When you are a busy college student, fashion and style may be the last thing on your mind, so The Scoop spoke with two students who have plenty of fashion advice to offer.
Chandler Cooper and Tessa Hull, Drury freshman and MSU junior respectively, have been together for 3½ years, and this couple have built up their fashion knowledge through their jobs.
Cooper, a music education major, has worked at Old Navy since 2012, and Hull, a public relations and graphic design major, has worked at Five Pound Apparel for the past 2½ years.
They are patrons of many clothing stores; their favorites include Modern Society, H&M, Anthropologie, Target, T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and, of course, Old Navy and Five Pound Apparel. Cooper sums up his style in three words: “clean-cut, cardigans, classic.” Hull describes her clothing style as “vintage, mixed with traces of bohemian.”
Whether it’s trendy pieces or shopping for the basics, they have the scoop on spring style and how you can make the most of it with these seven simple tips.
1. Don’t buy things when they’re full price.
“We [Old Navy] get stuff in and… in a week, it’s going to be 50 percent off because they’re going to have a sale,” Cooper said.
This fact is true for many stores, and some people believe they have discovered a method to the madness. Kyle James, a bargain-hunting blogger who has been featured in the past by news sources such as ABC News and Daily Mail UK, offers insight on how to predict what items will go on sale soon so that you don’t waste your money buying products at full price.
2. Keep a list of things that you want and need.
Hull suggests: “Whenever you’re out shopping, try to get more of the things you need or were wanting. That way, you regret what you buy less.”
Both agreed that this helps avoid the unfortunate occurrence of buying similar items without even realizing it. “I always almost buy things that look like things that I already have,” Cooper said.
3. Pick your clothes out the night before.
Hull suggested this for college students who have to get up for morning classes and don’t take the time to worry about style when they get up early. “Pick things that are comfortable yet cute so that you can still dress for comfort,” she said.
4. Don’t just buy things because they’re trendy.
“Or at least don’t spend a lot,” Hull said.
Both agreed that working in retail has convinced them to be wary of quickly moving fashion styles. “Sometimes when we [Five Pound Apparel] get a shipment in of trends, we’ll get a ton of it in, and I’ll get sick of looking at it. Like one year, when pastels were really in … I just saw so many pastel things, and it has kind of taught me to stick to more classic things that will outlive the trend,” Hull said. “I’ll see how fast trends go out.”
She suggests buying trendy pieces at stores such as Forever 21 where they don’t cost as much, whereas classic pieces should be purchased at a higher quality. If you are going to delve into the trends of the season — and let’s face it, most people do — Cooper suggested loafers and “manly florals.” Hull suggested lace blouses or shorts and high-waisted skirts.
5. Pay attention to the material.
According to Hull, clothing with the material rayon tends to snag and wrinkle more than most. “For college students, cotton is great because you don’t have to worry as much about wrinkles, and you don’t have to hand-wash it.”
6. Save money for staple items.
For Cooper, these staples include button-down shirts (specifically short-sleeved) and cut-off jean shorts. Hull’s list of staples includes easy-to-slip-on sundresses, cardigans and maxi-length skirts and dresses.
7. Use student discounts.
Many companies will offer a discount (usually 10-15 percent off) when you present your student ID. Sometimes you can even apply these discounts to already marked-down prices, making high-quality classics more affordable. Check out this list of stores that have student discounts.
