In a tribute to her mom, who’s celebrating 25 years at Vogue, Nathalie Love gives us the story behind some of Lisa’s best denim looks, as captured over the years by their great friend Pamela Hanson.
“My mom actually doesn’t wear jeans that much – she really wears mostly pants, trousers – but she’s always been kind of a tomboy. And so I’ve always thought of her as being a jeans person. And, actually, she does wear jeans when the opportunity calls for it. I remember once we went to Wyoming with Pamela [Hanson] and her boyfriend Jamie and her sons for a family vacation, and I remember my mom being very into wearing denim-on-denim there. We all had our kind of cowboy outfits for that trip – denim shirts, jeans, boots…place-appropriate denim. My mom is good at getting into character. It’s a whole look. She really knows what to wear, when and where.
Lisa in Wyoming, 2000
I don’t remember what her jeans were on that trip, but knowing my mother – she’s always been about the most original, most classic pieces – I would say they had to be Levi’s. Or Gap. My mom does try new jeans, but she really loves the classics. She doesn’t wear a lot of accessories; there’s never a lot going on, but what she does wear works because the fit is always right. When I look at these old pictures and go through her photo albums, you can tell that was always there. There’s this amazing ease in which she dresses herself. It is not sloppy, it just comes to her, and she doesn’t ever take too long to get dressed. Throw it on, no frills. These pictures of my mom with my sister Laura – white shirt and white jeans, sweater – that is really her look:
Lisa with her youngest daughter Laura in Islesboro, Maine, 1992
What has my mom taught me about wearing jeans? With her it’s always, ‘keep it simple, know yourself, and know the kind of fit that works best for your body.’ I have a very short torso, so I look better in a higher-rise jean. Not super high, but not really low. And my legs are long – they are one of my better features [laughs] – so a jean that shows that off is good. My mom definitely has those kinds of rules that she taught my sister Laura and me at a very young age.
Mostly, I’ve let my mother be in charge of my wardrobe, and I continue to let her be in control [laughs]. I’ve been spoiled by her! But, you know, in my rebellious phase when I was a teenager, I once went vintage shopping and I found this pair of Wranglers that were all holey and cut-up. They were a flare – this is before skinny jeans, so there was a flare moment happening – and I thought they were the coolest. I think my mom was really, really not impressed [laughs]. I wore them to death, too.
Then I went through a phase where I would wear Earl jeans. Remember Earls? [We sure do!] They were so low cut you could see my everything. So low! But I was probably fourteen and really rail skinny, and that was the trend. I guess I could pull it off then.
Lisa with Nathalie in Islesboro, Maine, 1987
Most recently, my sister Laura and my mom (who excluded me from this group purchase!), bought a blue jean jacket with shearling inside from Topshop. They both got one and I didn’t, and so I took my mother’s [laughs]. So she no longer has it, I do.
My mom is so stunning and she’s also so funny. And she’s a great tennis player. She’s very competitive. The pictures of her on the grass in jean shorts (top), those were taken at the tennis club on the island in Maine, probably before I was born because she had that weird 80s haircut. See, she can do stuff like that – have a full mullet, which nobody can pull off…but she does.”