Rooted in Rave: The 90s Inspiration Behind Stardust Studios
To understand Stardust Studios is to understand the era that birthed it: the 1990s rave scene—raw, rebellious, radiant, and real.
For Dawn Starr Looking Elk, the ‘90s were more than a decade. They were a revolution. Raised in the glow of underground warehouse parties, desert raves, 18+ teen clubs, and club kid culture, she experienced firsthand a time when rave wasn’t just a trend—it was a movement. It was about freedom, identity, and showing up exactly as you were… in platform shoes, vinyl pants, fuzzy backpacks, kandi cuffs, alien goggles, butterfly clips, and thrifted sparkle everything.
“We were wild and expressive and weird on purpose,” Dawn remembers.
“And we were united by music. It was about dancing until sunrise, escaping the mundane, and becoming something luminous together.”
From desert full moons in New Mexico to late-night warehouse takeovers with breakbeats echoing through industrial ruins, Dawn witnessed the heart of rave culture before it was commercialized. She was part of a generation that shaped the aesthetic through DIY fashion, bold makeup, and outfits designed not for the ’gram—but for the experience.
Her designs today reflect those roots:
- Chunky, cyber silhouettes with a modern fit
- Psychedelic and geometric prints that honor the visual language of trance and techno
- Fuller-coverage pieces that still serve fierce energy
- Gender-fluid styles with space for all identities to shine
- Matching rave family sets that throw back to tribal unity and PLUR values
The Soundtrack of Stardust
The music of the 90s is woven into every seam of Stardust Studios—because Dawn didn’t grow up in just one genre. She grew up in all of them.
From the pulsing rhythms of jungle, trance, and house, to the rebellious angst of grunge, riot grrrl, and hip hop, to the neon glitter of eurodance, industrial, and acid techno—Dawn’s youth was a kaleidoscope of sound.
She doesn’t just design fashion—she designs moods, influenced by the tracks that raised her.
The Chemical Brothers, Nine Inch Nails, Björk, Crystal Method, Daft Punk, Portishead, TLC, Prodigy, Smashing Pumpkins, Missy Elliott, Orbital, DJ Dan, Frankie Bones, Siouxsie and the Banshees… The playlist goes on. It wasn’t just rave—it was a generation that bent every genre and made it something new.
That legacy lives in the collections of Stardust Studios today: outfits that look like they belong at a 1997 sunrise set and a 2025 high fashion runway.
Stardust Studios isn’t just inspired by the 90s—it remembers the 90s.
It honors the dance floors that saved us, the looks that expressed us, and the music that shaped us.
Because some of us didn’t just find ourselves on the dance floor—we built ourselves there.
And now, through Stardust Studios, we dance forward.