George Kotsiopoulos is a fashion fanatic. He talks about keeping his five new pairs of shoes displayed on a chair in his bedroom, because looking at them makes him happy. He wants to dress the girl who has access to, and is excited about, the best clothes that top designers have to offer. He has nothing but nice things to say about his costar on E!‘s Fashion Police, Joan Rivers. In fact, he can’t stop gushing about her.
“There you have it,” he says laughing. “I love Joan Rivers.” He doesn’t stop there. “She is the nicest, classiest woman I’ve met. She’s elegant and well-mannered. She makes me laugh my ass off. She’s just inspiring. To be her age and still be relevant is a major feat. She expects actresses to look like movie stars, and she practices what she preaches. She doesn’t go out like a slob. The jokes are just to entertain people. This is the thing that kind of bugs me. Jay Leno and Jimmy Fallon can say the same things and it’s fine, because they’re men.”
Kotsiopoulos explains that everyone on Fashion Police plays a role, his of the stylist and fashion expert. “Kelly [Osbourne] is that younger girl, the girl who’s on the red carpet. Giuliana [Rancic] is the more distinguished voice of reason, the ‘everywoman’ – a much more glamourous version. Joan [Rivers] is very specific for what she likes. There has to be a gap,” he says. “We just all represent a different opinion.”
The show recently celebrated one hundred episodes, and George seems happy to be at this place in life. “I love laughing. I love wearing cute clothes. I feel lucky every week,” he confesses.
He doesn’t feel too bad about having to make snap judgments on celebrity attire, even though he’s friends with all of their stylists. “I don’t say anything that’s mean-spirited. If I don’t like something, I say why. I can’t be swayed. That’s my job.” He says that he will never offer a negative opinion, without providing a solution to the problem. “Anyone can say ‘I don’t like it’,” he says. “But if you can say why and offer a solution, that’s all the better, and that’s what I do.”
So why are George’s opinions pure gold? He makes it clear that he is an established stylist, not just your typical gay guy posed as a fashion expert. He put in eight years as Associate Fashion Editor at T: The New York Times Magazine. It was a rare, high-fashion job based in Los Angeles (instead of New York), that he just happened to land. “No one says no to you at The New York Times,” he says of his styling days there. “Living in LA, you have no choice but to style celebrities, which are not just one size and one shape. That’s the difference between a fashion stylist and a celebrity stylist. I’ve worked at both.”
Working with celebrities who range in size, George has solid and specific tips to be on his ‘Best Dressed’ list. “You gotta start with the right foundations,” he says. “Most women don’t look like supermodels.” He explains that even if a dress is insanely beautiful, without the right bra and undergarments, it’s just not going to work. He hates high-definition television and says, “We don’t look good on that. That’s not real life.” He does give credit for effort put into an outfit and says he loves people that try to make a great look. He can’t stress the importance of a tailor enough, and doesn’t seem to understand why women aren’t getting the memo that they aren’t the same size all over. “When it’s custom to your body, you’ll wear it more. It’s worth the investment.”
Going along with his love for putting in effort, he advises against wearing yoga pants out. “Go put an outfit on,” he says. “You’re in gym clothes. You may as well be wearing your pajamas.” He doesn’t want to knock any trends too harshly for fear that it may come back around. “Never say never, man,” George tells me. “We said that about the 80s and 90s. You just never know.” He does think that there will be a “stud backlash”, and that the trend of studded and bejeweled everything will soon look outdated. His last fashion faux-pas is anything that looks fake. “I’m fine with plastic surgery. I’m not fine with anything looking fake. Super-long hair extensions are the bane of my existence.”
Next on George’s list to help out the women of the world in making sartorial decisions – he signed a book deal in December. “It’s scheduled to be called Glamorous by George. It will teach women to be more glam like movie stars,” he divulges. The book will have a little bit of everything from fashion and beauty, to home décor and entertaining. “I always find it a little bit sad when people spend all of their effort into their clothing, and then get into a junky car. If you’re being glamorous, it’s really a lifestyle, not just a fashion thing.”
The book is just the beginning of a long list of ambitions that Kotsiopoulos has for the future. “I want my own show. Absolutely. I don’t want to be an actor, but I want to stay on TV.” He recognizes that this whirlwind of fashion fame he’s experiencing happened later for him than most television stars, but it’s lead him to focus solely on career ambitions rather than fame. “Hopefully this book will be successful, and I’ll have a follow-up to it,” he says. “I want a clothing line. I want to be a brand. This happened later in life for me. I take my life and career very seriously, but not the perks.”
