Yesterday was a great day.  Lilly Lab got major national and international exposure through some key blogs.  Highsnobette has some major pull and reach into the blogosphere and keeps the edgy, fashion girl up to date with what is cool and what she need to have in her wardrobe for the season.  For me it was a nod from people who are in the know.  It was acceptance, encouragement, and the fuel to keep going.

Right before bed I took one last look at the blog, thanking the universe for this gift, when I notice a comment.  A COMMENT!  I love comments.  What did they have to say?  Direct feedback from someone out there.  I couldn’t wait to read it.  It started off ok, but then slowly got nastier, drilling deeply into the credibility of the brand and it’s association to skateboarding.  Even for a second it broke my heart because no one has been a stronger advocate to get girls on skateboards than I have.

I want to make this very clear: just because I skateboard and there are influences in my designs from the culture, doesn’t mean the girls buying Lilly Lab are hard core shredders.  That was not my intent and Highsnobette didn’t report this either.  This was an assumption made by the author.

I draw inspiration from all things beautiful.  To me, one of the MOST beautiful things is a girl carving on a skateboard.  This aesthetic is why the tops flow, cause I love flowing on a board.  To me skateboarding isn’t about ollies and rails.  It is about the exhilaration of sideways riding, the wind in my hair and skin, getting around without fuel, and making a statement.

To say that “real skateboarders wouldn’t wear this crap” is just a jab to try and make the author more credible.  Anna Wintor was right in the movie the “September Issue” when she said “what I often see is people are frightened of fashion; and because it scares them or makes them feel insecure they put it down.  On the whole people say demeaning things about our world, I think that is usually because they feel, in some ways, excluded, or not part of the cool group; so as a result they just mock it.”

I think my collection makes the author of this comment VERY nervous.  Not only have I combined fashion with skateboarding in a VERY credible way, but it’s something so far beyond his or her scope or comfort level, they feel the need to mock it.

I’m sure the author finds it incredibly hard to understand how a person can skateboard in a dress, but everything I do blog about is the truth.  I would wear this outfit skateboarding in Paris, NO QUESTION!  Girls ride bikes with skirts on, why can’t we skate with skirts on?  It is functionally possible.  This version of style hub was a nod to my favorite store, Colette in Paris and if I had 5k to spend in the shop, this is what I’d get.

I know it is very hard to think outside the box, but this is what skateboarding needs to move out of complete male domination and get back to an equal playing field.  The 1970s had more female riders than you find today, what’s wrong with this picture?  One way of being a feminist in 2011 is looking feminine while enjoying a lifestyle dominated by men, thus paving ground for women to follow and getting people used to a new normal.  If you conform to the the attire that makes you and those around you comfortable, you are conforming to the formula, not pushing skateboarding or women forward.

And that is my two cents.

- Love South