Introducing Alex

“I have three books on my nightstand at all times, I never read them because I don’t have a bedside lamp and I’m holding out for the perfect one”, Alex Mossa explains, laughing. At the moment the bedside table in her intentionally minimalist bedroom has The Body Keeps The Score (“the manual every person that starts therapy is tasked with”), a poetry book by a collective of queer authors of color, and On Beauty by Zadie Smith sitting on it. She lives in New York, on the border between Brooklyn and Queens, where she works as a freelance producer and talent acquisition partner, and admits to being big on “self-care” but not so good at the “work-life balance”, so she’ll frequently book a tropical beach holiday (which requires three completely different books to the ones on her nightstand) because she believes in treating herself, but still takes work calls and sends emails while she’s there.

She described her home beforehand as being what a house would look like “if you took acid in a Herman Miller store in 1976 and woke up in a minimalist preppy duplex in 2021”, and she isn’t wrong; minimalist mid-century modern furniture, lots of plants, pops of color, lots of white and wood, dog fur. Split off into three different areas (“I live here, I work here, and sometimes I cook here”), the decor in her bedroom has been scaled back to feel like an AirBnB, because, as she explains, after looking at design all day for work she needs somewhere she can go to to get a break from it all and switch off, with white walls and candles and incense. The lower level of her house serves as a living room turned home office, with lots of rugs, throws and pillows, stacks of magazines and books, lots of framed artwork and photographs, and two giant foam fingers from both the Yankees and the Mets. She found us a comfy chair in amongst it all to talk to us about her love of traveling, swimming, hiking, boxing, taking photos, vintage digging, and weirdly - working.

Let’s start with having you explain your style to us, Alex...

My personal style has a lot of duality; high/low, skintight/baggy, chic/gaudy. I am excited by unique proportions, new designers, vintage designer items from the '90s, and a good pair of jeans. I love vintage tees with jeans and a clean sneaker and I also love a tailored trouser with a heeled bootie and a corseted top. My style changes day to day and occasion to occasion.

Would your friends describe your style any differently do you think?

They’d probably say I’m low-key but have great pieces. Which is not wrong. I’m the friend they text from an expensive store because I always tell them to treat themselves. I love a luxury retail experience because I can only now afford that.

Thinking about your friends, what’s your ‘style/fashion role’ in the group?

My best friend Liz and I have very similar interests in athleisure, streetwear and sneakers, we tell each other about new brands or releases and have some of the same pieces because our style is similar. Our friends sometimes rip off our likes or buys, and that’s OK. We are all taking notes from somebody else. I wear all of my boyfriend’s clothes and we share accessories back and forth. I steal his style very often. I’d say I inspire my friends to invest in pieces rather than shop fast fashion and I throw my influence on social media towards my friend’s brands. Word of mouth is my love language, I love to tell people my favorite things or what I’ve got my eye on. Our style is different, we won’t all look the same in the same piece.

Who inspires you style-wise?

Everything Alexa Lanza styles for interview and Alexa Lanza in general, Alexandra Kennedy, Miyako Bilizzi, Brandon Mahler (my friends that work in styling and my boyfriend that works in Menswear), Jeremy O’Harris – the best dressed playwrite on the planet, Janicza Bravo’s press looks for Zola, Katie Jane Hughes, old punk ladies in NY that haven’t changed their wardrobe since the early '80s, Jean Paul Gualtier, Issey Miyake.

In the public eye, whose style do you admire and are influenced by?

Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen, I love that they look chic and bored at all times. If I had their frame I would dress like them. I love the simplicity and fluidity of what they do with The Row and think they are sartorial geniuses in their own right.

Jenné Lombardo, she has insane pieces and they all look amazing on her body, the way she will just wear a loose suit with a bra or some sweat pants with a corset and not look like an idiot is absolutely iconic. I have followed her off and on for a few years yet I immediately thought of her here. She has some questionable looks sometimes but I live for the gaudiness.

Rihanna – I love FENTY, the clothes she designed were smart and cool and she has great personal style. I love her casual looks and I think shes the strongest woman alive for wearing such tall shoes. She makes everything look effortless, lived in, and comfortable. There's a confidence there that cant be matched.

I also love the stylist Veneda Carter, Bella Hadid always looks on point and Kendall Jenner has been looking so good lately.

If you could ‘steal’ one person [in the public eye’s] closet, whose closet would you steal and why?

This one is super easy: Kim Kardashian. Her stylists are smart and have figured out dressing a curvy body. Also she’s a billionaire with a vintage Gaultier and Mugler addiction, count me IN.

Where are the other places you’re getting style/fashion influence from?

'90s movies like Sleepless in Seattle, Clueless and  Pretty Woman give me new ideas every time I watch them. Traveling, going to another country and immersing yourself in their culture is really eye opening. I spent 10 days in Lisbon and it changed my style forever. I hope to have the same experiences in France and Italy. Walking around New York, best dressed city in the world and you’ll always find a new purpose for a garment after seeing somebody on the street looking better than you.

When it comes to Streetwear right now, what’s the exciting stuff happening in the culture?

All of the smaller brands that are coming out of Ex-Supreme staff, some of the smaller skateboarding companies are also doing really cool stuff. There’s sadly hardly a women’s streetwear market right now but I do think that a lot of the brands being more outspoken about LGBTQ+ rights and centering more of the people of color that inspired the industry as a whole is smart. Also – Lourdes Leon in campaigns for xgirl and mademe is iconic. It’s still very high-low and maybe it’s a return to the early '90s but pop royalty and toothless skaters being the models is the blueprint I hope they stick with this time. All of the high-low collabs and people like Teddy Santis stepping in as CD at New Balance is a breath of fresh air.

What are the things happening that frustrate you or cause friction?

I don’t dislike anything, everybody complains about the SNKRS app so I guess I’ll choose that hill. I’d like to win some Jordan 1s sometime soon.

Where are your three favorite stores to shop in for clothing/apparel?

SSENSE.COM – they have everything and their sale is GOOD

Farfetch.com – I love a deal

Frankie Shop -online and instore – they are well-curated, well-merched and sometimes I need to buy something for the next day and can't wait for shipping.

Does the experience of those stores matter to you too?

I like a small, well-curated experience, I love shopping comfortably but I love a sale.

What other stores/spaces are you shopping in and why?

I used to love Need Supply and feel a bit lost since they closed – living in Richmond for quite some time I trusted their buyer’s taste. I really think any small store or boutique is what I prefer but I’m REALLY picky about fabric, cut, fit, etc and so I've found a few that I like (Assembly NYC, Need Supply, La Garconne) and I just stick with them. I actually talk about this quite often with friends that there are not that many good places to shop anymore. I really try and steer away from mass production in any way I can unless there is a great collab, capsule or new designer taking over that I love. It leaves few options for shopping in-store and I’m constantly looking for new places to shop that feel like my style and needs are met.

Going a little more specific, what are your top five favorite brands?

1. Ganni – I love the patterns, cuts and abstract details. It’s clean yet busy which I love. Their denim fits me like a dream and I generally love the playfulness that the brand employs.

2. Supreme – a true legacy brand that I've loved for 15 years, I think when I was younger I thought it was the epitome of cool, now my friends work there and give me discounts so it’s a go-to for collabs, accessories like bags and sunglasses and they make my favorite sweatpants.

3. ASOS – they rip everybody off but have given me some amazing dresses, bags and bathing suits and its fast cheap and easy.

4. Eckhaus Latta – they are abstract and contemporary and I love their retail experience in the Chinatown mall and they make some of my favorite denim.

4. Gaultier – The vintage mesh is something that I dream about, it’s so sexy and '90s. 

What are your top priorities when it comes to buying new items of clothing?

Fit, Quality, Feel on the body/Comfort, Socio-political impact, and sustainability.

And why do those things matter to you in the order they do?

I’m not a sample size, sometimes I don’t have the luxury of something fitting well, so I am incredibly particular about that. I want my clothes to last a long time and be of quality breathable fabrics, I want the fabric to feel good on my skin and not be scratchy. I care about who is selling the clothes and the way in which they are producing them, not least because I know that’s an uphill battle. I’m not buying clothes from WeWoreWhat because I don’t like the owner’s viewpoint on stealing other designers not because her clothes are mass produced.

How many pairs of shoes, any shoes, do you own?

Probably 30 pairs at this point.

If you had to split them up into categories and write a percentage next to them [what, math!] what would that look like?

50% sneakers

10% boots

10% sandals

20% heels

10% loafers + flats

What type of shoe would we typically find you in, if you there is a ‘typical shoe’ for you?

New Balance 993, 991 or 990

What are the most important things for you when it comes to buying your favorite kind of shoe?

Comfort and support, how they look with clothes.

What about your favorite brands for shoes? Who do you always end up going to?

Nike, New Balance, Birkenstock, Clarks.

Why are these your favorite brands do you think? 

Comfort and ease meets classic legacy brand.

What about your favorite shoe stores, again - on or offline? What makes them your favorite stores?

Nike Soho to see all the new releases up close, and SSENSE.COM because again they have everything chic.