By Liana Satenstein
Name: Stefanie Katz
Year: Sophomore
Major: Art Education
"I dress so that the way I portray myself reflects certain attitudes and impressions," Stefanie says. "I feel good when I look good."
At first Stefanie's outfit, as well as her sentences, complemented by cliché phrases and airy verbs, may seem simple. Yet, when I listen a little closer, I learn that Stefanie's mom is her biggest style influence. As I look even closer, I see her jewelry, a melted spoon bracelet surrounded by David Yurman bangles. I notice that Stefanie's outfit, an array of labels but without the pretentious undertones, is articulately punctuated with all of her "T's" crossed and "I's" dotted.
"Who makes your jacket?" I ask Stefanie. It's a large fitted fur jacket-something that only a Russian czarist could get away with, but it works for Stephanie, who has coherently paired it with a pair of simple dark wash jeans and brown boots.
"Juicy," she replies.
"And your influences?" I continue.
"Kate Moss of course; she is chic and trendy," Stefanie reveals. "The Beatles and classic rock; sometimes I like to look a little hippie chic, a little bohemian. And of course my mother - she has a good fashion sense but it never comes off as too much, she modifies her outfits so they are simple yet classy."
Between her pink nails and leather boots, Stefanie conveys two antonymic influences through her outfit, the wildness of Kate Moss and the elegance of a mother, yet is able to make the two opposites seem more like close pairs.
"And your earrings?"
"Well I wear pearls because I think they are extremely chic," Stefanie says. "But I put some hoops in there too, you know, too make it a little more edgy."
Stefanie follows a pendant chain around her neck.
"What about your necklace?" I ask.
"That," Stefanie calmly begins to tell me without pausing, "That is my one year recovery necklace. It reflects my recent decisions in life."
"And that bracelet?" I ask.
"That is a spoon bracelet!" exclaims Stefanie. "My sister gave it to me. In the 70s they melted spoons together to make bracelets. You need to look those up!"
As I wrap up the interview, I double-check Stefanie's information,
"So you are a sophomore?"
"Yes"
"And it's "Stephanie" right?"
"Yes, but its with an "F"! I'm an individual!" jokes Stefanie, not "Stephanie."
Once more, I analyze the syntax of Stefanie's outfit; a conjugation of hoops and pearls, leather boots modified by self painted nails, True Religion jeans accented by a tree stump: in simpler words, it's all very well said.