Beat the Winter Blues with Beachside Hues
Ever since Amanda Johnson was a small child, she was smitten with fashion. “My love affair with fashion started very early with my obsession with ALL things Barbie!” she says. Add to that, Amanda was lucky enough to grow up surrounded by Baltimore fashion icons like Pat Moran and Sascha Wolhandler, who taught her the fine art of dressing with flair. Of course, having a certain parentage didn’t hurt. Amanda’s dad is renowned interior designer Henry Johnson, and her mom is couture designer Leitner Winstead. “I guess you could say fashion and design run in my blood,” she says. “I will never forget searching out Fiorucci in NYC when I was in high school.”
Amanda describes her style as striving to be different as well as comfortable. That’s why you’ll often see her in custom tennis shoes and furry headband, or one of her hand-painted crowns and a dash of shocking pink lipstick!
Here Amanda’s wearing an originally designed sweatshirt and a black puffball headband sold at Snappy Turtle, a boutique in Florida that’s also online. The sweatshirt has all of the frills of wearing lots of necklaces, but without the weight and bulk. Her outfit is highlighted with a bright pink lipstick that would make anyone smile!
Her art studio and art gallery – which she shares with her husband – reflect a strong sense of color and individual style. She turns many of her paintings into textiles which are used in the creation of interior spaces with her father as well as a new collaboration of dresses with her mother.
“Fine art should transcend time, therefore I draw heavily on historical influences in Greek mythology, the human condition through the ages, and self-reflection. My subject matter is often women as powerful mythological figures. In my compositions, I explore these themes using simplified shapes, intricate patterns, and color so that the viewer can interpret their ‘own-ness’ within the work.”
Project Runway star – and Baltimore School for the Arts grad – designer Christian Siriano is an avid collector of Amanda Johnson’s work – particularly her pillows and plates.
Find out more about her and see her work through her website, www.amandajohnsonstudio.com.
To experience the powerful light and splendor of Amanda Johnson’s fine art, luxury textiles, and wearable art first hand, visit the Amanda James Gallery in Boynton Beach, Florida.
What I love about Ted Murphy’s style is that he is unapologetically preppy. Head to toe, he shows his love for Vineyard Vines, Ralph Lauren, and his home state, Maryland! His tan pants have a miniature hunting scene embroidered on them with dogs, perfect for the wintery season. Keeping with the same earthy color family, he tops his outfit with a brown heavy wool herringbone sport coat. His earth tone jacket and pants balance out his bright salmon quarter-zip pull over.
The pink polka-dotted navy tie continues his preppy look, which he can remove to dress the look down. But – hands-down – my favorite piece of his outfit, of course, is his embroidered belt that has sunflowers and the Maryland flag! Although it may be small, the sunflowers bring me back to summer and out of the winter blues.
Ted brushes up on some of his knowledge on prep and how to adapt the old style of prep to the ever-changing modern world with the limited edition, True Prep. But as the any person knows, never leave home without a koozie! Ted loves his Southern Proper one that has some wintery symbols like deer, snowflakes, and pine trees.
I love adding some personality to any one of my looks. So, I encourage others to do the same, and have fun with their outfits! These zodiac necklaces make customizing my outfit easy. The gold pops and the script font are perfect for a conversation piece. It’s a throwback to the early 2000’s with the gold plated name necklace style, just like the iconic personalized one sported by “Sex and the City’s” Carrie Bradshaw (one of my favorite fashionistas!).
