Thursday, March 22, 2012

Enid from GHOST WORLD

The style in this movie is the polar opposite of the focus of my last post, Breathless. The 2001 film Ghost World by Terry Zwigoff was adapted from the graphic novel of the same name by Daniel Clowes. Enid (played by Thora Birch) is a antisocial teen who just graduated from high school with her best friend Becca (Scarlett Johansson) and befriends a middle-aged loser (Steve Buscemi).

 It's a great movie, and I'm sure it's chock full of themes about friendship and love and growing up, but what really hooked me was Enid's unique style. I guess I better preface this by saying that I would probably never try to literally dress like Enid; she is one of a kind and frankly, I just don't have the balls to pull it off. However, there's tons of inspiration to be had from her outfits.

There were so many that I tried to break it up into two categories: half of Enid's looks fell into preppy, demure looks with cute prints like plaid and polka dots and Peter Pan collars, while the other half were punk-rock and sexy retro looks with fishnets, leather jackets, and animal prints. She almost always pairs each style with her dark, short bob, glasses, lipstick, and tough combat boots.

First, the retro and rocker looks. 

I like the graphic print of the skirt and the cat eye glasses. Also, she wears this shirt a lot. Also, ScarJo's character dressed this boringly for the whole movie. 

(See what I mean?) Anyway, here, Enid dyed her hair green (it lasted for a day) and donned a leather jacket for a cool look.

When dressing up, she went for bold prints:


Kind of an Oriental, 60's vibe here. (I like the added touch of the flower in her hair.)

                                                
Yes, she's wearing a red knitted beret and a dress with exaggerated zebra print.


Leopard print and patterned tights. I'm gonna ignore the sexy French maid vibe here.

Fishnets and a miniskirt give edge to the demure button-up (the sexy red color helps too). 

As for her preppy looks, it's obvious that she's a big fan of plaid:


(I feel like the top half of this is preppy and the bottom is punk rock, thanks to the boots.)

Enid also especially seems to love red (and for good reason; it looks great on her):





You can't get preppier than a nautical shirt like this (it has a freakin' anchor!):

Although you can't see it in this picture, she paired the top with a red miniskirt and a red barrette. 

Looking sweet in polka dots and pastels. 

This looks like an outfit taken right out of Blair Waldorf's wardrobe, right down to the headband. (Also, red again!)


So how do you get inspiration from Enid's style without looking like a total crackpot? It's a tough one. Below, I came up with a few outfits ideas that give modern translations of her looks, divided into the two categories. 


Punk rock/ Sexy retro:
For links to buy any of the above, go here


Preppy & Feminine:
For links to buy any of the above, go here


So, if you're looking to dress like Enid, 
1. Pick the style you prefer (punk rock/retro or preppy/girly) 
2. And then keep in mind some of her favorite elements.

 For a rocker or retro look, it's all mini skirts, animal print, patterned tights and leggings, sexy dresses, and leather jackets. Think James Dean or Mrs. Robinson

For the preppy, feminine look, go for sweet collars, demure prints like plaid or polka dots, pastels, and dresses--very Zooey Deschanel. 

As for accessories for either style, forego the purple and green lipsticks and opt for red; cat eye sunnies are great for a retro look, although she usually wears Ray Ban Wayfarers style glasses with thick black frames; tough lace up boots are a must, even with dresses and skirts; and don't forget a red bag to lug your sketchbook around in. 

I know I'm definitely going to be on the lookout for a leopard print miniskirt and a round suitcase. I'm also gonna get the graphic novel from Amazon, because I'm curious to see if her style was taken directly out of the book or if it's different from the movie.

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