How I Shop: Leah Kateb

It’s been an unprecedented year for Leah Kateb.

The “Love Island USA” star became an overnight phenomenon thanks to her poetic (read: out-of-pocket) one-liners, straightforward personality and captivating energy. There’s also her lovable friendship with JaNa Craig and Serena Page (also known as “PPG”), which has had fans in such a chokehold that some are demanding a spinoff centered on the trio. 

But, above all, Kateb fed the sartorially starving with her impeccable outfits. Fashion lovers quickly pointed out that she had all the makings of a style It girl. Kateb agrees, and already has “a lot of goals in the fashion space,” she tells Fashionista. 

Some haters have dismissed her sense of style, claiming she’s only sartorially revered because she wears designer labels. Kateb, however, begs to differ: “I’ve seen people say, ‘Is Leah a fashion icon or is she just a rich girl who has access to designer brands? And I’m like, ‘Well, no.’ A lot of the pieces you’re seeing are pieces. They’re not new. They’re literally things you have to sit for hours to source out. It’s not something that you just stumble upon on Revolve. No shade, no tea.”

All shade, all tea. But trust, Kateb has the fashion knowledge to back it up. She boasts an impressive secondhand designer wardrobe, including a range of vintage Roberto Cavalli pieces. “Roberto Cavalli fits the vibe that I’m going for 90% of the time,” she says of the brand. “It really feels like you’re wearing artwork.” 

Ahead, Kateb discusses her approach to dressing for “Love Island,” the story of how she got into vintage fashion, her industry aspirations and much more.

“I’ve always loved clothes, and I know that everyone says it’s a way to express yourself, but it really is. I remember when I was younger, I would wear the most random stuff. At the time I thought it was cool; it made me feel good. I have this picture that I’m thinking of specifically, and I was just a vest and a tie with a random white T-shirt underneath it. At the time, I thought that was so fire. I was probably around 10 years old. If you’re wearing something and you feel good in it, that was always my vibe. I never really cared about what other people had on.

“My style can be either very streetwear or I’m putting on vintage designer. It depends on the occasion, obviously, but I do love a super fire streetwear moment. I also love getting glammed up and putting on vintage designer dresses; or having a little pop of a vintage bag or shoes. Let’s say we’re doing streetwear, sometimes I’ll pop on a vintage bag just to make it cute and complete. You know when people are like, ‘Oh, my style is cottage-core.’ They have specific styles. I don’t even know what my style would fall under, honestly.

“My sister and I bounce ideas off of each other. Ever since she was younger, she had more of a knack for [fashion], and now it’s rubbed off onto me too in the past years. So if anyone is my style inspiration, it’s my sister.

“It’s actually a funny story how I got started [wearing] vintage: I’ve always loved nice things, but I haven’t been able to afford them all the time. I remember I was on The RealReal, and was looking at a few Dolce [& Gabbana] dresses. I was going to an event for my cousin’s engagement party, and I was like, ‘Fuck, I want a nice dress for this, but I don’t have a lot of money to spend right now.’ Then I saw this little vintage Dolce dress. When I started searching up a lot of vintage pieces, I saw they were way less expensive than the current dresses brands had out. Now it’s funny, the really nice vintage pieces are expensive as fuck, but I started out looking at vintage pieces because they were more affordable. From then on, my sister and I started to appreciate it more.

“I love [Roberto] Cavalli, specifically vintage Cavalli. I just love how amazing the quality is. A lot of vintage pieces are kind of ratty and beat down. They’ve lived a few lives. But Roberto Cavalli has such amazing quality throughout the years of wear. 

“I do have a stylist: His name is Marc Eram and he is amazing. I’m so fucking vocal though. It’s very much a team effort because I love fashion and I’m not just going to put anything on — we bounce ideas off each other.

“I am a serial over-packer — it’s a disease. I brought four suitcases [to ‘Love Island’]. I am the type of person who’d rather pack too much than too little. What if I’m sitting there and I’m like, ‘Fuck, I wish I brought this’ and now I don’t have it? Why would I give myself a chance to have anxiety when I can eliminate it? 

“My sister is the one who sent me the Roberto Cavalli dress during the Casa Amore recoupling that everyone loved. The outfit that I was wearing when Liv [Walker] stole Rob [Rausch] from me, that one was all me. That was vintage Roberto Cavalli, too.

“My favorite looks [were] definitely the Roberto Cavalli dress I wore during the Casa Amore recoupling. Also, when Rob was like, ‘Nice shoes,’ and I was like, ‘Thanks, they’re Bottega [Veneta].’ I was wearing a little Are You Am I dress. And then my outfit from the night that Liv stole Rob.

“I would swap [wardrobes] with Liv. We were the ones who were sharing our clothes the most with everyone on the cast. Serena would, every night — she still does too when we go on vacation somewhere — she’ll come to my room and be like, ‘Oh, let me look inside my closet,’ and she’ll come and open up my suitcase.

“I love shopping both in-store and online. In-store is obviously easier, you can see how it looks right there. But I also am a fiend for shopping online. I will sit in bed until 4 a.m. racking up a mean cart. It really just depends on what you’re searching for. If I’m looking for vintage, obviously I’m shopping online, but if I want a pair of shoes then I go in-store. I also shop for jeans in-store, but I normally do have to tailor my jeans, so it’s a little trickier.

“For vintage, my two go-to places are The RealReal and Vestiaire Collective. Both of these have everything your heart could desire.

“Brands that I’m loving right now are Acne Studios, Roberto Cavalli (of course) and vintage Mugler. I love latex right now.

“I’d love to work with Roberto Cavalli, Bottega [Veneta] and definitely Jean Paul Gaultier. JPG is one of my all-time favorite brands. For two years, I would only wear JPG, and everyone called me the ‘JPG Princess.’ I’m also obsessed with Miu Miu.

“I can’t live without my black Dior Saddle bag. She goes with everything. Probably one of my best purchases. 

“My first non-vintage splurge? My Cartier Love bracelet.

“I most definitely see myself somewhere in the fashion industry. My sister and I have loved clothes forever, and we love picking out the pieces. We’re very particular and very intentional with it. I’d love to find myself in campaigns. I know a lot of people always are talking about my sister and me having our own brand, and it’s definitely something that we talked about. We have a lot of things in the works for that. I have a lot of goals in the fashion space because it’s something that I really do love and care about. So this is just the beginning.”

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Source: Fashionista.com