Trendsetters
In this article, I highlight three trendsetters in my life. They all have distinct styles that correlate with their stories.
Garret Hanson
For some of us, it is so easy to define our style, pinpoint where it comes from, and stick to that aesthetic. But that is not the case for Iowa State University apparel designer student Garret Hanson. He is someone who walks into a room and makes his presence known by the way he carries himself, by his style, and by his infectious laugh. Growing up in rural Rochester, Minnesota Hanson was forced to curate his style from outside influences, primarily from music and pop culture. His varied taste in music genre is very apparent in his style. “What I wear depends on what I listened to that morning. If I listen to Lana Del Rey while getting ready I am going to look sleek with dress shoes and pearls, but if I listen to Garth Brooks or Dolly Parton I’m going to wear fringe, rhinestones, and cowboy boots,” said Hanson.
For Hanson, clothing and accessories are more than just apparel: they are art pieces. He admits he lacks brand loyalty and makes purchases based on how an item makes him feel. The sophomore design student says pieces he has found thrifting are his favorite and most-worn pieces, even if they have imperfections. “I love a good stain, I think it adds character, and it’s almost like a scar. I’m not afraid to wear something stained because it shows that the item has gotten good use, and provides a memory of how it got there,” said Hanson.
To curate his looks, Hanson creates Pinterest boards for each season, piling all of his favorite ensembles and inspiration into one place. Before a shopping day or a thrifting trip, he looks at the board that he has created for that season to know exactly what he is searching for that day. “I guess it’s kind of like a grocery list for clothes and accessories,” says Hanson.
Hanson is not afraid to be fully himself, as his Instagram profile attests. He is authentic, confident, hardworking, and all about enjoying life. The fashionista wouldn’t be caught dead reposting an outfit twice, but other than that one rule he is about as carefree and genuine on social media and IRL as you can be.
Maddie Fischer
Streetwear maintains its style popularity thanks to its chic, yet effortless look. Fans find a sense of comfort and nostalgia from buying these sports brands they wore when younger. This holds true for Maddie Fischer, a senior in apparel merchandising and design and marketing at Iowa State University. Growing up in the little town of Orono, Minnesota, Fischer played soccer all throughout her adolescence as a way to pass the time and stay involved as much of us did as kids. When she started college at ISU, she had no idea what she wanted to do or what she wanted to major in. She knew she was a creative and had always liked fashion, but she didn’t know where she fit into all of that and how to get her start.
When the streetwear trend really started to take off, that’s when she felt that she had found her style and aesthetic. Fischer got into the apparel program and became addicted to finding new ways to style outfits on Instagram and shopping for new pieces. The self-proclaimed shopaholic is always searching for new brands, finding secondhand designer pieces and finding inspiration from her favorite celebrities like Hailey Bieber, the Queen of Streetstyle herself. One of Fischer’s favorite looks is to wear a really nice top with sweatpants and cool sneakers. “The key is to mix high-end-looking pieces with loungewear. It makes you look like you aren’t trying too hard and that you are effortless,” says Fischer. Pictured here she is wearing a Louis Vuitton bag, a thrifted sweater, and a Nike turtleneck underneath. This is a perfect example of her mixing athletic accents with a chic look.
Kelly Reddy-Best
Where you grow up and where else you live later can greatly affect a person’s style. This is true for Kelly Reddy-Best, an apparel merchandising and design associate professor at Iowa State University, who has lived on both the East and West Coasts and is now living in the Midwest. She grew up in New Jersey with her middle-class family. As a teen in the ‘90s she looked to Cher Horowitz from the film “Clueless” and Britney Spears in her high school years.
Following high school graduation, she stayed on the East Coast and attended the University of Rhode Island. Here her style evolved into a more mature, “coffee shop aesthetic”. She was busy working and attending classes, but still had time to flip through the pages of fashion magazines to find her style. Reddy-Best went on to earn her master’s degree and then her doctoral degree at Oregon State University. Moving her whole life across the country affected all facets of her life, including her look. Oregon’s hipster lifestyle influenced Reddy-Best’s look. She became a recycling connoisseur, biked everywhere and shopped strictly at vintage shops where she could find pieces that no one else had. After living in the Northwest, Reddy-Best and her husband decided to move south to Oakland, California. This move changed her style again, based on the city’s hot weather and urban art scene that the city encompasses.
Presently, Reddy-Best lives in Ames, Iowa and has channeled a new, very unique style. She only wears one color: black. She embraces this bold, yet simple look because of the ease in dressing, and to mask perspiration from biking to and from work. “I think that the fashion industry can be really horrific and the standards to which women are held to is horrific, so I guess it is a way to not engage with the system,” she says. Although she is a fashion professor, she is not afraid to address the industry’s shortcomings with the environment, mental health issues and unattainable standards, etc… By wearing only black she is speaking to these issues without saying a word.
