By: Abel Munoz-Barrientos, Staff Writer
Shannon
1. What is your ethnic/racial identity?
I identify as Korean-American, or Asian American.
2. Do you believe your ethnic/racial identity plays a role in how you present yourself each day?
I think I dress in a way that isn’t stereotypical of how people perceive an Asian-American person to be; whatever that means. I take most of my inspiration from fashion magazines from the 1960s or from French fashion, especially New Wave films. I don’t usually think of my ethnicity when I choose to present myself; I think about the stuff that I like. I think ethnicity comes in after I think about the way I’m perceived.
3. What does fashion mean to you? How does fashion play a role into expressing yourself?
I think fashion helps me be more confident in the way I present myself, and the way I interact with people. I think by dressing well and being put-together I’m able to exude a sense of self-confidence. I feel more professional and like people take me more seriously if I dress well. I also feel good about myself when people compliment me and tell me my outfit looks good that day; it gives me a little boost.
4. Who or what are your biggest fashion influences, if any?
My biggest fashion icon, for sure, is Anna Karina. I love her so much, especially in the movie Bande à part. I just really enjoy her outfits—it’s a lot of black, but with a lot of simplistic shapes. It’s really put-together and classy. I take inspiration from her, but I also like adding accessories to my outfits like, nose rings. They help add little edge to my outfits and give them a twist.
5. How do you feel like your style/fashion sense has developed since you first begun attending college?
At first, I dressed like how I did in high school: very comfort-based. I didn’t really care much about how I was perceived. I think, eventually, after joining student organizations like WUD Music, I started developing my own fashion sense because I saw how other people dressed and enjoyed that everyone had their own sense of style. After that, I started going to thrift stores and buying vintage clothes. Throughout my college career, I’ve ended up going through several fashion stages. For my sophomore year, I went for more of a grungy look. I wore weird, dark lipsticks, had a lot of dark makeup on all the time, fishnets, ripped jeans; all that stuff. I still have some of those elements incorporated in the way I dress, but I think right now I really enjoy “chic” and “classy” looks. I also enjoy mixing vintage looks with modern pieces.
6. How would you briefly describe your fashion style/sense?
“Chic” and “European-inspired, with an American twist.”
Brandon
1. What is your ethnic/racial identity?
I am Laotian.
2. Do you believe your ethnic/racial identity plays a role in how you present yourself each day?
I feel like people notice how you “are” when you’re a person of color. For example, I think people definitely have ideas of how Asian people should dress and how they should “be.” They always make jokes like “international students always wear Gucci and Louis Vuitton,” and that’s not true. There’s a lot of international students who just dress very casually. I feel like if you start dressing nicely, as someone who is Asian, people might assume that you are an international student. I’ve had many experiences when people thought that I was, and I was just, like, “This is awkward. I’m from Wisconsin.” I do think my ethnic/racial identity definitely plays a role in how I present myself.
3. What does fashion mean to you? How does fashion play a role into expressing yourself?
Fashion to me means wearing what you want to wear and being comfortable, while also not breaking your bank account. It’s kind of like being able to do whatever you want to do and look a way that feels good.
4. Who or what are your biggest fashion influences, if any?
I take a lot of my clothes from my mom and dad. So, they would be up there. I don’t know; I’m just a sucker for a nice pair of pants. I think if you have a good pair of pants, everything else comes naturally. I just dress like my dad now and I’m, like, “cool.”
5. How do you feel like your style/fashion sense has developed since you first begun attending college?
I think every year I’ve had some sort of pivotal change in the way I dress. In high school I used to wear ties and cardigans because my cousin did it and I thought “That’s cool, I’ll do that,” then I realized I didn’t have enough ties. The most pivotal thing I did in college was I started buying my own pants. Once I started buying black pants, that changed everything. Everything came naturally; that’s what changed it.
6. What are two words to describe your fashion style/sense?
“Denim daddy.”