Fall, the most fashionable season in the Midwest

When people think of fashion, they often think of places like New York, Shanghai, Milan, Berlin, and Tokyo, some of the world's fashion capitals, but have we ever looked right in our own backyard? Outside of the fields of corn that extend as far as the horizon, the Midwest is graced with four distinctive seasons. While our summers are scorching and our winters are blistering, in the fall we transform into a gorgeous city of gold. Once that first leaf falls, our style has no limits. 

Sarah Stuenkel, an elementary education major, shared that her “absolute favourite fall trend is the ‘pop of red’ theory.”

She continued to share that she likes red to be a third of her outfit rather than just a small detail. Although the “pop of red” theory is a recent popularised term, the color red consistently makes its way back into our closets, especially during the fall season! 

Even nursing student, Nysa Sripraran, shared that she’d “like to incorporate more reds this year because that's such a fall color.” 

Outside of reds, Sripraran shared other fall favourite colors and patterns, saying, “I like browns and greens, it looks really good on dark denim, and deeper tones fit fall well. For patterns, I enjoy anything that's whimsical.” 

With the mention of darker shades, both Stuenkel and Sripraran also noted an influx in alternative or grunge style. 

Stuenkel says she's heard, “Grunge should be coming back this fall, people are drifting away from clean girl aesthetic and going into a soft grunge, specifically for makeup trends.” 

But these darker elements can also be seen with silver jewelry, which is usually what we shift into during the colder months. 

With all the talk of fall trend predictions and things we’d love to see, Sripraran excitedly added her favourite fall essentials. 

“Low rise and belts, I like really full belts as statement pieces, a lot of rings, and big jackets layered on with smaller outfits,” Sripraran said.  

She continued to say how she turns to baggy clothes throughout the fall, saying, “I’m a big fan of the small tops and baggy pants.” 

Small tops and baggy pants or baggy tops with baggy pants are a simple way to play around with the structure and proportions of your clothes, which can truly transform a lot of pieces.  

Sripraran also leans more towards an “academia” style when it comes to fall.

 “I like longer skirts too, with some tights, little white socks, a tennis shoe, and a tighter top,” Sripraran said. “Or even tinkering with the bigger jackets. I think it looks cool when everything is layered. I love layering! During the summer, I feel like there's only so much I can do.”

Personally, whether it’s fur, leather, denim, or just a long coat. I love a staple jacket for the fall! Stuenkel also shares her admiration for a good jacket. 

“Going back to the pop of red, I really like a maroon leather jacket,” Stuenkel said. “I have this big, brown, chunky fur jacket that I like to wear a lot.” 

Of course, regardless of what you wear, the most important thing is that you love it and feel confident, as confidence can be the best accessory.

Fashion, like many other things, is an art that allows individuals to express themselves. It's a way for people to make powerful statements, express their identity, connect with others and even challenge societal norms. Through our clothes, we have the ability to communicate our personality, beliefs, values, and emotions. 

When Stuenkel was asked about her inspiration for creating such maximalist and abstract outfits, she quickly responded, “Am I allowed to say everything?” 

Her vivid expression continued as she explained how she felt.

“There’s inspiration everywhere you go. I’m a massive music person, so whatever I listen to at the time totally impacts my fashion,” Stuenkel said. “The toys I used to play with growing up inspires my fashion a lot.”

While we’re on the trail of nostalgia, Sripraran reminisces about her friend in grade eight, who played a pivotal role in shifting the way she dressed.

“We’d go thrifting very frequently, cause we were trying to follow all the 2018 micro-trends… which was a little funny,” she said. 

She later explained that her outfits weren’t great by any means, but that was the learning process.

Who doesn’t look back at pictures of our old style and cringe a little? It's all part of the learning process to find who we are meant to be. As someone who grew up wearing a uniform until COVID and later college, I felt extremely restricted. So you can imagine how excited I was to ditch the drab uniform and experiment with my style, but I definitely had my cringeworthy moments. But over time, we all learn what works for us, so that our personality can shine through!