Growing up, I went to a private school where uniforms were the dress code and any type of self expression came only in the form of the art class, which included drawing cookie cutter sketches taught by our teacher, where no deviance from the original picture was allowed. Transitioning from this mode of uniformity, I was nurtured in to a public high school where the sudden dichotomy of originality versus conformity created a gray area that I awkwardly settled into. Being uncomfortable in this nervous reluctance to be myself was an experience that shaped both me as an individual and shaped my future personal style, which fully matured around my freshman year of college when I realized I didn’t have to dress like everyone else. In high school, I really started to get into fashion blogs, but I had always been too skeptical of my own confidence to start experimenting with my sartorial choices, especially when my style seemed so different from my peers’. Being on my own in college helped me learn the true meaning of individuality. The death of half of my skinny jeans and the replacement with assorted mom jeans, shirt dresses, slouchy shirts and jumpers became the root of my personal style. Now, every day when I walk out the door, I feel great in what I wear because I now feel like myself.
As Blair Waldorf once said, “Fashion is the most powerful art there is. It’s movement, design and architecture all in one. It shows the world who we are and who we’d like to be.” Through my personal experience, I’ve found this to be such a true statement. Fashion is what we follow; style is our own.
A few of my fashion blogs include The Blonde Salad (I’m studying Italian and her website is in Italian, also: extra practice!), Man Repeller and the Sartorialist. I find a lot of my inspiration from these blogs! My other hobbies include dabbling in photography, appreciating modern and post-modern art, film, playing the piano and collecting vinyl records.
I’m also a vegetarian and love to cook and bake healthy foods. My major here at Saint Mary’s is Global Studies and Communications, and I hope to write for a travel or fashion publication in the future. My favorite movie at the moment is Annie Hall; I’m on a bit of a Woody Allen kick, and I partly got the inspiration for this outfit from her character. It’s boyish, relaxed and practical. This relaxed shirt from Madewell is super comfortable and versatile; I wear it with anything and everything. I bought my trousers from Forever 21 and the shoes are from Urban Outfitters. I’ve been into leather mules lately because they’re just so easy to slide on as I’m running out the door in the morning.
I’m so excited to be a Style Guru for the fall semester at Saint Mary’s College Notre Dame, and I hope everyone enjoys reading my posts as much as I love creating them. Ciao for now!
