British actress Thandie Newton has revealed that she is often inspired by her mother Nyasha’s 70s style. She has also been greatly influenced by musician Stevie Nicks, who she think created the original bohemian vibe that we see so often on the likes of Kate Moss and other style icons to this day. She explained that she admired Stevie’s outfits while growing up and would try to recreate her unique look:
“I have these wonderful Christian Louboutins which remind me of my mom in the 1970s. They’re cute patchwork Stevie Nicks-style boots with bronze piping and lovely leather laces. Stevie Nicks was my style icon growing up, with her gypsy, bohemian look, using elements of men’s attire with waistcoats and a little top hat. She was Kate Moss before Kate Moss.”
Thandie also revealed that she once braided her hair in cornrows before a school photo, but as she attended a mostly white Catholic school, she was asked to take them out for the snap, although she laughs off the incident now: “My mom once braided my hair in cornrows to make sure I looked neat, but the nuns at my Catholic school wouldn’t let me have them in for the school photo. I think they were just jealous that I had hair and they didn’t.
” The actress has recently been wearing her hair styled naturally and she believes it can make a “big statement” because it’s not often done by women of colour in the spotlight: “I’ve only stopped straightening my hair in the past five years. I could have busted out my own look earlier, but I’ve had conversations with other actresses of colour who agree if you appear on the red carpet with natural hair, it’s a big statement.”
