Syllabus Week to Party Chic
It’s a blessing and a curse. Your 3 months of a relaxing summer has ended, and your 9 months of stressful hell has just begun. Where’s the blessing in this you may ask? Well, now you have 41,909 people to impress with all your cute outfits!
Welcome week has got to be one of the best times at Berkeley. The first class consists of syllabi and introductions, no midterms are approaching, and everyone actually has time to party. This is a unique opportunity for us workaholics, so I wanna share some tricks on how to dress like you work hard and play hard. That being said, after first impressions are over and midterms creep up, all fashion advice goes out the window and the sweats and t-shirts start to roll back into our lives (but that’s okay).
These looks strive to be light enough for that Summer to Fall transitional period, but also serve to be class appropriate so you don’t get any unwanted attention from your professors. The best part about these outfits is that each piece can be transformed from day time school looks to night time party looks with a quick swap here and there. Added bonus, each piece has either been bought on sale, from a thrift store, or at a reasonably priced store like Forever 21 so you don’t have to stress about losing all your hard earned internship money (if I only I could follow my own advice).
I GUESS SKIRTS ARE BACK IN
It’s weird but it seems like America seems to go through these phases of skirts being in vogue or not. We had a mini skirt phase, then we had a skirt and leggings phase (I have no idea why), and now high-waisted skirts are everywhere, but I’m not complaining because they’re pretty dang cute. Of course, the length and fit of each skirt has a key role in determining its formality and appropriateness, but for these looks I chose something in the middle as to be able to crank it up from a daily class look to a night out at Triple Rock.
Look 1: The Plaid Skirt
DAY
Preppy and sweet, this look balances out the shorter skirt with the high turtle neck and sleeves. I’m a big proponent on combining high cut pieces with shorter bottoms, or longer bottoms with lower cut tops. Bonus points if you can bring out the colors in your skirt with your matching shoes!
NIGHT
Luckily, the shorter skirt can easily transition to a girls night out. Take off the sleeves, but keep that black top so as not to clash with the colors in the skirt. If you won’t be dancing too much, feel free to pair this look with a medium height strappy black heel!
Look 2 : The Denim Skirt
DAY
Pro tip, you can take any size/shaped t-shirt and make it flattering with a quick tie in the back or front! Feel free to keep the knot out if it looks pretty, otherwise you can always tuck it underneath for a cleaner look. I chose the striped denim skirt with this look to emphasize the red, white, and blue in the AF1’s.
NIGHT
This flirty crop top is a cute combo with the more casual denim, frayed skirt. The white AF1’s bring out the white from the top and don’t clash with the colors going on in the outfit. Plus, the sequence in the top dresses up this outfit enough to get away with wearing comfortable sneakers on your night out!
Look 3: The Modern Overall
DAY
I still counted this one as a skirt, but technically it’s a modern, maroon twist on the classic overall. Because the maroon was popping, I paired a monotone mock neck under as to not take away from the attention on the skirt. I paired matching maroon boots, however white, gray, or black sneakers could also make this look even more casual, and comfortable.
NIGHT
With the low slits on the sides, a little crop top or bralette shows just enough skin to feel cool and cute when going out. If you want to get really edgy, you can unbutton one of the straps to show more of your top from underneath! Depending on the look you want to go with, you can again pair comfortable sneakers with this outfit, or you can wear little heels/booties to formalize it.
THE CURIOUS CASE OF THE BUTTON
I really think people sleep on the button ups. They’re a classic that seem to get a bad rep nowadays because us students associate them with dreaded recruitment super days and consulting club case interviews. However, I think they’re an extremely versatile piece that can literally be converted from going out, to in class, to an interview. What other piece can give that same amount of usage? It all comes down to how many buttons you close, how much you roll the sleeves, whether you tuck-in, or tie up, and of course the bottoms you pair it up with. I have some examples below of my favorite combinations.
Look 1: The Loose Fit
DAY
This is a super casual, laid back look for days that you want to look like you tried but you don’t want to feel like you did. Basically, people will be like oh dang that’s a cool look, and you’ll be like wow I feel really comfortable and chill right now. The trick is finding the right button up that is a thinner than usual fabric, and a looser, more boxy fit. I found this 100% polyester top for $4 at Anastasia’s on Telegraph, so you definitely won’t break the bank by any means.
NIGHT
Now, this same loose fit can immediately be changed when you knot it up and change the bottoms. I went for a more grundy look with the almost entirely ripped up levi’s denim jeans (on sale at Urban Outfitters on Bancroft btw) and large hoop earrings. Since the jeans and top have a looser fit, make sure to wear a belt and tie your shirt at your waist to maintain a little curve. This may not be as fit for dancing as the jeans are on the baggy and thicc side, however it’s perfect for going out on Shattuck or hanging at an apartment kick back.
Look 2 : The Preppy AF
DAY
Don’t worry, I didn’t actually spend retail on the Ralph Lauren top, I grabbed it on sale at the outlet store! This look screams preppy, nautical vibes, but with a little kick with some rips in the embroidered jeans. The side braid helped cutesy up the look, but I was sure to tie it on the opposite side of the horse emblem of course.
NIGHT
This button up easily ties in the front, creating a figure hugging cropped top that pairs well with high waisted bottoms. I continued to pair this with white jean material, however the mini skirt allows your legs to breath and if you paired this with some white denim cut offs, you’d be able to dance like no one’s watching. Just be careful no one spills a drink on you!
Look 3: The Classic Stripe
DAY
This look is actually formal enough to wear to work or a meeting, but not too formal that you can’t get away with wearing it to class! I love the opposite colored pocket and inside lining of this button up as it brings about a unique look to an otherwise normal looking top. Since the top is on the looser fitting end, I made sure to pair it with bottoms that were tight on the waist as to accentuate that sought after hourglass figure. This look is fine with black boots, but if you want to spruce it up more, can definitely be paired with your favorite heels!
NIGHT
This top is 100% cotton and is thin and breathable, which will fair perfectly for a busy night out. You can again easily roll up the sleeves and unbutton a little to relax the fit. With a bralette underneath, you can unbutton as much as you’d like as you get warmer (and hotter) throughout the night dancing and socializing. The looser fit skirt is a more comfortable fit that allows some more range of motion for your legs instead of the rigidness of the straight, mini skirts. Throw on some hoops and tie your hair in a high ponytail and you’re ready to go out!
CONCLUSION
So, there’s really no need to do laundry that often when every daytime piece you wear can be recycled into the night. Isn’t recycling what us Berkeley kids live and die for? Anyways, I hope you enjoy planning your outfits this upcoming week, because that’s about as much free time as you’ll ever have for the rest of the year…..welcome back ;)
Words By Tasnim Tallman
Photography By Imran Tallman
Modeling By Tasnim Tallman, Shannon Detwiler
Editing By Sara Ye