An outfit has to originate from somewhere, but that place is different for everyone.

Each person has their own unique style, whether it’s Stockholm style or streetwear, we all express ourselves differently through clothing. The basis of an outfit is often taken from what is around us, ranging from peers to Instagram feeds.

In past decades, fashion rooted mainly from magazines and ideas passed from person to person. Now, it feels as though fashion inspiration has turned towards social media. Trends spread fast as creators share their new finds, opinions, and attempt to sell products to their viewers.

Aiyana Karanja, a junior from New York City, enjoys expressing herself through her clothing. She feels most of her inspiration comes from social media.

“You know I’m not like amazingly original or something, I’m not like crafting out outfits the night before drawing them or something,” she said. “I would definitely say I’m strongly influenced by social media.”

Aiyana remarks that Vogue, while she doesn’t look at it often, is a great source for inspiration.

According to its website, Vogue began in December 1892 and is a fashion and lifestyle magazine covering topics including fashion, beauty, culture, living, weddings, and runway.

Visual and Performing Arts Teacher Wendy Staples said that back in her childhood, the dELiA*s catalog was a main source of inspiration for her clothing.

According to a September 2020 VICE article by Jelisa Castrodale titled “Bury Me in a dELiA*s Catalog From 1997,” dELiA*s was founded in the early 1990s by two Yale graduates, Steve Kahn and Chris Edgar. The first catalog was published in 1994 and targeted college-aged women, however it became more of a hit with high school kids. The catalog sold many trending items such as baby tees, wide-leg jeans, and body glitter.

Unfortunately, the company went bankrupt in 2014. A few of their remaining items can now been found on the DOLLS KILL website.

On top of the trending catalog, Staples believes her fashion in her high school years mainly rooted from wanting to conform with her peers.

“I think it was just sort of feeding off of others at school, you know you kind of want to fit in,” she said.

She explained that most of her outfits consisted of jeans and hoodies, but noted two specific items she was often found in.

“I had these cool pants that were almost like flared yoga pants and they had like a blue strip with stars down the side. And those like Steve Madden black slide shoes, those were in,” she said.

The Steve Madden shoes she is referring to are the “SLINKY30 BLACK” shoes found on Steve Madden’s website for $89.95.

While Staples is not found around Williston’s campus in Steve Madden slides, she is often found in a stylish messy bun, which she claims has not changed since she was in high school. As for her clothing, the brands she now wears include Banana Republic, GAP, and J.Crew.

Her closet isn’t filled with just store bought items, however; it also consists of self-made pieces, making her style her own.

“I am also a knitter so I’m trying to wear more of my own stuff, it’s a little more my own style. It’s kind of fun to mix and match like pants, or shirts, or cardigans that can be intermixed, some fun patterns, but also just basics that can be swapped in and out,” she said.

Not everyone possess the originality Staples’ does, and often styles can get lost in the mix of trends.

“[Social media] can kind of take away originality of it all. Definitely me, 100%, very little that I wear is like not influenced by trends. Cause you know I love trendy things, like I love to stay on the trends, however it’s hard to find what you truly like separate from trends,” Aiyana said.

In recent years, it’s become hard to distinguish what is stylish and what is just on trend, or if those two are the same thing. Items such as unique colored Adidas Gazelles have been trending, originally seeming very unique, but now are considered a common siting.

Zh’ky Johnson-Tuzo, a junior from Bermuda, noted that while he believes social media has had a good influence on fashion, “it can be a little toxic, as it is really fast pace.”

Aiyana said that her favorite influencers to get inspirations from on TikTok, whom she believes have a unique flare,  include @richelle_zh, @fiilipppaaaaa, and @wolfiecindy.

Viktoría Valdimarsdóttir, a senior from Iceland, describes her style as “Scandinavian,” but feels her style has been affected since coming to American.

“I feel like since I came to America I started wearing leggings and stuff like that,” she said.

Both Zh’ky and Aiyana agree that the people around them affect what they wear. Zh’ky adds that people around him give him inspiration and often will compliment him, which in return boosts his confidence in what he wears.