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Feb 25, 20175 min read

Eclecticism, eccentricity and friendships.

Ever since I was a youngster I’ve always had varied taste; in music, clothes, toys, books, even films and TV! I only came across the term ‘eclectic’ a few years ago when studying at uni. I came to really understand the term in my last year whilst preparing my final major project for my final showcase at Graduate Fashion Week.


I had to choose a word that best describes my personality; and having struggled with my identity for many years, I thought this word was the best way to sum up my essence.

I’m at the stage in my life, now, where I’m not interested in meeting people who will waste my time or making ‘frienemies’; the friends I make now I want to keep. Over the past few years, I have met someone wonderful individuals, and I have got back in contact with an old friend from school. The best thing about my friendships is that they each represent a side of myself. My friends Lauren and Laura fulfil the wish I had as a teenager to be in a ‘girl gang’. I gossip with and confide in them. We go shopping and for dinner; we have a laugh.

I get to express my nerdy side with my friends Ian and Paul. Ian and I go to the Cinema and go for dinner, we go to conventions and have a shared love for Doctor Who! Paul and I have a shared love for everything Japanese, we’ve been to Hyper Japan and Brighton Comic Con, we run Mica Cupcake together and he’s a great ally.

My friend Zoe I drifted from each other in college, however both of us grew up and got back in touch. Even though we both have very different lives (she has a baby for one!), we’ll always be BFF’s from school. That’ll never fade.

I am very lucky to have so many friends. I never thought I’d reach the point that I’d be able to maintain steady regular friendships. I moved around so much up until the age of 14, because of being a military kid. I had to learn to (at least pretend to) be confident enough to go right up to people and establish an instant connection. I had to make friends pretty quickly in every place I went to. As, before, I knew it, I would be moving to another place. I have had a very exotic and pretty cool childhood. However, I have always had this odd feeling of never being settled. And those same habits that I procured as a kid still exist in me even to this day.

I recently started a new job, a promotion to another store, and instantly I established confidence in meeting all the new people. It can often come across as arrogance, though, so I almost have to learn to reel it in from time to time. Depending on the situation, of course.

Something that my ballsy nature has lended itself to is surviving in the fashion industry. At events like London Fashion Week I’m able to talk to anyone and exchange contact information and ask questions when I need to. Also, it comes in handy when gaining internships and work placements.

It seems to me that another way to ‘make it’ in the fashion industry, or any creative industry in fact,is to have an element of eccentricity in your personal style and the way you present yourself.

This can vary from the way you dress to the way you write or your behavior. The only problem is: this world is so over saturated with images, words and ideas, that it’s almost impossible to succeed in a creative field. So many talented, creative and inventive people slip through the net because they weren’t exposed to the right opportunity or weren’t in the right place at the right time. However, there are a few cases where someone seemingly small suddenly boom onto our screens or into our ears.

A great example of this is East Sussex born Rag’n’bone man. His hauntingly deep voice can be heard over the air waves all over the country. He’s become a household name. And he’s not your average wrapped up flawless bubblegum pop star that tends to churn out from talent shows and YouTube videos. He’s a genuine artist. He loves his music and stays true to his image. And that’s something to truly admire and celebrate.

But how many Rag’n’bone men are there who are just as talented and just as driven- who didn’t make it?

This is the dilemma I face every day. Every blog post I write-I’m secretly thinking…’is this going to get noticed?’ ‘Is there really any point in doing this?’ And the big one ‘am I actually any good at this?’

Now I’m just being honest. And I’m sure every artsy individual who creates images and films and articles all think the same thing daily. It’s a confidence crisis that comes hand in hand with 21st century Westernised culture. It’s sad but true.

Now I may wear strange clothes, have coloured hair and weird tattoos. And I may behave in a way that most twenty something’s would find odd and cringey (sorry not sorry). Irregardless, I always stay true to myself and stick by what I love no matter what. In a strange (not big headed) way. It’s what makes me unique. It’s even gotten to the point now where people who know me well enough: I.e. friends, family, people I work with…they will see something pink or fluffy or anything to do with unicorns and mermaids and go ‘Mica would love that’.

That kind of predictability is a bit of a nightmare to an eccentric like me. As I like to surprise and shock people. But it’s also quite refreshing…like I’ve been accepted as who I am. Not who I pretend to be. Which is awesome, quite frankly.

One person, in particular who has come into my life recently is my lovely boyfriend. He fully accepts all my quirks and eccentricities- they’re his favourite things about me. He laughs at my strange humour and appreciates my geeky, odd tastes. He would never ask me to change it try to be ordinary (god forbid)- he encourages me to be myself every single day.

So yeah, to sum this little piece up: it’s great that all my friends and family members embrace my eclectic and kooky nature. And, honestly, if that wasn’t the case then I would most likely struggle to accept myself. In a world of grey scale I have always stood out. And I don’t mean that in a delusions of grandeur kind of way. I just mean my nutty and interesting style and passions do, in fact, make me different to most people I know. And the reason I have lots of friends in my life is because I haven’t found that one person who matches the in and outs of my personality 100%. There could be someone out there who loves Bratz dolls, kawaii fashion and American Horror Story. Who knows…I’ll keep you all posted.

Stay true to your fine-ass selves cupcakers, and stay stylish.

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