Every day the game begins with a few simple questions: what color do I want to wear today? Does this represent how I feel today? How can I use this silhouette to represent what I want to say?
Casey Shteamer, 29, a property rental manager from Kansas, who lives in Wicker Park, struts her haphazard, eclectic and ever-evolving style down the streets of Chicago while also showing off her style and thoughts about fashion on her blog: Imperfectwonder.com.
“I define fashion as a visually interesting way of dressing,”Shteamer says.
It doesn’t take much to build the perfect outfit, she says. Shteamer just lets her mood and the colors take control of what she wants to put together. It can be vintage lace, all black or the elegant blue dress that flows in the Chicago wind. Or it can be something as simple as jeans or a fringe jacket to make her outfit pop.
Shteamer works with photographers and videographers to exhibit her artistic views outfits she has put together that express her artistic style.
“I love Casey’s blog, it’s so cute,” said Tyronita Bell, a 19 year-old fashion student at Columbia College Chicago.
“I love it, from head to toe. I love her sense of style.”
Shteamer works with dmcreativeco.com a multimedia company in Lincoln Park that has been helping her with her blog layout as well as taking photos of looks that Shteamer has put together.
“We purposefully let Casey’s personality and mood lead the shoots to let us focus on capturing those candid human moments,” said Dusty Sheldon, co-owner of d+m.
Shteamer’s blog has pictures of different pieces she put together. One of them is a blue dress shoot done by d+m.
“This [blue dress] was a favorite shoot,” said Mallory Burgess, co-owner of d+m. “The dress was so elegant, and the wind gave it such a kinetic energy, but we were up on the roof of a building in Lincoln Park watching this storm rolling closer and closer – giving the images from the rushed shoot a sense of urgency and unease.”
Some people just have a natural instinct when it comes to clothes and for Shteamer it’s been a passion since she was young.
“When I was little, I was always kind of embarrassed that I liked clothes and fashion so much– my mom had this huge chest, and every time when friends would come over, all I wanted to do is play dress up,” Shteamer said.
Shteamer said one of her favorite places to model and take pictures is Wicker Park because there are so many artistic, urban places to take photos.
Wicker Park is where multimedia designer Dex Gonzalez, owner of Dex Design in Wicker Park and a contributor to Shteamer’s blog, gets a lot of his inspiration and one of his favorite places to work with artists like Shteamer.
“Fashion photography is as much about as selling an attitude as much as telling a story.” Gonzalez said. “It has to be aspirational, something the viewer would want to have or become. Not to mention it has to be beautiful and have great composition.”
“Its energy,” he said. “Very much like NYC, there’s an energy in the neighborhood that you can feel in the air. It inspires you. Needless to say, the creative, youthful vibe it’s so enticing.”
Bloggers like Casey really show that “fashion” can be beautiful with no matter your attire; whether you’re walking down a runway, styling a photo shoot, or just feeling great, don’t be afraid to show off your style.
“At the end of the day, everyone has to wear clothes, its something everyone can relate to no matter what,” Bell said.