Juliette Lewis: Breaking her own rules

Costume National’s choice of Juliette & The Licks to front their 08 campaign underlines the stylistic flair and fashion nous of rock and pop’s most visually exciting female performer of the late Noughties.

And, in return, Ennio Capasa’s C’N'C Costume National pret-a-porter line benefits immeasurably by hooking up with sometime actress and these days full-time rocker Juliette Lewis and her band.

Of course Lewis has been here before – in 2005 she established her fashion bona-fides when featured in a Steven Klein shoot for J. Lindeberg alongside ex-Libertine Carl Barat. That year Lindeberg also provided stage clothing for the whole band, including this t-shirt dress featuring a huge graphic of a condor.

What charms about Lewis, however, is her openness; knee pads, head-dresses, heels, arm-bracelets, ethnic belts and, of course, jumpsuits and swimwear, all get a look in alongside more regular jeans and rock & roll tees. Criticism rains down on her from stylistically-stunted indie music fans and journalists, but she remains as unabashed as her gymnastic live performances.

“I sew all my own clothes; I’ll get a vision sometimes,” she told Trevor Kelley of Harp magazine a couple of years back. “The first vision I had was of a skintight, yellow jumpsuit. On the Warped Tour it was different. It was 110 degrees when we played in Phoenix. My only vision was a bikini and some kneepads.”

Meanwhile Lewis picks and chooses from contemporary designers where she sees fit, from Leena Similu of Les Chiffoniers to Viktor & Rolf and Alexander McQueen, whose appeal she pinpoints in this style.com interview:

“That’s the joy of those designers; they break their own rules,” says Lewis. It’s a fitting description of Lewis herself and her innate understanding that visual fireworks elevate great music into another dimension. Just check her in this great clip for the band’s single Hot Kiss: bonkers without being affected and damn sexy to boot: