Effy Stonem Style Analysis: The Psychology of the Glamorized Modern Femme Fatale

Effie Elizabeth Stoneham is the most iconic character of the show Skins, known for her magnetic personality and looks. She plays up her allure and dreamy vibe, but also her personal fashion, making her the most admired Skins character both in the show and in real life. Though each character is specifically styled to be identifiable and distinct, Effie's look is the most recognized and associated with the series because her fashion is the embodiment of the rebellion, beauty, and mystery that the Skins franchise holds, captured on screen throughout the course of her life. Effie is charismatic, intelligent, rebellious, manipulative, and highly cunning, much like her older brother who she admired greatly and was one of the only few who ever truly saw her for who she is. Unlike her brother, Effie is a genuine and caring person. Despite not wanting to admit this to herself, often seen as the cool mysterious party girl on the surface, Effie has much more depth to her character as she is someone who is very aware yet fragile because she has endured severe repressed guilt, trauma, and heartbreak. Alongside mental illness, this side of her is masked by her captivating exterior and to hell with it all attitude that gives her the illusion of a carefree seductive girl that only a few can really piece together. Her personal style does evolve with her as a person, always remaining very unique and individualistic. Her experimentation and objection to proper codes of dress creates her very distinctive look. We can see that her fashion is very genuine, it aligns with her interests and she is drawn to these looks. Yet, her act is more of a facade. Her fashion being so collectic contributes to the facade and combines so many variables and aspects of herself. It's linked to her mental state that takes many turns throughout Skins, meaning that Effie's fashion is very authentic. She first appears as a minor character in earlier seasons, leading a double life as she pretends to be a shy schoolgirl, and her attitude adapts to this clean and proper look. She had exceptionally high cognitive abilities and was a force of nature, even in the eyes of her own family. As a young girl, she didn't talk much. As she grows older, she still speaks less than those around her, but in reality is a party girl and amused by how others are mesmerized by her. Dressed in her preferred style to party, which sets the tone of her personal fashion that darkens and matures throughout the show. Her go-to fashion consists of leather jackets, flannels, short dresses, t-shirts, shorts, and jeans as staples that are paired off with edgier accessories such as fishnets, heavy jewelry, and very masculine garments that have heavier essences. Typically, her clothing will have an undone element such as distressed aspects or tougher materials that are matched with very feminine ones such as lace or intricate patterns. She plays with this duality both as a teenager and an adult. When Effie speaks, there's usually an underlying meaning that is captured in a few words. She's very selective with what she says and ultimately creates power through this, much like how Effie's demeanor and image is carefully curated despite the whole I don't care facade, typically holding a cold stare or her trademark smile. Due to this, she takes on the character trope of the stoic, which is one who rarely acts emotionally even in highly emotional or tense situations. Their demeanor remains detached from the situation even if they are fully engaged internally. Her fashion contributes to this detachment that she shows throughout the series. Effie's experimentation and combination of alternative fashion such as sub-genres like indie, grunge, and punk create her look that sets her apart from other characters. Her look offers differing codes of aesthetics that challenge the normally coveted ideals of aesthetics and beauty due to how alternative fashion varies greatly and doesn't have one look. But similarities can be found across numerous sub-groups, whether that be visually or conceptually. Effie's combination of numerous alternative sub-groups references the ideals that each values, ultimately giving a look that is constantly evolving, hence being very intriguing yet distant. Usually the stoic will have a look of boredom or disdain, but when they do show genuine emotion, it tends to be very intense or even explosive, or very subtle, hinting that there is more beneath the surface. In the third series, Effie becomes a main character and falls into the archetype of the femme fatale, which is a woman who is very mysterious, attractive, and seductive, who uses her beauty, allure, and wit to intrigue men, capturing their hearts, then often leading them into compromising situations or ultimately their downfall. The look associated with the trope is typically in film noir interpretations, but does exist in many forms within folklore and myths as well as modern culture and media. For example, Effie's first look of series 3 consists of heavy eye makeup and undone hair. Her top is oversized yet flowing, outlining her figure of a blue gradient. She adorns herself with numerous bracelets and necklaces that are very collective rather than cohesive. She pairs this off with fishnets and black boots, combining very masculine and feminine traditional essences, constantly offsetting every nature of every piece. Effie's beautiful and elusive nature is a combination of her look and personal style that have made her a modern femme fatale. Direct references are made in an alternative execution. Effie holds focal attributes of the archetype, such as darker color schemes within clothing and makeup, but applies these concepts in a very modern way that creates the same sense of mystery around her. She has that same intent of using her lips to attract attention but never give too much of herself, just the pieces that she deems acceptable to share. Her cool demeanor and I don't care lifestyle is depicted in her over-the-top yet understated style, meaning that she can draw people in just enough, but still keep her distance. For instance, Effie catches the eye of Cook, Freddie, and JJ, who are all instantly infatuated with her look and seductive behaviors, capture their interest and she uses this to amuse herself. The femme fatale archetype is typically categorized as villainous due to the moral ambiguity, unease, and mystification around the character. But like in Effie's case, this isn't always true. Effie's moral ambiguity is a result of coping with insecurity and unwell psychological health rather than having ill intent when she is young. She is manipulative for enjoyment and pushes boundaries. She doesn't feel easily without doing so, so rather than facing her own emotions because she's too scared, she acts out in different ways. Like how she develops feelings for Freddie, but decides to push them aside. Instead, she turns to Cook for fun because he allows her to not be vulnerable. Effie's fashion during this time is much brighter and more colorful. She does have many bold eye-catching patterns and graphics that plaster her outfit. In comparison to her own looks, they have a lighter nature that is more carefree and youthful. While this point in her life is enjoyable, Effie begins to face many issues in her personal life on top of her very rough past. She feels that attachment and vulnerability make her weak, so she has to stay in control in every situation that she is involved in. She can only really let go of that control when she feels safe with another person. Throughout these hardships, one of the only true sources of comfort was her friend Pandora. Pandora's colorful look stresses Effie's darkness. The visual contrast between them is very apparent. They play off of one another's traits as well. Effie is cold and composed, while Pandora is warm and childlike. She has that innocence that Effie lost too young. Though when they interact, Effie is less snarky and more genuine. Hinting at while they are both so drastically different on the surface, they are both very similar internally. She is one of the characters that Effie's softer side comes out around, as she is someone that Effie can actually be vulnerable with. Their friendship is one that allows for Effie's curated behaviors to diminish, giving viewers a glimpse of her true thoughts and feelings that's hidden behind her image. After actually coming to terms with feeling and then being rejected alongside with the past events of her life that have stunted her emotionally, she begins to struggle greatly. With each passing episode, Effie's looks darken and become more distressed. Her makeup becomes heavier and her hair is in a constant state of dishevelment. In Effie's episode of the series, viewers receive more insight into her headspace, sporting a graphic white top with a black bra peeking out from under, paired off with rich jeans and staple jewelry. There is a high degree of comfortability and vulnerability that we used to see more as a constant but is now only seen in private when she is around others at one of her lower points. She is back in her fashion as she finds gifts her strength and protects her. She uses clothing to self-soothe, which we can see in this look here where she has a highly layered outfit consisting of a leather jacket, dress, sweater, leggings, and boots. The sweater is a deconstructed oversized knit and the lines grapple together. It's so intricate and complex, much like her headspace. Her clothing acts as shelter as she undergoes numerous troubling events for the rest of the series. For series 4, she's at the end of the first episode, looking much more put together. Her looks at the start of the season are back to being cleaner and her state of mind is in a more composed place again. She falls back into her mysterious party girl looks, with more glam and references being made this series. Though things look well on the surface, Effie begins to unravel. In Friday's episode, we begin to see her erratic behavior surface and she's no longer able to keep up this image. She trusts him and you can see how unwell she is despite all her attempts to hide it. Effie is really only valued and loved by a majority of the other characters when she is inebriated or when people view her as someone to look into because of the mysterious facade that hides her emotions. Only the few people close to her genuinely care and see past this facade. Progressively, it becomes clear that she is in need of help and goes to a hospital to be treated for psychotic depression, which is a mood disorder in which one will experience psychosis along with the symptoms of depression. With a psychotic case of depression, hallucinations and delusions will usually focus around themes of hopelessness, loss of meaning, and failure. It makes functioning very difficult. This can be hard for others to see. Depression doesn't have a single look as everyone has a very different experience and levels of energy that go into different parts of their life. There is not a direct correlation between physical appearance and depression. Research suggests that when people are struggling with their mental health, they will often dress for happiness, whether that means wearing an outfit that they feel looks good or dressing for comfort. There is a link between wearing clothing that we associate with happiness that can help boost moods. Even if you're still feeling low, it aids with self-soothing. While in treatment, she can often be seen in Freddie's hoodie. Psychologists have found that wearing your partner's clothing can lower the amount of stress hormone cortisol in the brain, making wearers feel more calm, comforted, and secure. After her release, she carries on with this galactic fashion, but it's executed differently, like when she goes to visit Freddie again. She changes into a green and blue flannel with a blue vest top under. She is wearing here boyfriend jeans, which is a stark difference from her usual shorts or skin-tight choice of bottoms. She is no longer pushing the seductive, mysterious look and has had a shift in her mental state. Effie begins to build a life for herself as we see in Skin's Fire. Effie's looks here are much more clean and sophisticated. She has matured greatly and her clothing now consists of stronger silhouettes with a clean line. She still has head-turning patterns and detailing, but are much different than the typical office look. She is no longer spanning across a multitude of fashion subgroups. Though her fashion differs greatly now, her approach is very similar. It's a more mature take on her earlier style that is fitting for a woman striving to move up in the workplace. She no longer upholds the mysterious cool girl look, unless the occasion suits for this. Effie internally is still the same, very charming and manipulative. Effie was a person that was too beautiful for her own good, with a magnetic personality and high intellect that capture the heart of those around her, often making her very romanticized or viewed in an idealized way. But she is actually a representation of youth who have trouble seeing their own worth, facing mental illness on their own, acting out in order to feel something other than a negative emotion and allowed for her to have self-expression, using pieces as armor, or in order to self-soothe, both in moments of weakness and strength. I hope you enjoyed this video. If you did, please subscribe, like, turn on notifications, and comment. Thank you so much for watching.