STYLIST SPOTLIGHT: MELISSA NICOLE BUCK

Celine Griscom interviews Co-op stylist, Melissa Nicole Buck

I had the pleasure of meeting Melissa Buck on set where we worked side by side. She carries herself with grace and ease and had a friendly collaborative spirit, so I was sure we would get along great. As time went on, I also came to admire her work, as I was seeing creative shots I found inspiring both in concept and the precision of execution. We at the co-op are so pleased to add Melissa to our team, where she has already been a supportive member.

Have you always been a freelancer, or did you work in-house for a while?

 I’ve been freelancing since 2004. But I did take a hiatus about 10 years ago to become the first in-house stylist for Nautica.  I think my experience working within the machine of a large scale fashion corporation has helped me exponentially as a stylist especially with my bigger and corporate clients. I had been working as a freelancer so I knew how to do a lot on my own, but in-house experience helped me hone in on the business side in so many ways. It exposed me to the dynamics that exist between merchants and marketing teams and what impact that has on styling decisions. Also, how to collaborate within a creative team in order to create campaigns that influence and get results. It helped me learn why and how to appeal to particular demographics. It wasn’t always easy, especially having to be the fashion liaison for many departments, but I really gained so much experience from it. I use one of my favorite childhood films ‘Karate Kid’, to describe it to some assistants who are hesitant about corporate jobs, Although I hadn’t realized at the time, on a daily basis I was learning skills I now use regularly, just like Daniel painting the fence and ‘waxing on, waxing off’

You have several different disciplines: Still-Life, On-figure Fashion, Props. Which is your favorite and why?

I love them all for so many different reasons. I love on-figure styling because as a crew, we are challenged to tell a visual story by combining our talents, including out of the box styling, hair, makeup, art direction and lighting. I love still life styling and propping because of the perfection and attention to detail. If I had to pick a favorite, I couldn’t , but I’d say that working on kids shoots is definitely near the tippity top. In my experience, kids' shoots make for such a joyous day every time. Kids are so unpredictable and funny, but also extremely intuitive. I'm usually pretty exhausted by the end of the day, but they are almost always filled with fun, lots of giggles and somehow I inevitably manage to make at least one new friend. But really I love the diverse projects in all of my disciplines, I couldn’t just pick just one, that might actually be my favorite thing about what I do! 

What sets you apart from other stylists?

That’s a tough one, there are so many super talented stylists that I know. Many of them right here in this co-op! I guess if I had to, I’d say what sets me apart is my diverse background. I've been lucky enough to have worked on a ton of different types of shoots, from catalog shoots, to costume design for commercials, videos and movies. I've worked on interior design jobs, I've helped construct props, and I've rigged accessories and clothing in the air. I've worked in studio and on location styling men, women and kids. I've styled accessories, clothing and even worked on bedding shoots. One of my favorite gigs has been working on editorial shoots for magazines, including many of the Hearst publications. I've dressed and decorated showrooms and worked on pharmaceutical ads; I've even rigged shoes for a billboard. Looking back, I’d have to say I've been quite lucky in my career. 10 years ago I was moving apartments and while carrying my mannequin to the truck, one of the movers asked me what I did, I said “oh, I'm a stylist, essentially I dress models for photoshoots”, He replied in his cute but heavy accent, "oh so you do every little girl's dream of dressing up their dolls?” I had never thought of it that way, but I'll never forget it. 

Have you always wanted to become a stylist? How did you come to be a stylist?

As a young child, I found myself wanting to make outfits for my dolls, when I was a teenager, I taught myself how to alter my own clothes, I even customized car seat covers for my first car, because I loved giving new life to old things, and also because yes, the car was that ugly. when it was time to figure out what to do for the rest of my life, I thought why not learn how to really make clothes? So I enrolled in a small art college and focused on fashion design. After the first couple of years of pattern making and construction classes, although I had created a number of cool garments, I began to notice that friends who were graduating were having to take jobs that were predominately computer assisted design program “desk” jobs. I knew early on I wasn’t quite cut out for the desk and computer type life. I was, however, determined to use the skills I had garnered both in art and design as well as my knack for thinking quickly on my feet to somehow apply it to show off other designer’s creations. I didn’t know exactly how I was going to do it, but I knew I needed to apprentice. I happened upon the Neiman Marcus in downtown Boston where I was living at the time and low and behold they were looking to fill an assistant position for their visual display team. I fell in love instantly. I started right at the ramp up of the holiday season. We utilized the most unique and out of the box items to convey holiday and I was in heaven. We spent weeks constructing holiday trees out of luxurious purple, white and silver feathers. Not a green tree or garland in sight. It was also an acute attention to detail that I really fell in love with that would drive most others insane. I learned so much at that one job that I still use to this very day. 

What would you be doing if you weren't styling? 

In my travels, although I have seen a lot of beauty, I have noticed a big need for more earth conscious policy and initiatives. I think if I hadn’t studied fashion, I probably would’ve moved towards a life teaching/ implementing sustainability. Growing up in DC, I was a kid who loved going to the white house for Earth Day. Sadly, 30 years later, I still see a big need for sharing and teaching environmental friendly ways of living in this country. Living in our small 700 sq foot apartment here in NYC we try to keep as sustainable as we possibly can. we make it a priority to seek out compost drop off locations, we recycle and in general, have very little trash; we definitely don’t use plastic bags for groceries or veggies and generally strive to use very little energy. We even use a recycled litter for our beloved cat, Linus. As a family, we enjoy and strive to be as green as possible on a daily basis.its not always the fast or easy but for us, it’s super rewarding. 

What are the biggest differences in the industry between the past and present, and how does this affect your job?

Wow, I guess looking back, there have been so many big changes. Technology being the biggest. When I started I didn’t even own a cell phone. It was 2002 and the only people who had phones around me were corporate big shots. I remember assisting for JCrewcuts catalog in the early 2000’s and being a bit weirded out that everyone had their heads down typing like crazy on these little black squares... they referred to them as “crackberrys”. I thought boy, I never want to become that. Ha. Boy is life so different for me nowadays. 

I think over the years my job has probably become easier but also harder because of modern technology. I remember before smartphones, I’d have to call my friends who had desk jobs and ask them to help me find an address to do a return. I can’t tell you how many friends I annoyed doing that for so long! I spent hours just getting lost or having to look up addresses from home before heading out to the mean, wet and sometimes cold streets of NYC. I had to learn all the secret places from the stylists I assisted, but now the internet has changed all of that. Nowadays I even see Facebook groups where young up and coming stylists just ask for contacts on FB or internet forums. And they get it. It still surprises me. Even with prop jobs it’s very different. It used to be so much more work guessing and over buying, but now it’s much easier to take pictures of props and send them to clients for approval instantly. I’d say That’s made things easier, but also people now expect things a lot sooner.

I also think the internet has changed the way we all shop. A lot of big stores aren’t cutting it, but online sales are skyrocketing. And so now you’ve got a ton of Social Media shoots happening, which is a completely new thing from when I started. It’s a whole new genre, but it’s not as curated and the attention to detail gets lost in the speed of them. The influence of social media on the fashion industry is also a new thing. When I started, styling as a career was obscure, it was a niche, but the industry is much more saturated now. Back when I started, Many didn’t even know my job existed but now you can go to college and take courses in styling.

One of the most obvious differences is that we as stylists used to rely heavily on our portfolios. We would carry it around and meet with agents and potential clients in person. Sometimes it was fun, sometimes intimidating but it felt as though you were hired based on how strong your book was and the personal connection you made.

I think the best change is the existence of things just like this awesome co-op. The internet has given us the ability to be connected with our clients directly even as we are on-set or prepping. At the end of the day, I am love the personal interactions the most and of course getting the client exactly what they need.