Personal style throughout the week

Two stylish students took the Dalhousie Gazette through what they wear in a given week. They showed us how their personal styles translate into outfits, and let us in on a little secret: It’s not about what you wear, but how you style it.

Elle Crilly

Elle Crilly is a fourth-year biology and neuroscience major.

The Dalhousie Gazette: Describe your style in three words. 

Elle Crilly: Oh, my God, terrible question. The first three words that came to mind are: it is good. I stand by that because it’s my honest reaction. Ok, actually, shape, pattern and found. I find a lot of clothes on the street and at the thrift store. I love to do different patterns; I’m hooked on the pattern clash. When I was a kid, I used to do that a lot, too. For shape, sometimes I only choose an outfit based on the form it gives me. Sometimes I want to take up a lot of space, so I want a big shape. Wait, can I change my words? I want my word to be professional. I want it to be promising.

DG: Who or what is your biggest style inspiration? 

EC: My friends and the people that I see day-to-day. Sometimes someone will try something and I’m like, “That’s so cool, I want to try and replicate that, but in my own style.” I also see so many beautiful things in science and the natural world that inspire me. There’s lots of ways to engage with science; it’s quite multifaceted and there’s an element of that you can have in your clothing. Also, lowkey, sometimes a lab coat is just a fierce outfit. 

DG: What does personal style mean to you? 

EC: Most of what I wear is based on how I feel in the morning. It’s also kind of awesome to go for something that just flops. It’s important to test the waters and see what you like and don’t like. Check in with yourself about how you feel in what you wear and ask, “Does this make me feel like myself or not?” I think that’s important. Sometimes, I’ll wear a hat, and I’m so nervous the whole day. But, it’s cool to try something and just be like, “I’m a hat guy now.”

Tasha Moller

Tasha Moller is a fifth-year sociology major. 

The Dalhousie Gazette: Describe your style in three words. 

Tasha Moller: Dynamic, colourful, garbage. I like to take things off the street. I like to wear clothes that people normally throw out. I turned a freezer bag into a top once. I get a lot of confused reactions from people. I like to wear things in ways that they are not intended to be worn. I’ll wear things backwards. I like taking things that are overlooked and adding value back into them.

DG: Who or what is your biggest style inspiration? 

TM: One of them is Poly Styrene, who is the lead singer of X-ray Spex. It’s a punk band, and she would wrap herself in a sheet of plastic as a dress or she’d wear a space helmet. It’s punk because you’re using things that are sort of trashy, but it’s also cool because it’s futuristic. I also love the idea of wearing things that are supposed to be thrown out and meant to be garbage. And now that it’s intentional, what’s the difference between “garbage” and high fashion? 

DG: What does personal style mean to you? 

TM: Personal style is great because I wear as much variety as I can possibly think of, and yet people still tell me that I have a personal style. I think that’s really cool because whatever you wear that you like can be your personal style. I also think personal style is something that people are also too obsessed with. Trying to have your own brand is so overrated. Personal style should be just trying to explore wearing a bunch of different things and seeing what makes you feel better and what makes you feel worse.

DG: When might you wear these outfits?

TM: Any time. I’m really pro-overdressing. I think overdressing is in. I think that when I overdress, the worst thing that happens is that I get attention. Which I don’t mind.