There's something about Tilda

What is it about Tilda Swinton that makes her the designer’s dream? Victoria Beckham is “obsessed” with her, Tom Ford even cited her as his inspiration for returning to women’s wear and let’s not forget Victor and Rolf’s One Woman Show from spring 2003. 

She’s and Bafta, Golden Globe and Oscar winning actress and has talent that is rare in Hollywood nowadays, but i don’t know many girls, when they are getting ready in the morning, who stare into the mirror and say “today i want to look like Tilda Swinton”; Angelina, Scarlett and Penelope, perhaps, but not Tilda. Don’t get me wrong, she is beautiful but not in a leading lady kind of way; which doesn’t have to be a bad thing.

She definitely has the “je ne sais quoi” but what exactly is it, that makes her the unconventional style icon? It could be her interesting androgyny that catches our eye, and she definitely plays upon it with her boyish undercut, lack of make-up and straight-cut wardrobe choices. When Victor and Rolf honoured the actress by creating an army of 30 Tilda clones to march down the runway, they captured her look perfectly. There were pant-suits, boot-cut jeans, manish shirts and masculine jackets, there were some dresses and skirts and even they lacked a hint of femininity, but that didn’t mean they weren’t sexy. Infact, it was quite the opposite; there was something terribly intriguing about the authoritarian dressing.

 Tilda on the catwalk for victor & Rolf 2003

Her unique style almost always lands her on the worst dressed lists in the trashy magazines but the fashion elite don’t see it that way. Designers admire her appreciation for couture and high-fashion, and they understand that just because a dress is not figure-flattering, it does not mean that it is a bad choice, they know that her intention is to flaunt the talent of the design rather than please others.

 Tilda at the 2007 and 2009 Oscars, respectively, wearing Lanvin on both occasions.

Personally, i think it has to be her individuality in general which charms us. There’s no-one like her in Hollywood, or anywhere actually. Other actresses try hard to keep in shape, halt the aging process and follow the trends but Tilda Swinton’s laid back attitude and refusal to conform gives her an edge over these desperadas. However, despite being relaxed when it comes to fashion, she does value its importance, which makes her all the more attractive to me, she says;  ”the details of how any one individual expresses their relationship to the world around them are easily plantable in their clothes and the decisions, conscious and otherwise, they make when presenting themselves physically”

Tilda Swinton is one of today’s most challenging actresses. Her intelligence and sophistication elevates her even beyond status of legendary Hollywood class acts such as Meryl Streep and Helen Mirren. Her relationship with fashion is strange and alluring and is different to that of any other “starlet”. Hailed, the “greta garbot of avant-garde”, Ms Swinton is an over-looked fashion icon and hidden gem worth taking note of.