I make clothes, women make fashion - Azzedine Alaia (fashion designer)

Sunday the fashion world lost Azzedine Alaia.

For me, he was one of the iconic designers of the 80's (second only to Norma Kamali), a time when my friends and I were all about style, sharing our fashion magazines that we all had subscriptions to. The decade was a great time of discovery for me, freedom, Grace Jones, Willie Smith, sample sales, Starck Club, the Snake Pit and poppers, just to name a few. As a young person in my 20's working in retail, even with my employee discount, I couldn't afford the originals but did a good job of finding great knockoffs. Back then, I was 115 pounds dripping wet and loved his form fitting style (I'd have a net thrown over me if I tried that these days) and his fashion "risks" appealed to me. Is that Pat Cleveland at 2:11?

            

His  mention in the movie Clueless was delightful:

             

Even though it's been a hundred and fifty years since I've thought of those days when I had more club clothes than anything suitable for work, hearing his name always evokes fond memories of that time. He was the little man with big style who influenced many designers after him and will be missed.

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