Hey Fashionistas! My name is Ashley and I’m a senior at University at Buffalo! I major in English with a strong concentration in journalism. I’m currently the senior news editor at our school’s only newspaper, which is entirely independent and student-run, The Spectrum. Although I believe a background in news is necessary for any field of journalism, my true passions are beauty and fashion.
Step into the room like it’s a catwalk.
Those are the first few words to Lady Gaga’s song “Fashion.” When I first heard this song in my freshman year of college, I immediately felt it was emblematic of who I was. Fashion has always been my medium for artistic self-expression. I attended a private Catholic high school, where I was mandated to wear a uniform everyday. But I found a way to customize my uniform to make myself stand out. Everyday I sported a different color flower in my hair to individualize myself and I quickly became known as the “flower girl.” Occasionally we would be lucky enough to have “dress down days,” where you would catch me donning a vintage fedora with khaki-suspenders and faux-leather booties. I guess you could say I was kind of a hipster as a teenager.
In my freshman year of college, I experienced a shift in my fashion sense. My wardrobe consisted more of blazers, sequined pants and loafers. I would dress super formal whether I was going to class, the grocery store or out to dinner with friends. I spent winter break binge-watching Gossip Girl on Netflix and it galvanized my sense my style in every way. It made me want to be super prim yet super chic. When I returned to school that winter, I was always clad in a wool-blend coat, cloche hat, pearl necklace and over-the-knee boots.
My closet experienced a major transition in my sophomore year of college. I lost about 15 pounds, and I became more comfortable in showing parts of my body that I would previously hide behind loose, flowy clothing. I started wearing crop tops basically daily…even in the harsh Buffalo winter. I’d pair a crop top with tight fitting high-waisted pants and a heeled bootie. This was the time where I became confident in my sense of style and began to carve out my fashion sense. My fashion sense has kind of come full circle as I enter into my senior year of college. My daily wardrobe usually consists of a blazer, tight-fitted skinny pants, a button-down shirt and heels. But this summer I have had a lot of fun deviating from my everyday fashion. I’ve gotten to experiment with wearing sneakers and sparkly sandals with flowy dresses. It was great trading in my heels for a change.
My fashion sense has experienced a whirlwind of change throughout the years, but I embrace it. The way that I’ve dressed in particular periods of my life shed a lot of light on who I am at that time.
