Chronicles Of Campus Fashion

I asked roommates Ali Miller, A&S '12, and Nina Stingo, CSOM '12, of Walsh 120 to speak about their personal style because I saw a picture of them on Facebook. Here's what they had to say:

Q: How do you think your style may have changed since becoming roommates?
AM: I don't think our style changed necessarily, but it's nice to have Nina. We borrow each other's clothes when we're picking out our outfits, we get each other's advice on what to wear.

NS: I honestly feel like last year I could dress myself better, because this year I'm always like "Ali! Does this look good?"

Q: Describe your own personal style.

NS: Can I describe Ali's? I think that Ali's personal style is ... what she does really well is pairing things together that I don't think most people would feel confident enough to try to together, like a skirt with Converse or brown boots with black pants. And it looks effortless. It's not like one day, "Oh, I'm gonna try and do this." Every day she has this consistent personal style.

AM: I think it's interesting because I don't I think I could pull off what you [Nina] wear at all. All of your pieces are so distinct. You have some beautiful tops — lots of ruffles, details. Also, I don't know if it's the business school thing, but you look very clean cut.

NS: Yeah, you look more like an English major [laughs] but in the best possible way!
AM: I have a question for Nina: How do you think going to an all-girls' school with a uniform influenced your style?
NS: Well, going to an all-girls' school is bizarre, because even when you wear a uniform, you're trained to find ways to be unique within the restrictions.

AM: I mean for me, going to public school, I felt like I had to come up with something new to wear every day. Not that it was a competition between all the girls, because girls would notice if you wore the same outfit twice in one week. I guess that's why I had to be a little creative with the same pieces, because I don't have an unlimited wardrobe.

Q: Nina, did you have "Best-Dressed" at your school?
NS: No. We didn't have that award.

Q: Ali, you won that, right?
AM: [reluctantly] ... yeah, I mean, I don't like that. I just think it sounds so superficial. I mean, the outfits I put together aren't me wanting to look better than anyone else, it's just something fun to do. It's your own way to be creative every single day.

NS: For me, I try hard to pick out an outfit, but by 10:00 the next day, the morning that I'm wearing it, I hate it. But then, every once in a while you find something, and it's perfect.

Q: How do you see yourself dressing in 10 years?
NS: [laughs] I've always kind of envied when you see movies and you see these powerful corporate women. Yeah ... I wanna do that a little bit, but maybe not every day, but occasionally. On a day to day basis, I'd ideally like to see myself wearing what I wear now.

Q: Ali, yourself?
NS: Mom sweatpants ... mom pants.

AM: [laughs] So I'll be 30 ... I don't know! I don't want to change the way I dress. I want to have the same style, I guess a little more grown up. I mean, I think what happens is I'll be shopping at different stores — I don't see myself shopping at H&M or Urban Outfitters.

NS: Maybe that's why our styles are so different. I shop at a lot of stores like Banana Republic or Anne Taylor Loft ... because I try to find clothes that I could pair with business pants and a cardigan, or I could pair it with jeans and dress it down.

AM: That's my problem. When I shop, I'm very spontaneous, I never care about pieces in relation to other pieces I own. So, I see a dress and think, "I like that." I guess that's why my outfits are, not mismatched, but I guess atypical ... just not always very coherent.