Four-Eyed Fashion
Today, I am nervous. Not only is this my first foray into the world of interviewing a celebrity, today I have signed up to be apart of a one-on-one style session with Project Runaway’s Henry Roth.
Henry Roth is an imposing man. Loud, gregarious and was in Brisbane as Specsaver’s (http://www.specsavers.com.au/) Style Ambassador, his booming tones and manic gestures do little to ease my nerves initially, however, his obvious “passion for fashion” and style is both interesting and engaging.
Roth is most well known in Australia as the mentor from Arena’s Project Runway (http://www.arenatv.com.au/projectrunway), a reality TV show based around a group of young fashion designers. Away from television, Henry works closely with his sister specialising in bridal couture and is behind the label Henri Joseph Bridal (http://www.henrijosef.com.au/), a family bridal wear business approaching its 55 year anniversary. He is undeniably the face of the label and his media success and charming personality have led the label being successful Australia-wide and in New York, where he spends half of his time.
I was not surprised when I discovered Roth had a background in advertising and entertainment marketing (he was previously employed by BBDO, Michael Edgley and Harvey Goldsmith Entertainment). In between sampling a range of frames with the personable Roth, he mentioned the upcoming launch of his affordable bridal wear line and the availability of Henri Joseph Bridal in numerous stores all over Australia. Surprisingly, however, I didn’t feel he was “selling” anything to me. I was having too much fun.
Roth and I sampled the entire range available in Specsaver’s new Albert Street flagship store discussing the growth of glasses as a fashion accessory. Roth cites celebrities such as Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears as influences in this interesting trend. He also believes that “a pair of frames can brighten up an individual’s look and add a little colour and flair to personal style”. He also hinted that there is a growing trend of brides choosing special frames to wear on their big days.
His obvious enthusiasm for fashion and style was entertaining. Well-known for his distinctive nerdy-styled glasses, he believes that “frames are fashion” and it is important to try a range of styles to see what feels comfortable. And try we did! Roth proposed frames that suggested looks such as sexy, “old-school geeky” and aggressive along with other frames in a whole gamut of colours.
Roth believes that with fashion, you should always feel comfortable in what you are wearing. He also feels it important to not seem like you are trying to hard to be stylish, as it shows. And for the trend spotters, his eye-wear trends to watch this year are Classic Nerd for the boys (think Clark Kent) and Sexy Secretary for the girls (flirty, feminine and Euro-sexy).
Oh, and if you were wondering, I went away with two frames – one “sexy and assertive” and the other “not trying-too-hard geeky”. I also left with a greater appreciation for fashion and its ability to affect my mood. Whilst I approached my meeting with Roth with a bundle of nerves and anxiousness; I left upbeat, positive and inspired (and very fashionably be-spectacled).
