Meet Elli, one of the most stylish students on campus as well as the leading face behind the U of O’s (unofficial) fashion blog, Dressed up Ducks! We sat down with her to hear about her take on fashion and running a street style blog on campus.
Name: Elinor Manoogian-O’Dell
Hometown: Corvallis, Oregon
Star sign: Libra
Major/minor: Journalism and International Studies with a minor in German
Year: Junior
HCO: Why did you choose this major?
Elli: I’m really interested in how people communicate and tell stories, especially across cultures. The two majors both incorporated these interests. I especially love journalism because I get to go out and talk with people that I would usually have no reason to have a conversation with. I feel like my major is all about meeting new people and hearing their stories. I then get to take those stories and share them with others. So not only do I get to learn things about others that I normally wouldn’t, I give others access to those stories as well.
HCO: What do you hope to do with it?
Elli: Right now, I’m really into video production and blogging. I’ve been producing a lot of interview type videos as well as some promotional content. After graduation, I would be happy working for a news agency making human-interest pieces, for example. I could also see myself making promotional videos for private corporations. A lot of businesses are using YouTube and video content as a way to reach new audiences, so someone has to make that content, right? I run a street style fashion blog on campus called Dressed up Ducks as well. I think my dream job would be something that incorporates all of these interests– so maybe producing content for a company like Free People or H&M.
HCO: How did you get involved with Dressed up Ducks?
Elli: Dressed up Ducks was created by three seniors during the spring of 2014. I saw it online when it only had two posts and I automatically emailed the person in charge. I thought it was such a cool concept—starting a street style blog for the University of Oregon campus. I’ve always been interested in fashion, but I’m more interested in why people choose to dress the way they do. Dressed up Ducks is definitely about clothes, but it is also about inspiration, ambition, and confidence. Anyway, the three seniors graduated and I was left with a blog and minimal photography skills. I feel like I’ve grown with the blog as it’s progressed and more people have joined.
HCO: Why is fashion important to you?
Elli: Fashion is important to me because of the effect that I realize it has in my everyday life. When I get up in the morning, there are so many things that I consider when I get dressed. What I’ve realized recently is that what I wear has to make me feel confident. Clothes have the power to do that for me, so once I figured out what made me feel confident, I wore it. For me, fashion makes me feel confident because I can express who I am without having to say anything. I like to dress to how I want to feel that day. If I have a lot to do one day, I’ll make sure that my outfit is practical and put together. I think it’s similar to smiling when you want to feel happy. If you want to be something or do something, dress for it. That’s at least how I feel and what I think about when I put on clothes. I also really like to shop, so there’s that.
HCO: Why should it be important to others?
Elli: I’m not sure that it always should be. For me, fashion makes me confident, but for others that might not be the case. If it’s not important to you, then I don’t think it should be forced upon you. Society definitely has standards of dress that you have to conform to in certain situations. For instance, it is typical to wear a tie to work or running shoes to the gym. But, if you’re not looking to fit into those situations, then more power to you. I love fashion because it’s whatever you want it to be.
HCO: How would you describe your style?
Elli: I take a lot of inspiration from the Pacific Northwest. I love flannels and boots, but I don’t like looking sloppy. This kind of creates an interesting aesthetic. I like to take traditionally masculine or outdoorsy pieces and integrate them with more fitted pieces or feminine jewelry.
HCO: What pieces and colors do you gravitate towards?
Elli: How boring is it for me to say black? Because, the answer is definitely black. I try not to wear all black though. I tend to have two pieces in almost every outfit that are black, but then I like to pair them with denim or a pattern. I gravitate towards basic pieces as well. I like the minimalism trend, and I don’t think anything can beat an outfit made up of a few basic pieces.
Be sure to follow Dressed up Ducks on social media!