Sartorial Stars – Grace

Grace H.
Madison, WI
Junior, University of Wisconsin
Digital Studies & Communication Arts

How would you describe your style in a few words?

“My style ranges from bohemian to chic. I like simple pieces that create a clean, minimalistic outfit.”

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Who is your fashion icon? Is there anyone you try to emulate when getting dressed?

“My fashion icon is Gigi Hadid. her street style is effortlessly chic.”

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What is your favorite trend to wear?

“My favorite trend right now is t-shirt dresses. Although it is difficult for me to find one that isn’t to boxy on me because I’m petite, the tight dress can be thrown on for a quick errand or paired with a necklace and sandals for a classier look.”

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And what’s your least favorite trend right now?

“My least favorite trend right now is overalls. Unless you are a painter, under five years old, or at a Wisco game day, they have no place in your closet.”

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What’s your favorite piece of clothing in your closet?

“My favorite thing in my closet is a pair of short, black leather boots with cut out stripes on the sides from Urban Outfitters. They were on sale for $30 and they are a versatile staple in my closet.”

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When you don’t know what to wear, what’s your go-to outfit?

“My go-to outfit is my grey t-shirt dress, black boots, and leather jacket.”

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What are some of your favorite stores to shop at?

“My favorite stores to shop at are Urban Outfitters, Revolve, Forever21, and Asos.”

Fast Fashion

The crutch of all frugal Millennials, fast fashion has dominated the retail space. If you need a new dress for a night out or a new top for a date, Forever21 and Zara will always have something waiting for you at a cheap price. This low price, however, comes with low-quality fabric and (moreso for F21) unoriginal designs. Why buy a $200 versatile silk blouse when you could buy ten cheaper tops for the same price?

Sometimes at these stores, you can find a nice-looking piece that will last you ages. I have a shirt from Forever21 that I bought at least 5 years ago, but it’s not a nice top. I’ve been trying to invest in nicer, higher-quality pieces so that I can stop cluttering my closet with “trendy” fad clothing that is made of scratchy fabrics and may fall apart after a handful of washes. I cannot tell you how many peplum tops I bought from Forever21 in high school….and I never wear any of them anymore.

The main take away from all this is that fast fashion, although fun and affordable, is wasteful. It fits in perfectly with the consumerism and materialism Americans are known for. We buy what we want when we want it and just throw it out when we move on. This just seems ridiculous to me. Why not buy things that we will love and use for a longer time? You may like that polyester shirt from Zara this month, but when the trend passes, will you still want to wear it?

The answer is no, you won’t. And the stores know it so they refresh the merhcandise on the sales floor. Their businesses are built on our incessant appetite for new trends.

No need to run to your closet and toss out all of your shirts from F21 this second; they’re still useful shirts. Sometimes, Forever21 is the perfect place to get a going out blouse (one that you don’t mind getting drinks spilled on) when you’re in a time crunch. That’s what it’s there for. be careful not to grow dependent on these stores and waste your money each season stocking your closet with soon-to-be-irrelevant fads.

Sartorial Stars – Row

Row K.
New York, NY
Sophomore, NYU Steinhardt
Applied Psychology -Neuroscience, Biology minor

Fun Fact: “I’m a vegan. All my clothes are vegan. I can move my eyes independently from one another. I can do an uncanny turkey impression on spot.

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How would you describe your style in a few words?

“I would describe my style as easy-going, comfortable, up-scale bohemian. I love wearing prints and flowy clothes that let me live a mobile life.”

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Who is your fashion icon? Is there anyone you try to emulate when getting dressed?

“One of my fashion icons is Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and the City. She always manages to make a statement in her crazy and sometimes outrageous, but deeply fabulous ensembles.”

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What is your favorite trend to wear?

“My favorite trend is the tailored sun hat”

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And what’s your least favorite trend right now?

“One of my least favorite trends is those black choker necklaces.”

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What’s your favorite piece of clothing in your closet?

“My favorite thing in my closet are my grey metallic Doc Martins.”

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When you don’t know what to wear, what’s your go-to outfit?

“When I don’t know what to wear, my go-to outfit is a jumper because it’s only one piece and I don’t have to pair it with anything but accessories.”

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What are some of your favorite stores to shop at?

“Some of my favorite stores are Zara and Mango.”

Follow Row on CollegeFashionista to keep up with her easy-going, boho style.

Back to School Shopping. New York Style.

What would a new school year be without some new outfits to freshen up your wardrobe? And while online shopping is good fun, why spend your time hunched over your laptop when you could go out in the fashion capital of the world?

Since we arrived a few days early, I dragged my friends out with me to enjoy the nice weather. We went up Fifth Ave because I am still holding a grudge against SoHo after some unfortunate events last year. Near us, Fifth Ave has a lot of chain retailers so we took a peek around there before heading down some smaller side streets. One of my favorite stores, PinkyOtto, is near the Flatiron so we headed over there next.

I’ve been dying to try wearing hats so with the encouragement of my friends, I finally bought one. We’ll see if I actually end up wearing it though. I also bought a simple, striped t-shirt dress. There is an adorable triangle cutout on the back though, making it more fun than a plain shirt dress.

Indulging in Americana

While here, I’ve been trying to stay away from the Zaras and H&Ms: places I can shop at in the US (even though they are both European companies!). I always play devil’s advocate and argue that they have more stylish, more affordable options here, but nobody is willing to listen. When it comes down to it, it’s still H&M. I should be taking advantage of all the adorable and truly Parisian boutiques that are everywhere in the city. It’s one of the things I love most about Paris. Individual boutiques like that seem to be hard to come by in the US. All of our shopping areas, especially in New York, have been taken over by powerhouse chains like H&M and Zara.

The one American store that I couldn’t stay away from was Brandy Melville. I have very strong feelings about this store. I could rant forever about its cliché, want-to-be hip, suburban middle school ‘edgy’ look. But sometimes, just sometimes, the softness and crazy comfort of their fabrics makes me forget about all of that.

Of course, I bought two shirts in black haha. They are relatively cheap and a great place to buy basics that will last forever (if you don’t mind all the crop tops).

All Black Everything

Since moving to New York, my closet has slowly transformed from a colorful spectrum to a solid mass of black fabric. Almost every day, I wind up wearing black pants and a black top. If I’m feeling adventurous, I might possibly wear a white shirt.

It’s a lot easier to make outfits when everything is the same color, especially when traveling with a limited portion of my closet. As long as the styles, cuts, and fabrics of the shirts are different, it’s simple to have different outfits every day (while putting in minimal effort). These are the clothes in my closet here in Paris. The intense lack of popping colors is kind of funny.

In high school, wearing all black was considered “alternative” or grungy but the second I moved back to New York, I remembered how much I love wearing black head to toe! It seems like the all-black dress code is the norm in cities across the world as well.