That Outfit Is So You
Personal style is personal !!!!!
Since I was little, I have always loved fashion. (I bet you’ve never heard that one before.) In first grade, when our assignment was to write and decorate two pieces of construction paper stating what we aspired to be in life, my classmates wrote that they wanted to be doctors and lawyers and astronauts and scientists. Mine read the following:
It’s not too late to have me walk in your NYFW show this week.
My love for clothing continued throughout middle school, using every dress-down day—we had a uniform—as an opportunity to express my sartorial curiosity. I remember one such circumstance in 6th grade, in which I paired a purple-and-blue plaid skirt with a striped rugby shirt after reading about a TV show called Gossip Girl in one of my teen magazines. Looking at the style of the characters on the show, I was inspired by their preppy looks that incorporated mixing and matching different patterns, textures, and accessories—even if it was a tad superfluous. Donning my eccentric look in the mundane hallways of Our Lady of Peace School in Clarks Green, Pennsylvania, I was met with judgmental glares as one of the girls in my class pulled me aside and said, “I usually like your clothes, Ang, but you can’t wear stripes with plaid.” As a 12-year-old girl, this comment obviously stuck with me. Maybe she was right—was my outfit too much?
This next part might shock you (it certainly shocks me), but I have always had a love for preppy clothes. Even if I wear mostly black and neutral colors nowadays (we’ll get to that part), it’s not lost on me that I spent 3 consecutive summers working in a Lilly Pulitzer store on Nantucket. My mom received the superlative “Biggest Prep” at her public high school, so this is actually genetic and I can’t help it. Needless to say, the preppy twinges that can still be found in my personal style have evolved from bright patterns to muted plaids, from L.L. Bean totes to glovetanned leather Coach bags, and from saddle shoes to chunky Mary Janes.
On the flip side, I have also always loved black clothing and punk culture and spiders and skulls and 2014-Tumblr-era aesthetics—this all feels truer to my current everyday personal style. I remember wearing black nail polish in 2nd grade and pointing to something in the notebook of the bad boy in my class because I wanted him to know that My Mom Lets Me Paint My Nails Black Even Though I’m 8 Years Old. During the summer before high school, I bought my first pair of black platform boots from T.J.Maxx with my friend Lizzy, and I think our classmates assumed we were going down The Wrong Path. I’ll always have a soft spot for Ralph Lauren, but I’ll also always have a soft spot for Dolls Kill.
I believe that personal style derives from every aspect of your life—familial, occupational, situational, geographical, and maybe even astrological. My style altered when I moved from the East Coast to California for 4 years to attend college. I even dyed my hair blonde for the role. The foundational aspects of my personal style, however, did not waver. I’ve always known what I feel comfortable in and what makes me feel like Me. When interviewing for a job at a Ralph Lauren store in 2017, the hiring manager asked me to describe my personal style. Although I was a bit caught off-guard, I winged it as best I could: “My personal style is classic. I don’t know if it’s classic in the traditional sense, but it’s classic to me. I feel like my personal style hasn’t changed since I was a kid, because even though it changes over time as trends come and go, at the heart of it, it’s, like, preppy and punk? It’s just classic me!” I was pretty sure this wasn’t the answer she was looking for, but anyway, I got the job.
Moving to New York in 2020, I knew my personal style was about to reach its final form. (You can wear whatever you want here! Especially the color black!!!) I’m not saying that my style would stop evolving—that will never stop—but rather, I knew things would finally be consistent for me. I made an effort to stop shopping at fast-fashion retailers, which are a common solve for costume parties and fraternity formals and I-need-a-new-top-for-tonight excuses but are not sustainable in the long run. I began building out my wardrobe with quality clothing that I like and that I know will last. I even did the whole Marie Kondo does it spark joy? exercise and quickly discovered that this method does not work for me because literally everything in my closet brings me joy to some extent. I began experimenting with different style personas that could incorporate different elements of my wardrobe and aspects of the world around me. Every so often I ideate these different personas on Pinterest, creating mood boards such as “East Village Equestrian” and “Rockstar Girlfriend.” In terms of my end-all-be-all style, however, my 2021-2022 situationship coined the term “West Village Goth,” which is how I would describe my style to this day. It’s mostly black. It’s chic. It’s scrappy, but it’s quality. It’s classic but feels on-trend. It’s aspiring Prada F/W 1997. It’s mine!
I’ve always said that if someone could easily picture what a cartoon character of yourself would look like, it’s a sign of good personal style. Think of Lizzie McGuire—the cartoon version of her is quintessentially her. Now think of someone like Billie Eilish. Even if you don’t like her personal style, there’s no doubt it’s hers. Picture a Billie Eilish cartoon character. Are you picturing baggy shorts and big sneakers and reverse-dip-dyed hair that’s maybe bright green on top and chunky jewelry? Clear personal style.
Last Saturday, I threw a party under the theme New York Icons. At a party the night before, my friends were discussing which icons they were going to be, and one of my friends joked that he was going to dress up as me. “What would you wear?” I asked. One of our other friends quickly interjected, “Ooh ooh! You could wear her red plaid skirt and black platform boots and a black top and…”
When your friends can easily picture what they’d wear as you, that’s when your personal style is clear. Not everything has to be a -core, and not everything has to be an era, and for the love of God, it’s not always “giving” something else!
Be yourself!!! Happy NYFW!!! xxx
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Some pictures of my style from childhood to now:
And here’s some music that I think inspired my style over the years<3 xo
you have one of the most unique and thoughtfully constructed personal styles and it says so much about how you know yourself 🥹 this is perfect perfect perfect
The Club Monaco dress is insane!