The Full Monty on Aziza Azim

Definition: The Full Monty: 

A British slang phrase.  It is generally used to mean “everything which is necessary, appropriate, or possible; ‘the works’”
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I first bumped into Aziza at NYFW last winter.    We started following each other eventually on Instagram. I loved her high/low boyish feminine style. When I saw her Instagram wearing a Trash and Vaudeville leather jacket I thought; ah her too!  Fast forward to about one month ago and I bumped into her in China town (looking amazing as usual – I’ll show you her outfit soon).  I seized the opportunity and met up with her last weekend for the first time to get the full monty on where she shops and where she finds her fave pieces.

Prada coat.  A birthday gift. 

“This was a very special gift to me from a very special someone.  It’s what I dreamt of and I was really happy to get it. I feel like it’s an art piece. You can literally hang it on the wall and look at it everyday.  It’s like a painting. It doesn’t make it any different but it’s even better because it’s wearable.”

“I love to dress it down and wear it with jeans and sneakers or I can wear it with biker boots or a leather skirt.”

Victorian blouse: Vintage shop in Miami

“I think it’s from the thirties.  It was $200.  Together when you wear it with the leather fringe skirt (see below) it looks like an Isabel Marant outfit.  I love the quality of it. I am also particular about fabrics. I try to buy natural so not polyester etc.  First I see something then I feel it. If it doesn’t feel right I leave it.  I don’t want to wear something that doesn’t feel natural to my body.”

“When I started realizing what fashion really is was when I started going to places like the flea market or vintage shops. I love bohemian ones. Anywhere you go you can always find a dress for $3 or $5 and you can make it look like it’s the coolest thing in the world.  It doesn’t matter if it’s Zara, H&M, Isabel Marant or Chanel, as long as it looks good.  That’s where I find the gems. I try to build on things I want to wear throughout my whole life and not buy what’s necessarily trendy. I mean why? You don’t want to pollute this world so you have to make conscious decisions in fashion because I feel like there’s so much waste in manufacturing etc so why would you contribute to that?  I would rather just wear one pair of jeans and a t-shirt in two or three different styles then have too much.”

Saint Laurent ankle boots

“I fell in love with these boots.  I saw Emmanuelle Alt wearing them and I thought OMG she is my ultimate muse and I was looking for the leather ones because I’ve seen the patent, metallic and leopard ones. I thought the black leather was perfect for everything.  They remind me of witch boots. I think they look so slick, comfortable and easy with a skinny jean. 

Leather fringe skirt: Vintage shop in Miami (a recommendation from a friend)

“When I first saw it I thought wow crazy it’s everything I’d been looking for: fringe, leather etc. I know that Marant made a similar skirt for about $1500. I bought this one for $200 and I’ve been wearing it every day now since I got it and I’ve gotten so many compliments from guys to girls to ladies.”

Balenciaga jacket: Gift from a friend

“My friend gave me this jacket. She is the sweetest person ever. She basically always gives me her clothes and we always share clothes and she always appreciated how it looked on me.  She’s the most generous person I know.  We exchange things so I promised to give her the brown leather jacket” (see below). 

Celine leather jacket: Gift from Dad in Paris

“This is my favorite jacket and I wear it all the time. I saw it in Paris and thought wow it’s gorgeous and this jacket has been a true staple of my wardrobe.”

I love the fit of this jacket. 

“This is a forever piece. It’s one of those that I’ll look back and say that’s what I was wearing in my twenties.

I am obsessed with leather jackets so if I buy a black then I need an in-between which is a grey, then I need a red one from Trash & Vaudeville, then a long black denim one etc.”

Click to see the rest of her cool finds. Her destroyed denim jacket is just siiiiick: