My sense of style is the most sacred thing in the world to me, but I have always found it futile to assign myself an official aesthetic micro-label that everything seems to have nowadays. My closet refuses to be forced into a box and I have no desire to try that hard to do so, as I like my outfits to be irreplaceable and unique. I have been collecting clothes as a hobby and a talent as opposed to just a necessity since I was maybe 16 years old and all I need to know when I go out sifting through racks and boxes of thrift-able clothing is to go after what I like.
That being said, every creative gets inspiration from somewhere, and I choose to model the general vibe I want to curate based on the trends of the past. As I mentioned, 95% of my clothing is purchased second-hand anyway, so I might as well embrace their innate vintage quality and style them in a fashion from a different time. Now, here’s how I incorporate some of my favorite decades into my day-to-day outfits.
The ‘70s are probably my favorite era of fashion, closely followed by the ‘90s, but not so much the cookie-cutter, hippie ‘70s that you’d see in a Halloween costume labeled something like “groovy girl.” Think more along the lines of the rock n roll movement, Joan Jett, leather, vests and blazers over a t-shirt or nothing at all. The ‘70s are just so much fun, a million different aesthetics are floating around and everyone is free and unapologetic.
The way that the clothes from modern projects like “The Runaways” and “Daisy Jones and the Six” are able to emulate the style from this time really stuck out with me and I think subconsciously I try to create that sense of relentlessness into my favorite outfits. My favorite ‘70s standouts from my closet are my leather pants and jacket, thick belts with everything, blazers in red and black, boots with a chunky heel, button downs with a deep v-neck, dozens of vests in all colors and fabrics, and my round sunglasses. Emulating this energy is the source of so much of my confidence and you will feel so much better walking to class with even one of these trends.
Next in my lineup is the ‘80s, but I mean a much more muted era of the ‘80s, no neon or leg warmers for me, unfortunately. My favorite ‘80s trends are pretty much just ones that carried over from the ‘70s but with some minor changes like oversized blazers again but in more daring colors and with large shoulder pads. In my humble opinion, the ‘80s mostly made everyone look way older than they were, but as I have mentioned in past articles “Heathers” is one of my favorite movies ever made and even modern ‘80s media like “Stranger Things” has some intriguing outfit ideas.
My favorite trends that I like to rely on from this period are plaid blazers, high-waisted pants, tucked-in oversized t-shirts, colored lace and nylon but dark colors like burgundy or navy (no yellow or anything) and pearl jewelry. The ‘80s are not exactly my main vibe, but there is something to love about fashion from every decade and my most casual outfits always end up feeling pretty ‘80s somehow.
Finally, we can circle back to the ‘90s, my aforementioned second favorite decade for fashion. “Clueless” is another one of my favorite movies of all time, and I’m going to take a second to brag because I have been told that my outfits remind people of Cher more times than I can count, so you can trust my authority on this paragraph. The ‘90s took preppy, professional clothing and made it fashion-forward, chic and even a little edgy.
It’s crazy because even though they started 30-some years ago now, I still somehow feel like the ‘90s are closer than that because so many of the trends from then are so prominent everywhere, not just in my closet. My favorite ‘90s trends are plaid and tweed everything, skirt sets, black Mary Janes, turtlenecks, sheer tights, layering with dresses, collared shirts and tailored pants and jackets. My ‘90s-esque clothes make me feel smart and put together and all the more ready to succeed at whatever I set out to do.
I often get asked about where I get my clothes from, how I put an outfit together, how I know what I like, what are my favorite things to look for when I’m in the market for new clothes etc. Each time it happens, I always wish I could give people a more straightforward answer than “I literally thrift everything I own” or “I just know what I like and what looks good.”
Hopefully, for anyone out there who has ever asked me any of these questions, this was as helpful for you to read as it was fun for me to write. If you have no idea who I am, then welcome to the inside of my brain and I hope I was able to teach you something about trends through the decades, movie characters whose closets I need to steal and always wearing exactly what you want to wear.