonymous said...

its 7.30, i'm on blogger, and I'm soo confused by this new nickname section....

Ella Gregory said...

ok it just changes your name
the comment above was me

Elle said...

Ahhhh, while I may agree with you on many things (like Posh being the new face of Marc Jacobs; What. The. Fish?!) I feel I must stick up for Mr. Jacobs as opposed to sticking my tongue out at him. The poor dear! Likened to a Chelsea Queen! o.O

I suppose it is all part of him growing up(ehmm...older?). Evolution and all. My style certainly wasn't what it is now five years ago!!!

Jo said...

I think he looks better now, more confident, but I guess I like the old marc much more...his ne s/s colletcion is a bit disapointing nad so is victoria beckham...Sofia coppola and little dakota were a better inspiration!

once again i LOVE your original post´s!

Anonymous said...

hmm i don't like the change of the muses, but if he's healthy and happy then go for it i guess, as long as the genius collections don't change i'm fine

Hildur said...

His affection of blue shirts and white sneakers is quite interesting.
But as for his looks I think it's great to see him so confident. If his transformed looks make him happy than that's great.
On another notes, I don't know what to think about Victoria Beckham for MJ. I'm not a fan of her. I'm just gonna hope it'll turn out good.

Teresa said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Teresa said...

Posh as MJ's new muse mirrors his new look: plasticky, tan, and naricissism alll the way.

All I want MJ to do now is GET A REALITY SHOW! Now THAT would give me a fashion orgasm.