Welcome back to Fashion on Fifth, a beloved Free Press series showcasing New School students’ unique and wide-ranging style. After seeing how this creative community translated their personal looks to Zoom, our reporters are taking to the streets of Greenwich Village once again. This semester we are bringing you more in-depth profiles and thoughts from your peers about their style evolution throughout the pandemic and since being back in New York City. 

Diego Ortega

Diego Ortega is a second year Parsons student in the Fashion Design program. For his interview with The New School Free Press he wore black Ralph Lauren slacks from Depop, a long sleeve, backless top from L Train Vintage, a trench coat from Zara, and Doc Marten loafers. Ortega accessorized his all-black look with a cross body canvas bag. 

Ortega gravitates towards simple, minimalist fashion, but chooses unique pieces strategically to represent his personality. “There’s always elements in my outfits which are slightly different, to demonstrate the mascualine and femanine sides of myself,” said Ortega. The black top pictured  exemplifies  this aspect of Ortega’s style; reading as a basic long sleeve shirt from the front, but completely backless with a dainty bow. 

Ortega’s desire  to see himself reflected in his  fashion choices has increased his appreciation and respect for clothing and influences his own designs and creative vision. “In my designs I like to be abstract and create pieces which don’t speak to someone’s gender, rather their personality,” Ortega said. His interest in the intersection of fashion and  personality is fueled by conversation with friends and peers about how they each share facets of themselves differently through personal style. 

The pandemic taught Ortega multiple lessons, most importantly: “how valuable life is and to not take anything for granted,” he said. This lesson has affected  his relationship to style. Ortega enjoys crafting outfits now, more than ever, after a lengthy hiatus. “I am trying to show up for myself more,” he said, “and dressing up as much as I can!” His go-to outfits for school illustrate his minimalist style, consisting mostly of slacks, dress shoes, and dress shirts. 

Ortega does feel some pressure picking outfits for school, saying, “obviously. I go to Parsons School of Design and everyone dresses amazingly!” But he said the pressure comes mostly  from himself and his drive to constantly explore and experiment. “I want every outfit to continue telling the story of who I am,” Ortega said.

Sophie Thomas

Sophie Thomas, who hails from England, is a third-year Vocal major at the School of Jazz and Contemporary Music and is from the. Thomas fell in love with The New School when she visited New York City to audition for several performing arts schools. Thomas said she knew instantly it was the place she belonged. 

Thomas describes her style as, “British glam rock meets Hot Topic.” She has an extensive collection of  band t-shirts that she often pairs with a blazer “to spruce it up.” Thomas feels like she can express herself through clothing and she pulls inspiration from the many metal concerts she’s attended with her mom. Rock, pop and disco motifs also make frequent appearances in her everyday looks. “I wanted to look like that too,” Thomas said, remembering the comradery she felt at these events. 

Thomas moved frequently growing up, as the child of a military family.  She then felt like people wouldn’t accept her style in the areas her family ended up. Since moving to the city for college Thomas said she realized that there were others like her who would not only appreciate, but celebrate her style. “I’m my own person and people like that,” said Thomas. 

For her interview with The New School Free Press, Thomas wore black high-waisted pants from Target. Thomas says it’s challenging for her to find pants that fit well because she’s tall, so these are a favorite of hers. Both her black lace shirt and leather jacket were thrifted back home in the UK. Black Dr. Martens are her go-to shoes “they’re indestructible,” Thomas said. To accessorize, she wore a Celtic knot ring, which her mother bought for her in Scotland, which she wears to remind her of home. Most of her jewelry pieces are from different shops on Etsy. “I love getting handmade jewelry. [Wearing] people’s passions on me… feels special,” Thomas said. 

Makeup is something Thomas has played around with for several years. First trying out different eyeshadows after being inspired by “glam rock” and David Bowie. While classes were on Zoom Thomas felt “very disconnected from school and music.” After some time, with all her extra time at home, Thomas dove into makeup as an artform and started to experiment more, even adding glitter to her looks. 

“I really liked this bright [eyeshadow] color I saw, so I bought a bunch of different palettes to play around with. If I put sparkles on my eyes, I immediately feel more presentable, or [like I] have ‘showmanship’. Maybe that’s the musician in me… I like having a persona,” Thomas said.

Caitlin Du

Caitlin Du, a third-year Illustration major from Beijing, China, pulls inspiration from her own artwork when picking outfits each day. “I feel like putting out art [is] like putting on an outfit – It is saying something about my own personality,” Du said. “I draw myself really often. I am one of my characters, so I like dressing myself up – [which] is similar to drawing myself. It brings me joy. My wardrobe is how people see me. It’s like character design.”

While being on Zoom, Du lived in New Jersey with her brother, and her style changed drastically. With comfort at the forefront of her mind, she solely wore sportswear and pajamas. Since returning to NYC, Du has gotten back into her creative style with pieces that allow her to express herself.  

When speaking with The New School Free Press, Du wore a pair of black, “edgy” boots from Sketchers with thrifted wide-leg pants from Buffalo Exchange which she says many people mistake for a skirt. Du paired that with a daisy-print long sleeve shirt with a keyhole detail on the front. Over top, she wore her favorite red jacket from her mom found for her at TJ Maxx. “I really like using red in a lot of my artwork,” Du said. “This is probably my most valued [piece] in my closet.” 

Du was deprived of the freedom to express herself the way she wanted to in high school because she was required to wear a uniform. When starting at The New School, Du said she lacked self-confidence and found herself being overly influenced by trends and unable to parse her own style. This year Du has had more interest in thrifting and is working to develop her style beyond the influence of her peers. Buffalo Exchange is one of her favorite places to thrift. 

Since returning to campus for in-person classes, Du has been excited to pick out outfits that showcase her individuality. She gravitates towards matching colors together which she said is similar to her illustration style. “I focus on colors [in my illustrations] because I feel like colors can convey atmosphere and say a lot about the mood you’re going for,” Du said. “Color combination means a lot to me.”