November 9th, 2016 – New York City – Styled by Orly & Zahava Schwartz
This past September we were fortunate to be asked to work on a webisode of “living thru the lens.” This web series is an assortment of cheeky videos from the brilliant minds of Rebecca Blaine Carton & Kira McCarthy, they explore our cultures relationship with technology & social media. This episode focused on the characters of Shae & Bae, young women in NYC who are trying to go viral on the internet. We were tasked with making sure these ladies had the right fashion for each part of the day. Below is a breakdown of each outfit, and the thought process of how it worked for each scene.
1st Outfit – Tanning on the stoop
Rebecca- Multi colored Striped Bikini top, Light wash Vintage Levi cut-offs, Ave Eye Wear Vintage Sunglasses, government agency dad hat & Make up done by Glam by Monica
Kira- Americana Triangle Bikini Top, Black Vintage Levi cut-offs, Ave Eye Wear Vintage Sunglasses, government agency dad hat, & Make up done by Glam by Monica
When we first spoke with Rebecca & Kira about their characters Shae & Bae, they wanted the fashion to be playful, young, fun, and eclectic. We pulled inspiration from street style pictures of Coachella, burning man, and NYC’s own Gov’Ball. We knew these girls were going to have a distinct look for each scene, but because this all happens over the course of one day, it had to be realistic but fantasy all at once. The opening scene looks were a collaboration of what you might see not on an NYC stoop but maybe on a nice summer day in a NYC park, just two girls working on their tan.
Outfit 2- Chatting with Double Rainbow Guy
Rebecca- Woven Raffia Mini dress from Koch, Own Multi colored Striped Bikini top, & Make up done by Glam by Monica
Kira- Jac Vanek Ray of Sunshine Muscle Tank, Kensie Girl Tie-dye leggings, & Make up done by Glam by Monica
Before we started shooting, we spoke several times with Kira and Rebecca to get the vibe of each character, we also had the pleasure to work with Lily-Hayes Kaufman who directed the episode & Jackie Schwartz who produced the episode & got us the amazing Jac Vanek shirts, and they added spice to the outfits. Shae (Rebecca) has a more girly/glam oriented style, we wanted to keep her in prints and texture and bright colors. While Bae’s (Kira) style is darker and has a sarcastic tone to it, she wore colors, but they were always contrasting and varying, much like bae’s personality.
Outfit 3- Do Something Nice
Rebecca- Floral print Rachel Zoe Swing Dress, Smokey Grey Cropped Leather Vest from Pink Sheep, Blue Mini Bucket Bag from Adriana Castro, My Patience Iphone 6 Case from Jac Vanek, Vintage Sunglasses from Ave Eyewear, & Make up done by Glam by Monica
Kira- Smart-ass ringer tee from Jac Vanek, Red Coated Skinny Jeans from DL 1961, Americana Triangle Bikini Top , Chain-mail Fringe bag from Whit & Warring, & Make up done by Glam by Monica
The focus on this scene was Bae(Kira) giving her shirt, we felt it was the perfect moment for a Jac Vanek’s smart ass ringer tee. She was also going to taking it off, so to give the look balance, we went with red denim to bring out the red font on the shirt, and to keep the theme of contrasting colors and sarcasm in Bae’s outfit choices. Shae’s outfit we wanted to be girly but tough. We picked this fun Rachel Zoe dress, since it gave movement as the ran away from the “homeless man”, we wanted to added toughness with the leather vest and bucket bag and give the outfit a little weight.
Outfit 4- Playing with animals
Rebecca- Neon Yellow Nike Sports Bra, Black and White Printed Nike Running Leggings, Silk Flower Crown from Crowns by Christy, & Make up done by Glam by Monica
Kira- Kensie Girl Tie Dye Sports Bra & Leggings, Express Oversized Lightweight Hoodie, Live Flower Crown from Crowns by Christy, & Make up done by Glam by Monica
We wanted to make sure the girls looked good during their quest to go viral. We know that Shae and Bae would need to be coordinated, comfortable, and showing off. We had Shae (Rebecca) going for a bright color that would complement the bright colors on the turtle and contrast as well. Who doesn’t match their outfit to the animal they are playing with? And for Bae (Kira) we wanted to keep it cohesive with what she wore previously in the day, we felt that the focus should be more on her face, so why wouldn’t you wear a flower crown to play with a dead rabbit?
Outfit 5 – Ray Jay said what?
Rebecca- Nude Body-con Midi Dress from GW Femme, Cream Lace Free People Trench, & Make up done by Glam by Monica
Kira- Black & White stripped Mock-neck Cropped top from Pink Sheep, Black High Waisted Ponte Pant from Pink Sheep & Make up done by Glam by Monica
This scene was styled with a Kardashian look in mind. Shae & Bae are considering making a sex tape al-la lead Kardashian sister, which happened to make her go viral. We took inspiration but kept our characters personal style in mind. Shae (Rebecca) wore a typical Kardashian inspired body con-dress and trench look, but to play up the girly factor we used lace. Her pop of color is in the platform shoes. For Bae (Kira) we continued the contrasting theme with black and white stripes but kept a Kardashian theme with the cropped top and fitted high-waist pant. The easiest costume was the white robe for Carl. You can see him in his own blue basketball shorts and typical robe that may or may not have been taken from a hotel in another country.
Outfit 6 – So did Shae & Bae Go Viral?
Rebecca- Pink Champagne Tank top From Jack Vanek, Rabbit Fur Toggle Vest from Muche Et Muche, Light wash Vintage Levi cut-offs, Ave Eye Wear Vintage Sunglasses, Live Flower Crown from Crowns by Christy, & Make up done by Glam by Monica
Kira- Ilsa Mettalic Fring Cardigan from Rachel Zoe, – Americana Triangle Bikini Top, Black Vintage Levi cut-offs, & Make up done by Glam by Monica
For the final outfits we wanted to bring the day full circle, The base of both outfits is what they wore in the morning while tanning, but now it’s so much more. They went on a journey and we wanted to show that. Bae (Kira) we wanted to continue with a devil-may-care, sassy, but fashionable look. She tried to give someone the shirt off her back. So why does she need to continue wearing it? Shae (Rebecca) may or may not have had a turtle pee on her, and deserve her own brand of glamour. The flower crown, some fur, and a potential for champagne, seemed like the perfect way to recovering from attempting to go viral.
Styling Shae and Bae was an amazing experience for us at Zahavi & Schwartz. We spend the day collaborating with BAD ASS women, and some really great men , too! It wasn’t all that different for what we do with our clients. We collaborate with them, to help them define their own style, and discover what works best for their life style. Shae and Bae were a hilarious duo created by Rebecca and Kira. Two intelligent women who just needed the right pieces to help bring these characters to life, and we are happy to have gotten to partake in their quest to go Viral! Check out this episode and many more of “Living thru the lens,” at the below link, this episode was produced by Jackie Schwartz and Directed by Lily-Hayes Kaufman. Special appearances by Lloyd Kaufman, Paul “Bear Vasquez, Luca Guaitolini, and Richard Brevard, whom also had amazing costumes either provided by themselves or us! If interested in shopping any of the looks, please email info@zahavischwartz.com.