Goorls We Like : AmyCakes DankyDank

We see her everywhere-- in the clurb, on the streets, selling her wares at Pop Souk, and she is ever sickening. Her look is always something to behold, and always changing. She is a Goo Girl through & through because she dresses for herself and does not let haters deter her.  Besides her really unique style, she is always smiling and friendly.  We're really interested in people who have outlandish, what some call defensive style, but really inclusive personalities-- something that is missing in fashion. Amy Cakes is Parsons design alum, makes  clothing art (which you can buy here), and hosts parties. Amy kindly let us interview her as our very first Goo Sister crush edition.

Where are you from? 

I have lived a few places, but the place I was born and spent most of my time was San Diego, CA.

(I also lived in Mountainair, New Mexico and Freiburg, Germany)

What is yr relationship 2 clothes? 

I knew I wanted to work with clothes from about 7 years old. I played A LOT with Barbies and would often design new clothes for them out of tissues. I had an amazing collection of clothes, shoes, and accessories for them. My mom and grandmother are really creative, so they taught me how to sew and play around with fabrics. I dress pretty much the same as i did when i was younger. Bright colors, mixing patterns, odd accessories, fun shoes.  

What was childhood like? 

Kinda crazy... like the MGMT music video for Kids. My parents built a house out of straw bales for 6 years when we lived in New Mexico, so we pretty much lived off the grid. We didn't have a lot of money, so I learned that saving up enough pennies can eventually equal a rootbeer float. I got a lot of amazing play time by myself to be in nature and just do weird stuff that kids do. My parent's weren't very strict when I was younger, so playing in mud and doing semi-dangerous things weren't taboo (you know how some parents just shelter the shit out of their children).

Living in Germany was kind of hard because I was really different and got picked on a lot. I learned a lot about self confidence and how to take care of myself. It was also just straight up amazing to live in a different country and finally have electricity. It seemed like hell at the time, but I would not be who I am today without that experience. Middle school/High school was kind of cray emotionally, but I think almost everybody goes through shit at that time in their lives. 

Can u send us a pic of lil amycakes? 

I have soooo many! So here are a couple. 

What inspires your style/ design process? 

Lately (like with my Children on Drugs collection) I am inspired by children and the weird stuff they do. I kinda hate kids, but I babysat a lot in high school and it was so interesting the weird shit that kids would say or do. Even thinking back on certain thought patterns I had as a child is so interesting. And of course the way they dress themselves, like putting things on backwards or only wear certain textures. I'm also of course heavily inspired by all sorts of subcultures. Weird shit. I dunno I think my tumblr is really the best description of this. I mostly have it so I don't have to save pictures onto my computer all the time.

What's your favorite thing in NYC? 

Hmm... I love Roosevelt Island. It has such a great vibe and history. It's also kind of hard to get to, which makes it even more magical and creepy. I also love the Frick museum. 

How many hair colors have you had? 

pretty much every color in different ways: light pink, orange, turquoise, green, yellow, red, dark pink, blue, purple...

We love knits and we noticed you do too. What do you like so much about designing w/ knitwear? 

I learned how to crochet a chain when I was young and I made garlands and stuff. I didn't pick it up again really until freshman year of college. It was something I kind of forgot about and when I started doing it again I was like "DUHHH THIS IS AWESOME"... I actually always thought that knitwear was this club you couldn't get into that is %100 recycled materials and made by elves in a forest. I started interning for Lindsay Degen last December and she is SO not the elf-knitwear type. It's really awesome to work with her, because she has showed me that knitwear can be funky and chic at the same time. She also appreciates the more artistic side of yarn. I like crocheting because I can just go with it and make stuff up as I'm working on something. 

What are your future/life goals? 

My main goal is to be happy. Even if I'm poor, I want to be happy. It would be cool to be some sort of stylist and then make crazy costumes for performers... like Christian Joy, who is super awesome and inspiring. (Hit me up, Karin Dreijer Andersson)

What do you say to people who don't vibe with your style? 

I don't really care. Sometimes I may flip somebody off, if I'm in the mood. But really I don't notice. I agree with "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it at all" 

Describe yourself in three words: 

wild, social, hard-working 

Describe your style in 3 words:

eclectic, contradictory, colorful

GOO