Italian Couture

After spending a lovely week in beautiful Italy I come back bearing gifts of fashion trends and style tips for anyone planning to travel there in the near future or simply wanting to learn more about other cultures. I spent half of the week in Rome and half of the week in Venice so I definitely wouldn’t say that this applies to all of Italy or even all Italian college students but there were some trends that stood out and seemed pretty universal.

One such trend was that in Italy they dressed more conservatively. This probably surprised me most since in my mind Italy is such a warm and touristy destination. Even in the 80 degree sun most of the locals wore long pants, long sleeved shirts or even jackets. This made it easy to spot the tourists, like myself, who couldn’t bear the idea of roasting in layers. I did, however, always make sure to dress in longer shorts or dresses and wear more conservative shirts to make up for the shorts. It was striking how different this was from the US where it is very common that a majority of people wear shorts during the summer.

Nevertheless, despite their conservative attitude, this didn’t stop the Italians from dressing just as fashionable as the Parisians. As in Paris, everyone tries to look their best at all times. Never once did I see anyone in a simple t-shirt or sweatpants. However, unlike the UK, their fashion is a lot more classically stylish and similar than compared to England where everyone wants to dress differently.

This mix of conservative attitude with fashionable dress really represented the mix of old and new that you found in Italy, especially Rome. In Rome it was common to round a packed modern city corner and be face-to-face with enormous ancient ruins. This was the same way you would feel with the dress. While there was definitely a standard of dress that seemed older, the fashion was as modern and “now” as you’ll find in any city.  

The fashion in Venice was a little different though definitely less formal. Because Venice is such a small and touristy city the style was more casual and you saw more locals wearing shorts or other clothing that the tourists might wear. They were also much more open to the idea of bold fashion statements than those Italians in Rome.

Despite the conflict of comfort versus fashion in these two cities, I extremely enjoyed my time in Italy. The people and their fashion added to the liveliness of the country as a whole and made it more cultural somehow. If there is one place I would recommend that everyone visit in their lives it would have to be Italy! Just remember to bring long pants!  

Interview With an American

Because I wanted to get different perspectives than just my own on what students think about fashion in the UK compared to fashion in the US I enlisted the help of one of my fellow study abroad students to get a sense of what a male from the US makes of the style differences and similarities. His name is CJ Pellerano and he is also a junior studying abroad at Royal Holloway University for the Spring semester.

Me: Do you think the fashion in England is different than the fashion in the US? Any specific examples?

CJ: Yes, I definitely think the fashion is very different. Everyone here dresses up much more. You won’t really see anyone in sweatpants or a sweatshirt even when it’s freezing out. Also, the people dress very differently from each other. There isn’t one type of style.  

Me: Do you see any similarities and who do you think is modeling whom? 

CJ: There are a few similarities between our fashion and theirs. For example, skinny jeans are popular in both countries. They are just more popular with guys in England than in the U.S. Also, their clothes, while similar to ours, always seem a little more formal and fancy. I don’t think anyone is copying anyone—I just think it happens naturally.

Me: Have you changed your fashion at all as a result of being here?

CJ: I think I’ve started dressing a little nicer for everyday stuff than in the U.S. but I wouldn’t say I’ve changed my fashion. 

Me: Will your changes follow over to back in the US? In other words, will you continue to dress differently than you used to when you are back in the US? 

CJ: I probably will keep dressing nicer in the U.S. just because people respect you more when you don’t look like a slob.

Me: Do you believe the English fashion pulls from any other cultures more than others?

CJ: I think all fashion pulls from other cultures but each individual style is unique and different.  

Me: What is your favorite English fashion trend?

CJ: My favorite fashion trend from the UK are fedoras. I bought this one in Camden Market.  

 

Parisian Fashion

While studying abroad I've been lucky enough to travel to other countries outside the UK and one of them happened to be the fashion capital of the world: Paris, France. Because of this I feel inclined to write a post on the differences between Parisian and English fashion, and their differences with the US.

Even though it was cold in Paris this didn't deter any of the locals from looking like they just stepped off a runway. You'll see no parkas or sweatshirts here, except from the tourists. If there was one overarching style choice of Paris it would be that everyone wears black! Or at the very least, mostly neutral tones. This is a significant change from England as most of the people, especially the younger crowd, favor bright colors and bold statements such as purple pants with a yellow top.

How the locals chose to dress for the weather was split among the population, specifically the women. Many women wore very nice trench coats or even fur to keep warm. Other women chose a look which is popular in England as well which is shorts with stockings underneath. The stockings were often black-sheer with some sort of design. I've included examples below. While it may not have kept them warm, I did fall in love with this look as it dressed up the shorts and made it look very chic. However, even with my New England blood, I don't think I could have pulled it off in those temperatures.

The Parisian men, on the other hand, dressed very nicely, but also, more similar to the U.S. than English men. In England, the men, like the women, chose very individual and loud clothing. In Paris they were much more reserved and conservative. The dress was often nice cut jeans or dress pants and a sweater or button-down shirt. Most younger guys in the U.S. don't necessarily dress like this every day but they do dress more conservative and the majority don't prefer to make loud statements with their style choices.

Another thing that was clear in Paris was that you could easily tell the difference between the tourists and the locals. While we tried to blend in as best as we could there was a general chic-ness to the clothing the Parisians wore compared to the tourists. In general, I found that each Parisian was able to express their own style in an understated way while also following a set of unspoken rules for dress which allowed them all to look collectively fashionable. Overall, I was very happy to see that I had not been misled and Paris is definitely a, if not the, fashion capital of the world.

Boots, boots, boots

Hi all! This week's post is dedicated entirely to boots. I knew coming to England that boots were going to be my best friend. They keep you warm, they're comfortable to walk in and they're fashionable at the same time. However, I didn't realize what a huge fashion trend they are in England and how it's different from in the US.

Back home, it is very common for girls to wear boots: normally tall, flat, riding style boots. In case you're not entirely sure what I mean here's some examples (and ones that I wouldn't mind owning).

Shoes above from Bakersshoes.com

However, I've found that it's much more common in the UK for girls to wear ankle boots sometimes with a heel and sometimes without. They also feel free to wear a range of styles and colors with many different outfits. Here are some examples I've found:

Shoes above from Topshop.co.uk

I love that girls here feel free to wear whatever style they feel comfortable with. While there are plenty of people back home who have their own style, college students are much more inclined to wear the same, albeit cute, outfits or styles in the US. On the other hand, in the UK, while there are definite patterns or trends, it is much more common for people to wear whatever they want and express their personalities through their clothes, especially shoes.  

As much as I love my riding boots, I am quickly falling in love with this fashion statement and plan to add a pair (or two) to my collection ASAP. Then my only problem will be figuring out how to find the room in my suitcase to bring them home. Cheers!

Welcome!

Hello and welcome to my blog! First a little intro about me. My name is Jessica and I am a 21-year-old American college student studying abroad at Royal Holloway University of London for this semester. I am originally from a small town in Connecticut and the college I attend back in the US is Bentley University. While I have another blog devoted to my travels while in London (link), I wanted to start this blog and devote it simply to fashion and style differences between college students in Europe and college students in the US.

I originally started thinking about this subject while doing research before I left for study abroad. I am a very overattentive person (that's putting it a nice way). Therefore, I wanted to learn everything about England before I ever even booked my ticket. And while I was able to find a ton of information about what the teaching, people, and general life there wasn't a whole lot out there about what the typical English college student would wear. Yet many websites cautioned how they dressed different than the US. Needless to say, I found this frustrating as ever.

Another thing you should know is I love fashion! While my clothing budget may sometimes be an issue I am always on the lookout for what is going to be the hot new thing for the next season. However, I like to see it through the eyes of a typical person instead of a high fashion magazine. I mean, let's be honest, how many times have you seen a typical person walking down the street wearing something you would find on a runway. Answer: never! However, there are tons of trends that originate on the runway that find there way to the average college student and this is what I plan to focus on. I'll try to update every week or so and I'll try to include different things to keep all my lovely readers interested. Now, thank you for your patience and onto my first topic...

Yoga pants do not, and I repeat, DO NOT, exist here! Or, if they do, they are carefully hidden by the girls of England and only worn when alone in their dorm rooms with the blinds drawn. For anyone who has been to the US for even a day you can tell this has been a big adjustment for me as they are practically part of the dress code for girls back home. On any given day when I just didn't feel like putting much effort into my outfit I would grab a pair of yoga pants and a cute long sleeved shirt and I would be ready to go. This does not seem to be an option here.

While I have found that leggings (thankfully) do transfer to European fashion, yoga pants, unfortunately do not. Therefore, for now, my yoga pants are reserved for wearing only when no one else is around. So for anyone planning to come to England any time soon don't even bother bringing them unless you enjoy gazing at them wistfully while pulling on a pair of skinny jeans.

Well, that's all for today but expect more soon. Cheers!