Check out these questions I had for him!

FASHIONINDIE: How did you start StyleNoir? Being that your background is in music, when did fashion become your primary interest?

JAMES: In my mind, there is no difference in my goals whatever industry I’m in. The bottom line is that I want to inspire and motivate people to achieve what they have only dreamed of before. Taking that into account, all industries are governed by the same four parts, the seller, the buyer, the product, the producer. So in reality there really is no difference between the industries. I suppose if I am honest, the music industry rejected the changes it was going through and tried to ignore them, we used to sit in the studio and brain-storm every day on how we could revolutionise things, then one day I was talking to one of the guys from Sony and asked the million dollar question, what are they doing to beat the problem? The answer was just to pump more money into their biggest band at the time. To me that was the biggest lack of imagination I’d ever heard, I didn’t want to be in a pond where the biggest fish couldn’t take the courage to leap to the sea. A decade later and they still haven’t figured it out. The giant of the fashion industry knows how to adapt, I saw companies embracing change and taking risks and I wanted in.

FASHIONINDIE: What were you doing before StyleNoir was born? Ever work any horrible jobs?

JAMES: Since I was very young, I’ve always had an entrepreneurial streak. Whether it was selling the latest craze in the school-yard, or dare I use the word, hustling, I knew that I wanted to do things by myself. I had a horrible and admittedly, embarrassing job at a grocery store when I was a kid. So when I was 14, I started out with t-shirts, within the 12 months it was producing £10,000 a year. At that point I knew I was capable and I didn’t look back.

FASHIONINDIE: Sometimes you cover some pretty sensitive subjects (Fashion Indie’s own pro/against Tavi’s blog comment argument, cats as fashion accessories), does this ever get you any hate, and does that bother you?

JAMES: I never started this for popularity. I couldn’t care less if you love or hate me, I find it hard to not speak my mind and maybe that is a failing of mine. But seriously, if a blog states “blogs are disposable” that sets alarm bells off in my head, that seems strange to me, something has to be said. I keep thinking that our time period is one that seems to be losing that desire for pioneering and advancement, so at Stylenoir we want to make people think, whether they agree or disagree is far from the point. The point is to make people think for themselves, come up with their own opinions and standing. Hopefully inspiring people to make a difference while they have the time.

FASHIONINDIE: Where do you come up with the ideas for your original pieces?

JAMES: I suppose it’s not so much where but how, and that how is listening. It’s astonishing how much you can pick up if you really pay attention to what is going on around you. It’s almost like producing music, you listen to what your audience is asking for, create that hook that will draw people in and run with it, putting your own passion into the final creation.

FASHIONINDIE: How do you choose which spreads you feature on the site each month?

JAMES: We look for the artists which inspire us the most, if it really blows us away, then we will feature it. It doesn’t matter who it is. Creativity, the message it is portraying and the meaning behind it are main factors. This is why Elias Wessel is one of our highly featured photographers, some how he takes this outstanding imagination he has and puts it in still images. It really is incredible, I truly believe if you could look into his mind, it would be nothing less than becoming a real life Alice in Wonderland.

FASHIONINDIE: What do you plan on doing next with the site? Any plans to expand StyleNoir.TV?

JAMES: We just launched a complete re-design of the site which is all very exciting. We wanted to create a more interesting experience for our readers so we added interactivity, with a great Facebook comment system, as they say participation is power! Stylenoir.TV is soon to become Stylenoir Films, we hope to produce some hard hitting documentaries in the near future, but you will just have to wait and see, I can’t give everything away, where would the fun be in that?

FASHIONINDIE: Any advice for hopeful journalists?

JAMES: Work, hard, and do what you love. Seriously, in 2010 there is no reason to do anything you hate. But you need to work, if you want the fancy parties and the exclusive interviews you need to put in the effort. Get your iPhone and your laptop and hit emails, social networking, cold call, I don’t care. It might sound aggressive, but there really is no better advice that to just DO. I run into people all the time ready to discuss at length their plans in media or journalism but the simple fact is planning is good, getting results is better.

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Check out Stylenoir, one of the coolest sites on the web (and they’re from the UK which is +1 for me!) and follow them, and James on Twitter!

LINK LOVE: Hillary Bankz

Nikki got some KILLER Jeffrey Campbell boots from Karmaloop for Christmas and she did an AWESOME job of rocking them. Thigh high boots are the hottest thing for 2010, and leather and studs make them even better.  Nikki DIYed her boots to have more of a stud, what she calls ‘risin aggression.’  Love her look? Check it out at Dirtyflaws

Get it at Karmaloop

Amazing shirt by Blacktooth available at the Dirtflaws webstore. The best part is that it’s only $30! This may have to be a Christmas gift to myself!Get yours now at Dirtyflaws, just click here!

It’s the holiday season, and with money a bit tight for just about everything, this amazing contest shouldn’t be ignored. So head over to my girl Nikki Moose’s blog DirtyFlaws and sign up to win now!

Don’t forget to check out Karmaloop.com for some amazing holiday gifts.

My poor Nikki Moose has been catching some heat from voters, judges, and even the host of the America’s Most Stylish Blogger competition for actually being creative and original. That was until guest judge Nicole Miller came along. Nicole gave our good friend Nikki some positive praise this week, when she took a vomit inducing, bubble gum pink skirt and dyed it into a chartreuse (?) colored head scarf. However, while the internationally recognized designer praised Miss. Nikki, the Mary Murphy reject host (please reference the show So You Think You Can Dance), Melissa Foss made sure the world new that Nikki apparently “broke the rules.” Wait, wait, wait! This is fashion, and last I checked there were no rules. If I could get an explanation as to what made up “‘i’ before ‘e’ except after ‘c’”rule she broke I would love to hear it.

It’s only week three and my annoyance, and downright nausea, levels for this producer determined “competition” are at an all time high. Call me bias (which I clearly am), but any one of those other cookie cutter looks (no offense to the other contestants, I wasn’t feeling it this week) shown this week could have been replaced by a boring screenshot from Gossip Girl. So unfortunately for Nikki, and all you other edgy fashion folk out there, it seems we have another “Attack of the Clones” situation on our hands.

Regardless, I can’t encourage you enough to get over to Stylist.com or Dirtyflaws.com to vote for Nikki, she deserves every last vote she gets.

PS. Rumor has it I have a certain Momma Moose reading these little rants I’ve been typing haha. I’d encourage you all to vote for her as America’s Most Stylish Blogger too, but unfortunately Stylist.com overlooked her application for the competition. Looks like she’ll just have to settle for Mom Of The Year instead…bummer!

If there is one thing we are over here at Fashion Indie it’s loyal friends, so when I heard that my great friend Nikki Moose was choosen for America’s Most Stylish Blogger I was just as excited as if it were my lack-of-style ass that was going to be in the running.Here is a short video explaining what the competition is all about:

I think I speak for everyone when I say that the beautiful Miss Moose is the only one in this competition with a little spunk or edge. So let’s actually see the outcast win for once, because I’m sick of seeing these cookie cutter “fashion” people get praised for staying inside the lines.

The look above is what Nikki came up with for the first round of styling, and she managed to turn a cobalt blue blazer vest into a really edgy look. Voting for America’s Most Stylish Blogger starts every Tuesday, so get going and cast millions of votes for the wonderful Nikki Moose, she deserves it! Head over to her blog DirtyFlaws to vote -> CLICK HERE!

Be sure to check out all of Marcus K. Jone’s work here.
Also don’t forget to hit up the New York Motorcycle Federation.
Last but not least, credit is owed to .dirtyflaws. who introduced me to this video.

Thanks to the wonderful Nikki Moose at Dirtyflaws, I was introduced to 160grams, which contains some of the best spreads I have ever seen. This one, which is entitled “The Play Boys”, was shot by Dinah Hayet. I love the combination of tattoos, helmets, and high fashion. I will be headed back to 160grams for sure!

Cole Mohr may be Kirby’s love obsession, but Ash Stymest is 100% my idol. This video of him for Metal Magazine’s #17 issue is really cool. I’ve been considering getting my hair cut similarly to his, what do you think?

Nikki, another Fashion Indie friend and friend of friends from Ruff Club has what could be the most killer blog I’ve ever seen.  Complete with style photos, runway reviews, spreads, and DIYs, she’s as sharp as it comes, with edginess dripping from every post. It’s refreshing to see someone posting things that you aren’t going to find on Style.com or other mainstream fashion blogs, and instead works of art, lines and spreads that are actually creative, and DIYs that make us swoon.  Here’s some proof:

We love fashion people, but we especially love fashion people that have blogs. Check out .dirtyflaws. and prepare to be overly-inspired for days and days!