You know that one piece of clothing that you won't let go of, no matter how hard your parents beg?
For me, that was my navy Hane's sweatshirt, bought from Amazon during the pandemic. The second I pulled that cotton-polyester blend out of its packaging, I knew we were meant to be together forever.
When I write that this sweatshirt fit perfectly, I mean it hung off my shoulders like a couture dress. It hit right at my hips and could French tuck into any pair of pants.
It was perfect for that weird mannerism we would all do in middle school, where we would hide our hands into our cuffs and swing them around our body like helicopter blades. No? Just me?
TLDR; it was the sweatshirt of my dreams. Luckily, it's still alive and well!(1)
Sorry for scaring you like that. It had to be done. The sweatshirt is folded right beside several of the closet staples I return to, time and time again.
There's something about a piece of clothing that has been with you through thick and thin. It's the reincarnation of a past friend. It supported you when that guy you liked didn't really like you back but fed your delusion anyway.
I don't know what I would wear without the following items.(2)
Levi's jeans
Everything became right with the world when I found my pair of jeans.
I initially bought the Low Loose Jeans in the black colorway for working backstage in high school theater. I owned a few pairs of blue jeans, both from retail and thrift stores, but they never fit quite right. The waist was too high, or the front bunched up when I sat.
I gave in last Black Friday and coughed up sixty bucks for the classic blue style.
Two to four days out of the week, I find myself throwing the jeans on with a sweater and running to class. I tend to favor a straight, wider leg for my denim, something that lets me walk all over Central Park and then write in my dorm for eight hours without breaks. I'll admit, I've even accidentally fallen asleep in them. I took Live in My Levi's too literally!
However, I do wear them too often. The hem in the back of both legs is fraying at the ends. I'm unsure if this is the right thing to do, but I periodically take cuticle scissors to the loose threads.
As much fun as it is to dress out of my comfort zone, I return to this pair like clockwork.
I love to dress these up with my black Kenneth Cole boots(3) or dress them down with a hoodie and New Balances. But you don't need to know that. There's not much to say about Levi's that hasn't been said by Cindy Crawford. Who doesn't wear jeans?
Leather hobo bag
Growing up, my little sister and I would make wish lists for our birthdays and Christmas. This year, I decided to forgo the tradition and ask my parents for one thing alone: the chance to raid my mother's closet.
As a kid, I loved going into her walk-in closet after school, shutting the doors, and staring at her designer pieces. I couldn't wait for the day I could peruse her collection.
Safe to say that day has come.
My eyes may have roamed slightly, but they pretty much directly went to her leather Banana Republic hobo bag. Made of pebble-grain leather and a thin linen lining, I use this bag every day for school. I'm aware that it may not qualify as "designer," but can your Louis Vuitton Neverfull carry a MacBook Air, a pencil case, two packs of orange TicTacs, three bags of dining hall chips, and the TS 110 Fabric Science Swatch Kit?(4)
Before you can comment, yes. I did spill a water bottle inside that soaked through to the leather. Animal skin and liquids are long-time enemies, so it's horribly stained on the bottom.
What makes the bag so stylistically flexible is its shape. It may not be screaming for attention, but it certainly doesn't need to. The hobo bag mimics the slouchiness of today's popular silhouettes, while still being timeless in its construction.
I'm of the opinion that everyone needs a good leather bag they can plop on the floor and not have to worry about everything falling out. There are two circular magnets at the bottom of the handle, and two in each side crevice. They make a fun little clacking noise when stuck together!
Skinny sparkly belt
Real talk, 404 Error? I used to hate belts. Something about them felt so stuffy and restricting. I hated styling them; it felt better to let my clothing speak for itself.
Once I started wearing low-rise pants in the tenth grade, I realized that belts were necessary, and I picked up this black sparkly J. Crew belt.
I started to wear it all the time; it's thin enough that it doesn't detract from the casualness of any potential outfit, but sturdy enough that I don't have to worry about looking like a Diesel model. The belt pairs so well with jewelry, especially my vintage Chelsea Flea watch, seen in the photo.
These days, I do love a good belt, specifically for my business school presentations. I'll style them with my thrifted Kirkland slacks (not joking, they're literally the best fitting pants I own) and a thin black turtleneck sweater.
The sparkly addition also works so well for going out. I like to throw on a black pair of jeans, a cute little tank top, and a black shoulder bag. The sparkling quality of the belt elevates any basic outfit I might have worn.
I do regret not buying it with a gold buckle; I'm a gold girl through and through. If anyone knows of a similar style, I'm a DM away. C'est la vie!
Cowboy boots
Last but not least, my pride and joy: my cowboy boots. A few months into my sophomore year of high school, I spied these Western shoes on a tall shelf in the downtown Portland (OR) Crossroads.
It was kismet.
No, I'll be honest. I was a little skeptical at first of the style. The year was 2021; cowboy boots had little to do with everyday outfits and more with Coachella Instagram dumps. But being priced at $25, my gut understood this was a steal I would never get again.
Then again, this was the era in which I would raid thrift stores for nursing scrubs, pair them with the tiniest crop top known to man, and call it fashion, so who was I to judge?
I'm not advocating for buying clothing in the hopes that it will one day match your style. Focus on what best matches your lifestyle, and style will follow. However, I knew, deep down, that my fashion sense at the time sucked. I understood that what worked for me then would not work forever. I had to start buying pieces for the long term and ditch the Shein hauls.
Looking back at my style evolution, no item has tested time more than my cowboy boots. I donned them for every high school dance, for graduation last June, and even for slam poetry competitions.
They are incredibly versatile, not to mention comfortable: after buying insoles, I can walk all over Midtown without developing a single blister. The boots are arguably comparable to their sleeker and more sporty sister, the tennis shoe.
A couple of years after my purchase, they began to scrunch up at my ankles like socks. I (say it with me) went into my mother's closet and took two of her unused boot trees. I've linked the exact style of boot tree because they maintain the structure of a Western boot like nothing has before. I tried to stuff them with fabric, but it became a pain to take scraps out of the shoe every time I wanted to wear them.
It does worry me that they are near the end of their life. You may be able to see that the back of the sole has just about worn off. I should take them to a cobbler once that first paycheck hits.
If I started listing all the ways I've styled my cowboy boots, you'd be reading for the amount of time Adrien Brody talked in his acceptance speech at the Oscars (unbearably long).
The plan is to pass them down to my daughter, and her daughter if I'm lucky. At the end of the day, these boots are made for walking, and that's just what they'll do!
Footnotes
If you were wondering what it looks like on me.
Maybe those baggy leggings everyone on TikTok is talking about?
I couldn't find the original. I may have raided my mother's closet for these pointed-toe beauties...
If you know, you know...
All photography by Kaylie Gingerich. Check her out!
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