When I think about it really hard, I think I’m pretty awesome.
I hope you feel that way, too, sometimes.
When I think about it really hard, I love all the quirky things that make me, me.
I hope you present your individual interests, passions and experiences to the world in a style that shows off who you are.
Personal style is crafted by recognizing and flaunting through appearance what exactly makes you an individual. A truly profound sense of personal style is not something that can be created over night or can be maintained every day because we are constantly evolving. We experience 24 hours worth of newness every day and there are infinite ways those 24 hours can impact how we see ourselves later on.
Style is never just about what clothes you adorn your body with in the morning. Rather, personal style emanates from a certainty in yourself and manifests in your speech patterns, how you wear your hair, who your friends are and what you doodle on your notebook during an especially boring class.
I think this age of personal technology can hinder a development of personal style. We are constantly bombarded with notifications from fashion blogs, news sources, our friends, our family and social media and this can muddle our individuality.
Looking at a couple of fashion blogs can definitely give you new ideas, but browsing through the personal style of people who are often paid to maintain that certain style, can skew your own sense of flair – rather than choosing an outfit that is wholly you, you may put one together that is a hodgepodge of other people.
So, how does one sift through all that data and get to the root of one’s true personal style?
After years of floating between styles, I think I may finally have figured it out – at least for a couple months or so.
Every morning – yes, figuring out personal style is a laborious project at times – I think about the quirky things that make me, me. Then, I translate those interests, in an abstract, nearly unexplainable way, into an outfit.
I read a lot of French literature; I mostly only listen to punk and ska; my favorite television shows are British comedies like Peep Show, A Bit of Fry and Laurie and the League of Gentlemen (no, I don’t watch Doctor Who or Sherlock – too mainstream for my taste); and I sometimes get really egotistical and view myself, basically, as a massive, complex brain walking around campus. My favorite films include Silence of the Lambs and Trainspotting while my favorite books are almost always dystopian novels, like A Clockwork Orange and Brave New World.
So, I wear a lot of black, red and navy. I add knee-high socks to any outfit that isn’t pants and wear bloomers under skirts and dresses. Combat boots and brogues are my go-to shoes. I love Oxford button-ups in silk and ultra-tight riding pants with a black blazer.
All that’s just me though.
Fashion and personal style are so important because they’re a confident recognition of all the lovely, wonderful, interesting aspects of who you are.
Personal style puts the “you” that you love front and center for the world to meet.
email: emma.janicki@ubspectrum.com
