There is a very specific moment when you realize a trend has officially taken over campus.
You see it on TikTok, then notice it on your Instagram feed. The next day, someone in your 9AM class walks in wearing it, and suddenly you start seeing it everywhere: at Starbucks, on your walk to the dining hall, and across campus between classes.
Before you know it, you’re thinking: “Wow, that’s actually super cute. Where can I buy that?” Lately at Johnson & Wales and, frankly, at most college campuses’ that memo seems to be saying: polka dots, stripes and teal.
Of course, fashion trends come and go; college campuses have always been a breeding ground for new styles and varying aesthetics. What is happening with these seemingly simple patterns and colors is actually more complex than just deciding whether they’re cute. Because what we wear says something about us, and at a school like JWU, the students are constantly surrounded by creativity, individuality and people from completely different backgrounds where fashion becomes important.
Polka Dots Are Back.
Polka dots have always been loud. They are playful. A little feminine. A little vintage. They
immediately give an outfit more personality without trying too hard. But their comeback also represents something bigger happening in fashion right now: the need for nostalgia.
We are constantly bringing pieces of the past back into the present. Trends from the ’70s, ’90s and early 2000s are being reimagined by a generation that either barely remembers them or wasn’t even alive for them. And for our generation, that is what makes it even more fun. A polka-dot top that might have looked dated a few years ago has suddenly become new when styled with low-rise jeans, a pair of chunky sneakers and a purse with gold detailing. Add some jewelry, a slick-back bun, and sunglasses, and now the same print that once felt like something you’d find in your mom’s yearbook from the 90s feels effortless again. The print hasn’t changed; only the way we wear them has.That’s what makes fashion cycles so fascinating. A trend can disappear for years and then
come back when a new generation decides what it means to them.
Stripes Too!
If polka dots are the fun friend, stripes are the dependable one.
Stripes never truly leave. They just become more or less exciting depending on how we style them. At JWU, a striped sweater can look preppy, effortless, vintage, sporty or completely casual depending on the rest of the outfit. A hot-pink striped cami with jeans gives one vibe and an oversized striped button-down with a simple cinch at the waist gives another. Same pattern, completely different girl. We are all pulling from the same general trends, but somehow everyone’s version looks different. One person may get their inspiration from TikTok. Another is recreating an outfit they saw on Pinterest. Someone else is wearing something they found at a thrift store. Someone’s outfit might be inspired by their favorite celebrity, while another person’s outfit comes from whatever their roommate might have recommended to them. There isn’t one definition of “JWU style.” Or even “College Style.” Trends are constantly being reimagined, being brought back, and transformed.
Then There’s Teal.
Teal is definitely having a moment, and it feels like the perfect color for the current fashion
season. It’s not completely blue. It’s not completely green. It’s somewhere in between, and that’s why it
works. Fashion has increasingly become about specific colors defining specific moments. Earlier in the
year, it was butter yellow and that specific shade of 2000s hot pink. Then it was powder pink.
Suddenly everyone has a brown buckle shoulder bag, a light green wrap top, or a pair of white
ballet flats and has collectively convinced everyone they know that it is the next needed item.
Teal fits right into that world. It’s bold enough to stand out but easy enough to incorporate into an
everyday outfit. A teal top, foldover capris, or even a headband can turn an otherwise basic
outfit into something that feels intentionally artsy. And when you’re walking through campus, where everyone seems to have their own version of personal style, a color like teal becomes another way to experiment.
“The College Girl Uniform?
Here’s the funny thing about trends: we want to be different, but fit in.
You can walk through any college campus and see this contradiction everywhere. We want our
outfits to communicate our personality, but we also don’t want to look like we’re completely out
of touch with what’s happening. That’s where the term “college girl uniform” on social media comes from. The same brand of sneakers, style of jeans, little shoulder bag, and trendy top showing up over and over again, in
the same color. Yes, sometimes it feels like everyone is wearing the same thing, but does that actually mean
we’re less individual? Not necessarily. Following a trend doesn’t mean you don’t have your own style. Sometimes trends give us a starting point. We take something everyone recognizes and make it our own. That’s especially true at JWU. Everyone here is figuring themselves out in real time. We’re meeting new people, discovering new interests, changing our aesthetics, our hair, and our outlooks. And if you’re anything like me, you’re probably changing your entire wardrobe every few months.
College is one of the first times many of us get to completely decide how we want to present
ourselves. So maybe the outfit isn’t just an outfit, but an experiment in finding our true identity.