Fashion & Style Q+A: Elizabeth Zahradníček-Haas, Expats.cz
photo courtesy od Elizabeth Zahradníček-Haas
Elizabeth Zahradníček-Haas is the editor in chief of the tremendously useful (and also fun!) site Expats.cz. We have a bigger interview coming up but let’s start with our usual Fashion & Style Q+A!
What is your definition of fashion and your definition of style?
I used to be a fashion and beauty writer so I spent a long time and a lot of money in the name of style. I wore a lot of black and leather! PJ Harvey was kind of my style icon. Oversized sunglasses and a chunky heel. I’m still stuck in the 90s. I would wear a denim jacket every day if I could get away with it. But to me the most fashionable people just have this stylish aura that comes from confidence. These days for me it’s also comfort, clothes that automatically hang on you really well with statement accessories like a beautifully made bag or bracelet or bright red lips.
What do you like the most about your job?
All the fascinating people I meet. Storytelling. Having access to so many amazing venues, people and places. The freedom to have a conversation with someone who has something important to say and call it work. Getting paid to write which is becoming more and more difficult to do.
How do you recharge your batteries?
For me the greatest luxury is getting on a train with my family and going for a trip whether it’s to our cottage on the Sázava or visiting a museum or castle. Spending hours at a secondhand bookstore alone. Taking a hike with a good podcast. Right now due to the current stay-at-home measures, I’d say I recharge in my bed with a novel.
What makes you happy?
On a professional level, research and discovery. Research to me whether I’m editing a book or writing an article and fact-finding and connecting dots and developing conclusions, there’s something really satisfying about that. Then sharing those ideas. On a personal level, cooking! I love seeing my kids eat.
What are you doing against the grey?
For me that definition of “grey” could mean so many things but ultimately it just means a narrow world view. That also means a world view of beauty as one very artificial thing. So I hope that I’m going against it by teaching my daughters about true beauty, the kind that doesn’t sexualize women, and how to see the colors of the world, celebrate different cultures, accept all lifestyles, and following that path myself.
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