Daily Inspiration: Meet Lindsey Kupper

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lindsey Kupper.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
The first word that comes to mind is chaos. Let’s just say I have the type of personality that doesn’t do well when being told what to do. My freedom and individuality are infinitely more important to me than any amount of money I could acquire working for most anyone, really. I figured that out after leaving around 50 different jobs in my lifetime. I’m not meant for the “normal day to day world.” So, I had to create my own Gilded Chaos where I can use the adjective, Fuck, freely, not really care who I offend, and not allow anyone to dull my sharp edges. When you’re juggling so many different projects, chaos inevitably follows. I always try to take that chaos and “gild it,” so to speak. What you see on the exterior are only the gilded parts. The chaos behind the scenes are rarely shown.

I choose to take whatever issue is happening in life and turn it into something beautiful for the public to see. I find much more beauty in the messy and chaotic parts of life than I do in the calm. The Grey area has never been my area of comfort. Vintage clothing is something that has and always will excite me. There is an adventure in finding the item, and that item has already lived its own adventure before even living a second or third one with you. Pushing boundaries and Vintage clothing are two of my favorite things. Put them together and you have Gilded Chaos. The name stands for how I live my life. I will always have multiple creative projects going on at any given point. I will always want to push the boundaries and make the typical a little uncomfortable. My life motto is FUCK IT. If you love this brand, I’m stoked for you to ride this adventure with me. If you don’t, I really don’t give a fuck. Through countless jobs, tears, fear, taking leaps of faith, and investing money when there’s not a lot to invest, Gilded Chaos – curated for the non-boring exists for you to enjoy.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I started a second-hand designer clothing website 5 years ago. I hired models, had a gorgeous website, directed badass fashion videos for advertising..you get the drift. Right before I launched it, my website got hacked. It was going to cost me a small fortune to get it fixed. Shortly after, my fashion intern at the time that was working on my instagram deleted 90% of the instagram posts I had created. She said, “I thought we should go in a different direction.” I was completely gutted.

I stepped away from Instagram for five years. I stepped away from social media completely for two years. I went the photo-stylist route and moved to Utah to be a stylist for Dr. Oz. After a little over a year, I realized two things. 1. I need to work for myself. 2. I need to work with second-hand clothing. I came back to Kc. I took mindless jobs in order to pay for vintage inventory and set up three vintage booth locations, two in the Antique River Market and one in the West Bottoms. I met an amazing friend and talented artist, @leemetztli, who guided me through deleting my old instagram and starting over. We shot some photos together and started posting. Once I was back in the vintage scene, I realized how saturated the KC market has become with very talented/savvy vintage dealers. It’s awesome how much vintage has caught on in this city, but it also makes it easier to get lost in the mix. I truly love buying and reselling vintage clothing. It’s in my blood. I live the lifestyle. I live for the hunt. I believe when you’re truly passionate about something, the people will come. The goal is for Gilded Chaos to be its own store before 2024.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I buy and resell vintage clothing and some MCM furniture and vintage housewares. I specialize in vintage work wear, western…clothing that has that gritty, trucker, gas station vibe. I am most proud of my 12-year-old Australian Shepherd, Maddie, who is my other half. I am also proud of the fact that I have never settled and never took the easy route. I have been through a lot of hardships both personally and physically, but have always chosen to keep pushing forward and keep my goals in mind. I am known for curating vintage clothing for the non-boring.

Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
I’ve learned that if you truly love something, you will sacrifice whatever it takes to make that dream happen. It’s okay to fall down as long as you get back up. It’s okay to be scared as long as you get through it in your own time. Through the years, I’ve realized time is all we have. Fuck money, fuck the big house. If you don’t have time to enjoy any of these things, what’s the point? How you spend your time is your most precious gift. It wasn’t until I started creeping into my late 30’s that I realized how incredibly fast life goes. If you want to do something, do it NOW. Don’t wait. Tomorrow isn’t promised. I’ve definitely taken the hard road. I didn’t take the 9 to 5 job so that I could make decent money and have security. If I did, it was only for a short while in order to get to the next goal. My definition of cool has changed dramatically over the years. At 38, a torn-up band tee and a pack of American spirits doesn’t cut it. Cool is loving what you do, loving how you spend your time. Actively not living in the mundane, seeking out adventure, always pushing yourself towards new and exciting goals and projects. I live in the unknown. I used to be ashamed of it. Now I think it’s pretty fucking cool. It keeps you on your toes. And let’s face it, there’s really nothing worse than being boring.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @gilded_chaos

Image Credits
Anthony Garza