For my interviews, I interviewed two fellow first year varsity soccer players for Wellesley who decided to remain anonymous.

For me at least, fashion and style have never really been associated with athletics and sports stars. Of course there are outliers such as Serena Williams and Dwyane Wade being photographed in high fashion, but they are, I believe, the exception to the rule. I was curious to see how and if both of my interviewees straddled the line between fashion and athleticism in their daily lives.

My first interviewee is 19, straight, white, and lives in Plymouth, Massachusetts. She describes her style as very laid back and comfortable. In the past she attempted to be “hipster,” by attempting to shop at a wide variety of stores including thrift stores, but said that it began to get too difficult to find exactly what she was looking for. Now she shops at malls and department stores, especially American Eagle Outfitters and Gap, and mostly online for conveniency. Her teenage sister also tells me that half of her wardrobe is missing when her sister returns to college.

As all of her friends and teammates can attest to, her daily uniform usually includes a pullover sweater, of which she owns at least 20. During a recent Black Friday shopping spree, where she spent over 200$, she purchased a new sweater in her new favorite color, burgundy. She is very excited to wear it to a holiday party over this winter vacation. She loves to dress up her “plain” sweaters with jewelry and won’t leave her room without a pair of earrings on. And although she had a job over the summer at a cafe, she “spends money the second she earns it.”

At a recent party with friends from high school, she decided to wear leggings, boots, scarf, and her usual sweater. She wanted to look both “laid back and dressy, but not gross or overdone.” She also made sure that I knew that she wouldn’t have changed even if her boyfriend had attended the party. Even at parties where she doesn’t know anyone and she is out of her comfort zone, she tries not to dress to impress. Rather, she wants to be confident and comfortable in what she wears. She doesn’t want “to look fat, but athletic and in shape, by showing off my butt and not my nonexistent chest”.

My second interviewee is also 19, white, straight, and from Denton, Texas. She dresses in far more athletic clothing than my first interviewee. Her daily uniform of sorts is sweatpants, a sweatshirt, an athletic T-shirt, and Nike running shoes. While most people label their styles as hipster or preppy, she labels her clothing choices as solely based on comfort.

She usually doesn’t like to waste time shopping and will only buy something if it is on sale. She usually receives clothing from her mother who will give her daughter the items that don’t fit her anymore. On the rare occasion that she will look in fashion magazines, she will usually be struck by how ridiculous the models’ outfits are and how they are never something that she is looking for.

Most of the time she feels underdressed when she goes out to a party in Boston, but she doesn’t know how to necessarily prevent that. And when and if she goes out, she tries to show off her legs in some skinny jeans, but despises showing off too much skin.

My two interviewees definitely differed on style and fashion ideals, but one similar component between them was their overwhelming love of comfort. Their environment back home also heavily influenced their uniform as my first interviewee dressed a bit more preppy  with high boots and Burberry scarves while my second interviewee dressed a bit more southern with bootleg jeans and cowboy boots. But even during off-season, both of my interviewees would rather choose sweatpants over a dress any day. The sporty aesthetic component of their daily outfits has morphed into an embodiment of ‘casual chic’  with their respective cashmere sweaters and bedazzled jeans.