We'll admit, we're long-time fans of stylist Kate Young (yes, stylists can have fans!), and when we're not too busy envying her red lip/bleached hair combo that every cool girl in New York City wishes she could pull off, we're admiring her impressive body of work, which includes styling Jason Wu's runway shows and dressing A-listers like Natalie Portman, Michelle Williams, and Rachel Weisz for Awards Season. As if she isn't busy enough with Fashion Week and the Oscars right around the corner, Young recently partnered up with Macy's, where she was named INC International Concept’s new Editor at Large for Spring 2012. We chatted with the stylist about her new gig, and we got her to give us the whole scoop on Michelle Williams' look from her winning night at the Golden Globes! You can check out some of the looks Young styled for Macy's below.
If you were going to tell women everywhere to buy one item to jazz up their style for spring, what would it be?
For me in the summertime, it’s really important that I have a good pair of shoes that I can walk around in, I feel really cool in, and that look good with everything. That’s the thing that’s most important — it’s like a great coat in the winter. In summer you want to walk everywhere and you wear less clothing, so it’s more important that the shoes you wear everyday give something to the look. I would say to buy a great flat, or if you’re comfortable walking in heels — a shoe that you feel good in, that you think has the right look.
When it comes to Fashion Week styling for Jason Wu or styling celebrities for the red carpet, what are your favorite parts? Any pros and cons?
What I really like more than anything is working with really interesting people and Jason Wu is one of the most inspiring people I’ve ever met in my life. I mean he’s incredible. He’s so talented and so hard working but also fun — he’s a good time and I feel like that’s a rare combination.
The actresses I work with are people I really admire in every way. Michelle Williams is an amazing person. She’s smart, she’s a good mother, she’s a good friend — she’s also the absolute best at what she does. She’s really young and she’s been nominated for an Oscar 3 times. That’s insane! She’s an incredible person. So I think I feed off of that. I get really into being around people who are just incredible. I’m lucky to be around them.
Since Michelle is nominated for an Oscar, do you have anything specific in mind for her gown yet?
I can’t tell.
Come on.
No way!
How did you come up with her look for the Golden Globes? She looked adorable.
Michelle has such good taste and great style in real life and I really wanted that to come across on the red carpet. I was thinking a lot about like, 'what do the cool girls wear?' 'What do fashion girls wear when they go out?' I felt like there was something really elegant about the idea of a long-sleeved gown, Jason [Wu] and I had talked a lot about that fabric. It’s like a burnt velvet almost.
I called Jason and was like, “I’m doing Michelle. I’m thinking about this long sleeve dress, what do you think?” He and I talked about it and he started drawing — we were doing it during the holidays over e-mail back and forth, back and forth. Michelle was into it the whole way.
And what about the headband?
Well, the headband was actually there from the beginning. I really like the idea of an oddly demure gown with a turban, but I would never put a turban on the red carpet at the Golden Globes. I would be slaughtered! So I thought the headband might be a really interesting way to give an allusion to a turban, and also give her a different look. Her hair is so cute but it also is very distinctive. There isn’t a lot of change so it would give a different look without changing her hair.
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