Mark Longacre profiles the styles of Jordan Galczynski and offers ways to recreate her look while still making it your own.
“Hoot Couture” closed 2010 with tips for a new, stylish wardrobe. However, reading tips on a paper and seeing them applied are completely different things. Lex and I decided to start every month with an article describing someone who exemplifies style and panache.
Style – or lack thereof – is subjective; we want to showcase stylish people around campus and how anyone could mimic their dress.
Jordan Galczynski, a freshman anthropology major – not to be confused with one of her favorite stores – was kind enough to divulge her style secrets to help fashion victims traipsing through Main Campus.
She came to the interview dressed in flawless knee-high black leather boots, blue skin-tight jeans, a ruffled mauve cami, a slim-cut black blazer and confidence.
With every step she took, she exuded grace and elegance, and when we sat down, one of the first things she told me was, “How you wear your clothes is just as important as what you wear. You should dress for you, not anyone else.”
In agreement with rule No. 4 of mine and Lex’s “25 Deadly Sins of Fashion,” Galczynski said she prefers clothing with natural colors, such as olive, burgundy, dark purple and salmon. She accentuates the colors in her clothing with subtle, but ever-present natural tones in her eye shadow and eyeliner.
Dressing with a consistent set of colors and patterns allows anyone to wear almost every piece of their wardrobe, so one shirt may be worn differently countless times.
Galczynski said dressing for a specific body type is key. Standing at 5 feet, 8 inches with a 00 waist size, her slender frame was accentuated by her skin-tight jeans and complemented by her ruffled shirt and trimmed blazer.
Her rule of thumb when it comes to clothing involved proportion. For example, wearing a tight shirt and tight skirt suggests you’re working the corner of Broad Street and Cecil B. Moore Avenue. Instead, wear a trendy, new pencil skirt with a ruffled top; therefore, you’re showing off your legs and butt but also covering the breasts.
She tops her outfits with a spritz of body spray and a dash of perfume. Mixing different scents allows some personalization because scent is the strongest sense tied to memory. Do you want to be remembered as a skunk or a lily?
Galczynski prefers a light, natural scent to complete her outfit. You must stand very close in order to smell her delicate perfume from Anthropologie.
Certain stores are better at offering pieces that leave something to the imagination than others. Galczynski buys most of her clothing at Anthropologie, J. Crew, Ann Taylor, Urban Outfitters and Lucky Brand because they are cut for a more sophisticated look that is sensual but not suggestive.
While the aforementioned stores tend to be pricey, she argues you get what you pay for, and said she believes in the importance of quality. A $30 sweater from Forever 21 may last a month, whereas a $60 sweater from J. Crew may last several years, and the simple pieces from higher end stores often don’t go out of style.
Galczynski shows more of her personal style by adding jewelry. Rather than looking like you raided a David Yurman trunk sale, go for a subdued look. A simple chain necklace with a pendant, a pair of dangling earrings and an intricate bracelet will complement the clean-cut outfit and add an air of sophistication.
If there is anything to learn from Galczynski, it’s that her style comes from her polished image; nothing on her is out of place, and she upholds her image of sophistication from her head to her toes.
Mark Longacre can be reached at mark.longacre@temple.edu.
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