February 21, 2012
By Miranda Parman| Ranger reporter
“I loved your pajamas this morning in class,” said no one. Ever.
As students in a fast-paced world where the job market is rocky, life is tumultuous. The wardrobes of college students should not be affected negatively by it.
Demands on the average Amarillo College student’s time are high. Most work, go to school, attempt to study and attempt to maintain social lives. Many also have children and significant others to take care of.
Sometimes all these demands reach up and tear sensible clothing from our backs and send someone wrapped up in pajamas and a hoodie out the door, instead.
Students of AC, it is time to put the Winnie the Pooh pajamas away and put back on real clothes.
Now, throw those offensive slippers to the wayside and slip into a decent pair of shoes. College kid doesn’t have to equal slob.
How does one do this? Does “classy” or “appropriate” sound foreign?
Let’s walk through this.
1. Ideas – Where would the world be without some inspiration? If Monet hadn’t lived by a pond he never would have painted beautiful lily pads.
Some of the best places to pull outfit ideas from are other people. Thankfully, with the internet people now have the ability to post what they were on web sites. Because of this there are quality sites filled with good ideas. The following are the best.
http://www.sincerelyjules.com/ — Julie Sarinana is a model who has rather simple, but colorful taste. She often wears pieces of clothing that are interesting shapes.
http://www.thedaybookblog.com/ — Sydney is a new mom who lives in Washington, D.C., where her husband works. She recently graduated from college, as well. She is fun, yet pulled-together in the way she dresses. Every Thursday, she has an Awesome/Awkward post about things that have been happening that week in her life, it’s entertaining. Humor and style? Let her show you the way.
www.thesartorialist.com — The man who runs this blog takes pictures of people on the street all over the world. The outfits featured on this website are often high-end, but the pieces of clothing are often simple in style. They’d be easy to replicate on a tighter budget. Clean, classy, but really unique clothes can be found here.
2. Examples – No one needs to depend only on the Internet… for anything. If that was the only place people talked to their friends, no one would have many friends. The Internet is not the only place to get outfit ideas. There are girls on campus who wear things that are more class appropriate than yoga pants that have never been worn in a yoga class.
Kristen Varela, a general studies major, is one of those girls.
“Don’t worry if people look at you funny, there are just as many people that are out there that think you’re cool,” she said.
Kristen shops at Modcloth, Anthropology and Urban Outfitters.
“Those are probably my favorites,” Varela said. “Forever 21 is good and so is American Apparel.”
She said she gets her outfit ideas from the Sartorialist and people on the street
“Not that I creep on people on the street,” she added.
Sawyer Swindell, a fine arts major, also dresses admirably. She fixes her hair into bows and has “chalked” her tips for events before. On pinterest.com she has a style idea board simply titled “beauty.”
To see what “chalked” hair is, visit http://ericaworzel.com/component/k2/item/4-hair–chalking .
Also, an option in the outfit-idea-hunting process would be to purchase a subscription to an established magazine. Vogue would be way over any college kid’s head, but there are others that may not be as swanky, but are far more practical.
InStyle, Marie Claire, and Elle would be three of these type magazines. They have outfit ideas, trend predictions and ways to use what is already in the closet.
InStyle is probably the most practical style-wise. Marie Claire has quality style advice and features everyday women more often. Elle is a high-end, but really cool. The clothes they have are expensive, but the looks that they feature would not be impossible to replicate with some creative flair.
3. Action – After spending some precious down-time scrolling through fashion blogs and people watching to get good outfit ideas, it’s time to shop with a woefully tight college student’s clothing budget. It could also be time to stand in front of the closet and consider what’s already there.
Before any shopping sprees happen, consider the fact that the color company Pantone releases a “color of the year” every year. This year is Tangerine Tango. This is a color that will show up every season this year from lacey undies all the way up to swirly, twirly maxi dresses.
Embrace it. It has been shown in scientific studies that men are attracted to red. Take it or leave it, it’s been proven. Cheetah print also is awesome to pepper here and there – fun, feisty and interesting in small doses.
Some trends to keep in mind while browsing through clothing options are sheer and cropped tops, both of which can be tricky to pull off.
If something sheer is to be worn, might it be suggested that a bright, fitted tank top be worn underneath. Cropped tops also need a fitted tank top underneath. Cropped tops need to hit at the waist for girls with full hips. Girls with narrower hips would do well with one that hits above the hip bone. Narrow-waisted girls and thin girls can pull off in-between lengths better.
Go forth and don’t wear pajamas to Farmer’s government class.
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