I recently went to a party but due to my bad back I couldn't dance, due to the medicines I've been taking, alcohol was out of the question. I still managed to enjoy the long night, reason being the party's theme: the buzzing 90s.
My childhood may have had the romantic 80s as scenario but my teenage years happened in the bubble gum fun, plastic fantastic 90s. Music and fashion began to strongly shape me. My bedroom walls were covered with pop stars, I bought trendy magazines and held make-up parties with my friends. All in all, I don't look back in anger at the numerous style faux-pas, I truly cherish those years.
1- I realised how much fun being half British was. Brit Pop was kicking every single American band off the charts with the iconic Blur, Oasis and the super fun Supergrass. We were unique, we were different.
2- I wanted to be Justine Frischmann from Elastica (pictured below) - She dated the hot guys of the time, Brett Anderson from Suede and then Damon Albarn from Blur. Her band Elastica, blew my mind with their straight-forward girl power attitude. I loved her hair cut and when I finally plucked up the courage to emulate her coiffe, I entered a hair salon with a magazine cut out, and walked out looking like Mick Jagger... don't ask.
4- Vanessa Paradis became my fashion icon - I believe her Be My Baby video made me want to dress à la boho-chic forever. It was not Sienna Miller who got me into wide-legged jeans, long beaded necklaces and knee-high boots - Johnny Depp's wife had done it way before.
3 - The 90s wanted to be the new 70s. Hair was big with bee-hives in trend, make up was worn heavy in the eyes. Platform shoes covered in glitter and PVC clothing sported by Deee-Lite's lead singer were covetable and reproduced in photo shoots, catwalks and everywhere else.
5- Hanging out in a caravan had never been so effortlessly cool. Claudia Schiffer and Naomi Campbell starred in the 1992 Mango campaign pictured below. This fashion catalogue fascinated me. I was enamored with the long hair, chunky wooden footwear and more particularly, a brown suede waistcoat with long tassels - one of my best friends had one custom-made by her mum, and I lusted after it for years.
6- Beverly Hills 90210 - Before Rachel in Friends, before Carrie introduced us to Jimmy Choos, we all grew up wanting to be Kelly or Brenda, whilst many others copied Donna's daisy predilection.
7- Bell-bottom jeans - I began wearing them then, and never has my wardrobe lacked a pair. As you probably already heard, these denim jewels are making a comeback.
8 - Madonna carried out her raunchiest moves during this decade. The Justify My Love video, the Sex book and, one of the finest moment in music, Vogue shook the world just at the start of the decade. Kylie Minogue followed suit in the sexy-kitten frenzy and my parents must have celebrated being let off the hook from having to explain the birds and the bees to this young Madonna fan.
9- Euro Dance music - awfully positive, chemically enhanced, truly fun. Corona, La Bouche, Venga Boys ... endless bands to add to the one-hit-wonder catalogue. I'll leave you with one of my favourite dance songs of the time - do you remember this one?