Lilli H. ‘26 wakes up on a sunny morning before school and decides to switch things up. Bored with her everyday uniform of her oversized navy blue sweat set, Lilli decides to reach for her khaki skirt that she hasn’t worn in ages and pairs it with a cozy sweater. As she walks out of her house, she is feeling more confident than ever.
Lilli has always had a love for fashion. She discovered this love when she went on movie sets with her dad, always admiring the costume designs and the process behind the fashion aspects of the movie. Fashion has brought so much confidence into her life and has also allowed her to express her identity and emotions through a unique configuration of clothing.
“A big thing about my style that influences it is the fact that it’s a form of self-expression,” Lilli said. “It is used to describe how I’m feeling, [as well as] my mood, and the things I’m passionate about. Fashion is about having an outlet to [express my] individuality.”
In addition to helping Lilli become a better and more confident version of herself, she has seen fashion affecting other aspects of her personality. Through experimenting with her fashion sense, Lilli has found that she can influence her mindset and behavior.
“I’ve noticed that when I put on a really nice outfit that I feel 100 percent confident in, I am ten times more likely to be a better person to the people around me because I feel more free and more welcoming,” Lilli said. “When I don’t have a nice outfit on, I feel very cold and guarded. It’s just one of those weird things that you can’t really explain, but fashion expression just [has the ability] to make you feel a certain way.”
Cal L. ‘25 similarly discovered that fashion acts as a confidence booster for them. When Cal joined the Knitters For Justice Club in tenth grade, they found love and joy in creating their own clothing through knitting sweaters, dresses, scarves and more. Knitting allowed Cal to source a new identity within themself.
“I am very [proud] when I wear the things that I have made,” Cal said. “It’s affected how I hold pride in the things that I make and how confident I feel when wearing them. I’m very proud of all of my pieces, and they are great talking pieces.”
Kazi H. ‘26 has frequently changed his style throughout his middle and high school years. More recently, Kazi has been dabbling in streetwear and has decided to accessorize more. Over time, he has embraced both feminine and masculine influences in his recent outfits.
“[When] I came out as bisexual, I thought I had to be exclusively feminine because I was queer,” Kazi said. “Then I realized I didn’t feel very comfortable that way so I began to understand that I could also dress masculine, which I usually do.”
Fashion has been an important part of Kazi life for as long as he can remember. Discovering his style has become not only an external experience, but has also become an internal experience for him. He believes that a good outfit should never go to waste, and to always put effort into styling as it is an expression of your identity.
“Fashion for me is something you have to manage to internalize and bring it beyond just the outside world,” Kazi said. “We’re constantly discovering ourselves through our clothing, because fashion and clothing is just a microscope into ourselves and society as a whole.”
