How do you get ready to go out in the evening? I get my girlfriends
round, put some music on and have a drink to get in the mood.
What is your fail-safe party item? A little black dress, of course. If
I’m going dancing, then I wear the highest heels with the shortest dress.
Can you describe your perfect night out? My favourite nights out are
nights with lots of friends. I also love going to gigs. At the moment I
enjoy going to Punk on a Thursday with Queens of Noize, they always play a
great eclectic mix. I’ve always had great – probably my most memorable –
nights out and some brilliant parties on my birthday, particularly my 30th.
I later found out that the dress I wore that night was owned by Britt
Ekland, and she wore it to the premiere of The Man with the Golden Gun. I
love it so much, I used it to inspire a dress in my Topshop Christmas
collection. It is intricately covered in midnight-blue sequins, so we have
only produced 10 of the full-length version. There is also a shorter mini
version, which will be more readily available. It’s perfect for Christmas
parties, and looks best when worn with casual, rocky hair and ankle boots.
Another one of my all-time favourite birthdays was spent with some of my
closest friends at a Rolling Stones gig, which, as always, was amazing, and
something I’ll never forget.
What does a girl need in her handbag for a night out? Black eyeliner,
keys and money.
What’s your favourite drink right now? Vodka tonic.
What do you like to dance to? Rock’n’roll and happy house.
Who do you like to dance with? My girlfriends and men that can dance!
What perfume for a night out? Kate Moss Velvet Hour. My first perfume
was Anaïs Anaïs, and the first perfume I ever loved was Chanel No 5.
When you first started going out, what was your look? High-top trainers
and a black leather goose jacket with a fur collar.
Where do you get your ideas from for your designs? Through work, I have
travelled the world, and on the way I’ve built up the biggest collection of
vintage and secondhand pieces. They are often love-worn, each with its own
story. Retro styles and vintage clothing inspire so much of what I wear. I
found a similar dress to the panther one [previous page, left] in a New York
flea market when I was 17, and I’ve kept it ever since. I chopped off the
bottom and used it as inspiration for this version.
What’s the oldest item of clothing you own? When I was 14, I
modelled for John Galliano, and he gave me clothes as payment. I still have
his bias-cut slip dresses.
What do you most want to pass on to your daughter? All my couture
dresses, especially my sequin “shampoo” dress that Johnny Depp had made for
my 21st birthday. [It was a red satin dress. Johnny told her they were going
out for dinner, and just as they were walking out the door, he grabbed a
pair of scissors and lopped the bottom off, making it considerably shorter.
He then took Kate to his club, the Viper Room in LA, drew back a curtain and
revealed all of her friends who he had flown in especially for the party.
John Galliano, Michael Hutchence, Christy Turlington and Helena Christensen
were just some of the people there, and Gloria Gaynor sang Happy Birthday].
Over-the-knee boots and miniskirts – how young do you have to be to get
away with this? For a girl in her teens, twenties and thirties, it’s
fine. Someone in their forties could wear boots and minis with thick black
tights in the evening. Just remember that, ultimately, dressing is always
about attitude, feeling comfortable and confidence.
What’s the most successful dress you’ve designed so far? My
print dresses are always a huge success, and the red pansy-print one from
this year’s spring collection was the best ever. The neckline suits all
body shapes and the colour was great for summer. It was perfect for day with
sandals, but worked just as well at night with tights and a heel. [Kate sold
6,500 pansy dresses at £60 each.]
Is there a perfect leather jacket? Yes. It’s something you can throw on
every day and looks better with age. I’ve just bought a Balenciaga leather
biker jacket – it’s gorge!
Talk us through the new long-sleeved minidress with the Bowie-esque black
and gold pattern .. . It was inspired by a vintage find. It’s the sort
of dress you could wear to a dinner party or a club – I wore it to the new
Ivy club recently. Tell us about jewellery. What would you wear on a night
out? I love antique diamonds.
What’s a good make-up look for a night out? You need “impact”
make-up. Smoky eyes are always, always a good look.
What advice can you give on how to wear clothes? I don’t think of
things as “outfits” – I throw together what I feel is right for the night.
Always make the best of your body type: if you have great legs, show them off
with a short dress and heels or skinny jeans. If you’ve got a large bust,
avoid high necklines. Learn what your best assets are and draw the focus
away from the bits you’re not so keen on. Wear what suits you best, rather
than following trends, and create your own style.
When it comes to dressing, I follow my feelings and just get dressed. For me,
it’s not necessarily about trends or even interpreting catwalk looks.
That kind of intellectualising is something I never do. I go with a feeling or
emotion and don’t necessarily plan, unless, perhaps, it’s a special
occasion, or I’ve just bought something that I love and am desperate to wear
(such as my new Balenciaga biker jacket).
At other times I get inspired by films, or I will have been looking through
old record covers or books and certain looks have just stuck in my mind.
KATE’S HOT TIPS
- Never look like you’ve tried too hard – or, rather, don’t try too hard!
Mismatching can add a much more personal touch to an outfit.
- Be brave and try a new hairstyle. It can completely transform your look just
for one night and inspire a new way of looking at your existing wardrobe.
Don’t do the catwalk look head to toe. Mix old with new, designer with high
street – the options are endless, and it’s good to make it your own vision.
For example, I wore a beautiful Chanel maxidress to my friend’s wedding with
a 1930s antique blue velvet cape and some huge, hooped Turkish earrings,
which gave the dress a totally different feel.
- When you buy a vintage or secondhand piece, don’t take it on face value – it
can be altered in so many ways. I’ve lopped the hem off many a full-length
gown and made necklines lower. It does help to have a genius dressmaker,
otherwise just do it yourself.
- If you’re going out for the evening, think about your outerwear, as well as
the outfit underneath. Again, mismatching sort of accidentally works well
and can look effortless. For example, don’t be afraid to wear a battered
leather jacket with a full-length gown, or an extravagant embroidered
evening jacket with old jeans and a T-shirt.
Kate Moss is very over-rated looks-wise. Her style is often quite slick, but she is not particularly good-looking and certainly not very young-looking if you ever see her close-up. But the PR machine continues, and talks many people into thinking that she's gorgeous.
Karl Chads, London,
Kate Moss did look great at Leah Woods wedding. Mixing vintage Chanel with modern worked beautifully - the stunning blue shawl was new - designed and made by ZANA - 6 Flask Walk NW3. She is open afternoons only.
Rosanna Delmaestro , London, England
Kate is the perfect mix of fashion and bohemian. She doesn't look great all the time because she's a model. She looks great all the time because she has style. (Yes, even falling out of a cab with her hair on backwards, she's superb.)
Johnny B, London,
kate moss is the biggest inspiration ever. There's not a photo she ooks bad in. I just ask myself how she keeps so skinny!
mel, London, England
She is 34, not 46
malin, stockholm, sweden
Kate Moss is the epitome of style. It is always so effortless with her and she always looks fantastic.
I like what she said about dressing being about attitude - i''ve never heard that before and she is so right.
kim, london,
Vapid would be too kind. At least the credit crunch may yet do for mindless celebrity.
Jonathan, London,
only 46? wow, i thought she was at least 50,good luck to her!
grindles, london, england
She does look good for a 46 yr old... although her eyes are not as sparkly, at that age, you've seen most of life and you're near the end anyway. Glad to see she's not showing white hair yet, or worse bald spots... eeek!
Danielle, liverpool, UK
I reallly like Kates style, she says that everything is so effortless but it just seems impossible for me to walk out of the house without changing about a million times!!
Liberty, Porto, Portugal