D takes us to Tokyo for a three-part series with Tommy Ton, Phil Oh, and Susie Bubble.
Read Part 1: D’s interview with Tommy Ton.
Read Part 2: D’s interview with Phil Oh.
PART 3 of 3: Susie Bubble
The former Editor of Dazed Digital, Dazed & Confused’s online platform, Susanna Lau is a writer and Editor living in London. Her blog, “Style Bubble”, has such a following that her written word can catapult unknown designers to the front line.
Susie, you are one of the most photographed show goers. What kind of push did this give your career?
I don’t exactly know how to quantify what kind of a push it gave. I mean, obviously, for some people, who may not read blogs, it has given me a sort of visibility and a point of referencing. And, my personal style has become a part of who I am. In articles, I am always described in a certain way. Like, “Susie has a distinctive style.”
It’s given me more of a platform; but, ultimately, I want to be known as a journalist, a writer, and a blogger. And when I say blogger, I mean someone who is writing stories for the blog, rather than someone who is wearing cute outfits at shows.
But, you know, that’s not to say that I reject all of that. I love dressing the way that I do and I love going to shows. It’s an inevitable part of the industry now. And knowing the guys, Tommy and Phil, who do street style… I don’t have a sort of snobbishness against it, but at the same time, I don’t think about it in a sort of conscious way. You know, what should I wear to get photographed. And to be honest, during the shows, I’m so busy and it’s so hectic…
It just happens organically.
It’s definitely hard to quantify, because obviously, a picture says a thousand words. People might remember me for what I wear to shows rather than for what I do. But that’s fine, too.
Who is the person that you looked up to as a child?
It’s kind of a mixture of things. I watched loads of old movies. Things like, “My Fair Lady”; I remember all the costumes. It’s not so much that I looked up to Audrey Hepburn as I loved the clothes that she wore. It’s never about idolizing a person.
It’s more about the style.
Then, later as a teenager, people like Isabella Blow, Anna Piaggi, Lulu de la Falaise… I read old books about Yves Saint Laurent. I learned about these “characters”, but I never obsessively sought them out; and, obviously, the Internet didn’t exist then, so you couldn’t research these people anyway.
That’s true.
When are you coming to visit us in the Middle East?
I would love to, if I ever get invited.
You will be.
I was invited to go to Doha and I should have gone. I am kicking myself that I have never been to the Middle East before. That is one part of the world, like Africa, that I know very, very little about.
