What if Taylor Swift Were a Fashion Girlie?
Imagine the superstar in retro Courrèges, sparkling Rodarte, even current Schiaparelli.
Taylor Swift has not built her empire on an engagement with the fashion world, despite the fact that cowboy boots, glittery dresses, even slouchy beanies have, in essence, become Swiftie trademarks. Where Beyoncé delights in Loewe, Swift deigns in Elie Saab. Offstage, it’s backward Khaite skirts, loafer slingbacks, and convoluted corsetry In this realm of glistening stardom, perhaps that’s why she’s so endearing. That said, she’s left many wanting more.
So what would it look like if she wielded a sophisticated ensemble as deftly as she employed her pen or guitar? 26-year-old Cookie Cohen believes it would entail pink velvet Tom Ford short suits, vintage Chanel coordinating separates, and Daniel Roseberry’s Schiaparelli. On her account @youbelonginthis, she’s crafting an ideal wardrobe for the mega pop star, superimposing looks from designers like Courrèges, Coperni, Rodarte, even Blumarine over existing paparazzi shots of the icon. The account bloomed from the conversations Cohen was already having with her friends about Swift’s style shortcomings that left fans, particularly the fashion-obsessed, craving more. “I want her to open her eyes to see what’s out there,” Cohen continues. “For example, when I was in school, I learned so much about Elsa Schiaparelli, and I love the parallels between her and Taylor Swift. For instance, Elsa trademarked her color: shocking pink. That is such a Taylor Swift move to trademark a color.”
For months after launching the account, Cohen blogged for pure enjoyment to a whopping 17 followers. Then, a few weeks ago, Albert Ayal of @upnextdesigner tweeted a few of the posts in admiration, sparking immense debate—and her audience has grown ever since. The collages have since been met with mixed reactions from different camps: love from the fashion girlies and hate from the Swifties. “I feel bad sometimes that it feels like I'm bullying her, but it's all out of love,” says the 26-year-old moonlighting as Swift’s fantasy stylist. “I want to shake her and be like, ‘You're Taylor Swift.’ We want more from her.”
Cohen purposefully retains rather crude graphics (made on Microsoft Word in lieu of Photoshop) to convey the essence. “I love this world I'm in right now where it's all pretend,” she says. “I could put her in a miniskirt walking into Nobu Fifty-Seven when it's 40 degrees.” As often as she can, the blogger stays true to Swift’s inclinations. Think: a Marc Jacobs Spring 2020 look featuring a sweater vest, chords, and a Peter Pan collar. “I love that she stays to her roots and she doesn't get sucked up into the fanaticism of it all,” Cohen summarizes, “but at the same time, she could be serving.”
I'd love to hear how you got this account started.
“My whole life, I've been a Swiftie. You’ve got to love her; she's the best. Last year, she broke up with her boyfriend of six years, she was in her 1989 era, and she was out and about. I'm sitting with my friends and paparazzi pictures come out, and we're so happy to see her out with her friends, but what is she wearing? Why did she put on these criss cross jeans with an oversized shirt? It makes no sense. We would have endless conversations, wondering, ‘Do you think she's a Miu Miu girl? Do you think she could be a Prada girl?’ And one day, I was just like, ‘Let me quickly Photoshop.’ I remember the first one I did was a Coperni outfit where her legs were going in one direction and her body was going in the other—I just pasted the look on. I sent it to my friends in our group chat, and they were like, ‘We have to make an Instagram.’ So I made the Instagram account, and I had 17 followers for the longest time. But I was so committed. I didn't advertise my account. I wanted it to be a natural progression.”
What was the fruit of those conversations when you discussed Taylor's ideal wardrobe? How would you describe her pre-existing style?
“We don't want to say cat lady, but we always say money can't buy style. I understand that she's living in so many different homes, and I get it, sometimes your favorite pair of jeans could be in LA when you live in New York. But it's just so funny the way she decides to pair some things. Going to the studio, she could be giving Princess Diana with biker shorts, an oversized sweater, and a hat, because I know that's what she has been seen wearing recently, but something's always off. The frilly socks—there's always one thing. I love that she stays to her roots and she doesn't get sucked up into the [fanaticism of it all], but at the same time, she could be serving. We get so upset because, as girls who love to get dressed with a limited budget, it's hard to see someone who's a billionaire wear clothing that could be fast fashion, Forever 21. She is Taylor Swift—she could call anyone, like, ‘I want to wear one of your dresses to this event,’ and they would gladly drop everything. It's not from a jealous point of view, but I want to shake her and be like, ‘You're Taylor Swift.’ We want more from her.”
So, in a more general sense, what would you love to see from her? What sort of designers? What sort of silhouettes?
“I learned so much doing this account about the Kibbe Body Test and about her body type. She's tall, and she has a great body. She doesn't look good in pastels or drapery. A lot of the clothes her stylist puts her in now never seem right. I'm learning a lot about what looks good on her, and I think whenever she wears a mini skirt, when she wears crop tops, she looks great. All of her outfits on tour I felt were great.
“I would love to see her in smaller designers—anything you could buy on Ssense, like Coperni, for instance. I would love her in that brand KNWLS. I know she wants to support these designers. She's doing a million things. She's writing platinum albums. She's on tour. She doesn't have time to find the newest designers, but she could really blow up a business.
“Instead of wearing these grandfathered brands, she could learn from what Beyoncé is doing on her tour now—every stop is a different outfit. David Koma. Loewe. It's an amazing way of incorporating fashion into the whole dialogue of music. Like with Olivia Rodrigo, what she's doing now. She knows she looks good in Y2K fashion, so she went full force, and she's not only wearing one designer. I find that she's really taking advantage of where she is in her life, and I love to see it.”
Tell me about your process for an individual post. How do you pair an existing look with the new one? Do you consider where she is and what she's doing, or do you just find a great look and find a way to get it on her?
“I love this world I'm in right now where it's all pretend. I could put her in a miniskirt walking into Nobu Fifty-Seven when it's 40 degrees because it's all pretend. I really don't look at the logistics. I see a look, and I see a paparazzi picture. It's like when I'm shopping for myself and I'm like, ‘Ooh, it's in my color, and finally I have an event that I can wear that outfit to. I'll check it out.’ I have a ton of screenshots. I’ll see her walking and go, ‘Oh, I have the perfect Stella McCartney look that I pulled from the runway the other day. Let me see how it looks on Taylor.’ I am on Vogue Runway every night, looking for pictures. And I don't even use Photoshop; I use Microsoft Word. I went to design school. I know how to use Photoshop, but I just find it so funny that it's so bad. People DM me like, ‘Do you want me to Photoshop for you? I'll do it for free.’ And I'm like, ‘No, no. That’s not the point. This is my manifestation board. We want to show Taylor what she could be. We're cutting, we're pasting, we're gluing. We're not doing AI. This is fun.”
Tell me about some of the favorites that have really spoken to you when you've stumbled upon them. What gets you about them?
“So one of my favorites was one of my first posts. She wore this sequin dress with a flower on the halter. If she came onto the red carpet with such a minimal look, we would know there's more to the story. It's not from H&M; the designers are Rodarte. Everything is here for a reason, and it's so simple, and it matches her skin tone. I just thought that it looked so pristine and mature. I find that she dresses a little immature for her age. She's 33 years old. I think it's time to dress that way, in elegant, sophisticated clothing.
“Another one I love is when I put her in a Valentino red dress with cutouts by the hips and a big bow. It's just so grand. Do you remember when Jennifer Lawrence fell at the Oscars in that Dior dress? That dress is forever something I aspire to have in my life, and I just feel like Taylor Swift has had a steady career for years and she hasn't had that moment. That Jennifer Lawrence moment of a dress is so Taylor, and it could be so easy for her to get that dress.”
You have her in the pink Tom Ford shorts suit, and I feel like that would be so fun.
“That's an insane look. And as a celebrity, you get dressed up to go everywhere. I love getting dressed up, and I love going out in New York City, but I do feel a little like no one's here for me. Whatever she wears will be on the cover of any magazine.”
Do you think of elevating Taylor's Swift's personal style in these outfits, or are you kind of just like, ‘This would just look great on you?’
“Personally, I love going vintage shopping and actually wearing history. But if Taylor doesn't feel the need to elevate her style, then I wouldn't bully her into changing anything. But I want her to open her eyes to see what’s out there. For example, in school, I learned so much about Elsa Schiaparelli, and I love the parallels between her and Taylor Swift. For instance, Elsa trademarked her color: shocking pink. That is such a Taylor Swift move to trademark a color. I find the parallels. I think if Taylor Swift knew this about Schiaparelli, she would love to wear one of the couture dresses—vintage or current. I think that she would love the whole fashion world. I just don't think she had the opportunity to really sit with someone who is like, ‘No, you don't understand, this is iconic. This is history in fabric.’” It's not that I want to change her style—it's that I want to educate her and be like, ‘Can you do this? Because I can't.’”
Well, I feel like that Marc Jacobs look from a few years ago is so elevated-Taylor-Swift cat-lady energy.
“Exactly. That one, I was like, ‘I'm going to channel my cat lady.’ I was like, ‘There has to be a you're-going-to-the-recording-studio-but-you-just-want-to-put-on-a-big sweater look.’ I thought it was very her.”