Hel Looks: Part One of a Series

Hel-Looks is a Helsinki-based website that features pics of Helsinki young people with unique street style. These types of sites have been very popular lately, and indeed, they are pretty addictive, even though often I feel something crucial to the "looks" of these trendsetters is avoided: they are huge, trendy hipsters.

However, if you've ever read a "Street Style" type interview, you know the number one rule of hipsters being interviewed about their taste is to avoid at all costs words such as "popular", "trendy", or "I picked out this rhinestone-studded t-shirt because self-conscious irony is all the rage these days." Instead they're all, "Well, my style is pretty random and crazy!" Nobody ever admits they're dressing in the look of about a million others, though that would be the truly unique thing to do.

Anyway, Hel-Looks does feature a range of fashions, from Japanese-style lolitas to people wearing Victorian frock coats, but they also feature quite a lot of persons such as the one above. And the accompanying interview never fails to be totally, totally pretentious. I don't know if things are lost in the European translation or what, but people are always like, "Nothing inspires me at the moment. Fashion is dead. My pants are by Comme des Garcons." Or, "What's hot right now? Sadness. Feelings and moods. And wearing ties around your ankles."

I like Vesa, age 25 (the guy above)'s explanation of his style: "Nu rave and renaissance, the time of Christopher Columbus and baggy shapes inspire me – but always with a touch of Nazi Germany to avoid a too clowny and buffoon look!" The truth is, I can kind of see where all those elements have come together to form this particular look. And, hey, if you need to throw in touches of Nazi Germany to keep your style from looking "too clowny", (Does he succeed? He does look like an evil raver Nazi clown from the not-too-distant future, no?) that clearly says something about the extremity of your style, now doesn't it? The leggings say, "I love my jammies" but the neon pink latex mask says, "Don't get too close."