TESSA MCKENNA
A renowned fashionista, songstress, and one-third of post-Sleepy Vikings New Granada Records-repped folk pop group Atlantic Oceans.
One word that best describes your personal style? Trying to use one word to describe my personal style seems almost impossible but the closest word would probably have to be “minimal.” To me, a neckline can sometimes flatter more than a piece of jewelry. I try to stick with simple shapes and minimal detailing. I am a firm believer in the “take one accessory off before leaving the house” rule.
What are a few of your go-to staples? Oversized cotton sweaters and long delicate necklaces. I can’t live without my black Jeffery Campbell Litas; I have a total height complex so five-and-a-half inch heels make me feel as tall as I wish I was, leggings because it’s basically an acceptable way to wear pajamas during the day, and black ballet flats because I work in food service so comfortable and versatile closed-toed shoes are a must.
Where you shop: I love a good trip to the mall so while I’m there I usually hit up TopShop, H&M, and Forever 21 for some affordable basics. For vintage finds you can’t get at the mall I hit up Frolic Exchange in Seminole Heights or my mom’s store, Bay to Bay Marketplace in South Tampa. She gets some beautiful vintage designer pieces so I have been lucky to acquire some that I plan on holding onto for a very long time.
Favorite place to splurge? What do you usually splurge on? Nordstrom for shoes. The anniversary sale is definitely where it’s at.
Fashion icon? Alexa Chung. She is beautiful and exotic and quirky and can make the most basic overalls look glamorous and classic.
What do you wear to feel most rock n’ roll? My leather skinny ankle grazers. They fit me perfectly and can be matched with so many colors, shapes, and materials. And I mean, they’re leather. You can’t get much more rock n’ roll than leather pants.
Best style find? My silk lilac TopShop gown. It’s one of those glamorous dresses that’s an instant classic and something I know will be in my closet for a very long time.
Label or designer you find yourself buying most often? Coco Chanel. She is the epitome of class and elegance and I love that she brought her own masculine style to her designs.
Musician, songwriter, frontman of Luxury Mane and The Semis, slacks aficionado.
One word that best describes your personal style? Shabby Dandy? Disco Goth? Formal Disco? Leisurely Formal? Detached. Self-absorbed. Is that more than one word? Oh wait, someone just called me snazzy. That must be it. I’m snazzy.
A few of your go-to staples? I can’t see without glasses so they’re pretty important. I have a pair of Sally Jessy Raphael-looking sunglasses that I adore, and some other frames, all with tinted brown or grey lenses. Almost exclusively, I find my stuff at Fabulous Fanny’s in NYC. And wingtips. I always rock the brogues.
Where you shop: Wherever I travel. Certainly I have stimulated the used fabric economy of Manhattan, although it’s slim pickins compared to what it used to be. Found some nice threads at The Hip Zipper in Nashville last month. St Pete could really use a nice vintage place with men’s styles. Maybe I should start one.
Favorite place to splurge? New York. One time in Manhattan, after a particularly depressing day of finding all my clutch fashion haunts replaced by yogurt shops, my wife noticed that the slacks I was wearing had completely split up the side. I walked for about a half-mile like that until I found Star Struck Vintage, an oasis in vintage men’s wear. That day I shopped with a vengeance.
Do you have a fashion icon? No. But Ken Stringfellow has some great shoes.
What are your favorite threads to wear when performing? Slacks. Not church slacks or business attire, but fitted, slightly stretchy, fabulous slacks. They’re like a friend to assist you when taking a wide stance or a deep knee bend, these being essential moves for any self-respecting rocker. Polyester or nylon shirt on top. Possible Hasidic type hat.
Best style find? Two suits, two different outings, same place, both on half-price Wednesdays at Thrift City, St Pete! Scored a fantastic olive suit and an equally rockin’ mauve pinstripe suit. Not cheap crap suits but real fine, lined, fitted, proper suits for a man of my stature. I had both altered in my neighborhood by Trang at Central Alterations. I also made off with some snazzy threads at an estate sale at the end of my street. I’m always saddened when a man of my size dies, but I also appreciate that he paid the ultimate price in order to further my fashion sensibility.
He is a songwriter, music producer, rakish frontman of Beauvilles and the Florida Kilos, and currently recording and touring with DC-area band AMFMS (appearing at WhigFest Feb. 14); she’s his main squeeze as well as the high-heeled drummer of Florida Kilos.
One word that best describes your personal style?
Shawn Kyle: Glamericana
Pryscila Miller: #longhairdontcare
What are a few of your go-to staples?
SK: Allen Edmonds USA Boots, Cabot Watch Co. G10 British Military Field Watch (Decommissioned), USA made selvedge jeans, vintage denim jackets, Triumph motorcycles
PM: My Papa’s post-Vietnam cowboy hat, YSL Rouge lipstick, Shinola Made in Detroit wristwatch, my assortment of joutfits.
Where do you shop most frequently?
SK: Austin, Texas
PM: I am an equal opportunity shopper. From Salvation Army half-off Wednesday to big city boutiques, if it fits, it sits in my closet. I think it’s important to find a style you’re comfortable in and that reflects your personality. From there, you can shop anywhere just as long as you know what you wear well.
Where’s your favorite place to splurge?
SK: I try to only buy USA-made whenever possible, right down to my socks. Some of these jackets have outlived the original owners, and will likely outlive me. Small independent shops have the new USA-made and Vintage that I wear, and I buy a lot of what I wear on stage while on the road; Imogene and Willie’s in Nashville was the last place to make me open my wallet, their jeans are true to what was being made in the USA in the ‘50s and ‘60s and will last through the rapture. It’s good to know your hard earned dollars go to people that are local, wherever you are.
PM: South Congress, Austin for a perfect assortment of American-made hats and boots. Levi’s in San Francisco for vintage denim wear.
Do you have a fashion icon?
SK: The Lost Generation, pos-WWII Americans, the Beats, the current psych rock movement.
PM: If Kate Moss and Johnny Depp were one person spread over several decades in a psych-rock version of the musical Oklahoma….yeah, that.
What do you wear to feel most rock n’ roll?
SK: Rickenbacker, Vintage Gibson and LeClair guitars.
PM: In addition to always wearing high heels while playing drums, I like to exaggerate a stereotypical Florida tourist style with sailor hats, crop tops, and swim suits.
Best style find?
SK: Pryscila
PM: A tan.
Label or designer you find yourself buying most often?
SK: Levis Vintage
PM: Yves Saint Laurent
This article appears in Dec 11-17, 2014.