When was the last time you picked up a copy of Vogue or Allure and saw a college girl on the cover? Perhaps she was wearing a beautiful and delicate designer outfit and her radiant smile was accented by perfect makeup and a flawless hair do. She may have been posing in a tree, arms and legs gracefully draped over branches with flowers surrounding her body. And imagine that right beyond the tree is a dormitory cafeteria with students skipping through the doors while their books magically float along side them.
This is highly unlikely.
College students are constantly rushing from place to place. We wake up minutes before our first class and often have to book it across campus. Despite what the TV show Greek portrays, there is no time spent getting ready for class besides grabbing the nearest sweatshirt on your floor.
College students more often than not do not follow up-to-date fashion rules. In fact, they hardly follow any fashion rules at all. I have surveyed friends and classmates in combination with my own opinions to form this list of the top 11 fashion tips that most college girls ignore.
1. Wearing Clothes that Match
Yes, you read that right. If you are baffled by this then find the college campus in nearest proximity to you and go spend five minutes there sitting on a bench. You will instantly be convinced of the fact that college ladies do not wear clothes that match. We base our outfits off of comfort and comfort alone. If my orange and brown sweatshirt does not match my black and white sweatpants, then I do not really care.
2. Not looking Homeless
I can not tell you how many times I am sitting next to a girl in class who has a rip in her shirt or has a stain on her pants. College girls buy cheap clothes, and that results in wear and tear over time. Usually I am one of these girls myself. Do we have shame? No we do not.
This is a photo taken of me sleeping in an airport during a college winter break. I am breaking fashion tips numbers 1-7 all in one picture. Especially number two and number three.
But mostly number two.
3. Wearing Clean Clothes
It is not just college boys who struggle with getting their laundry done. Laundry day is maybe every Sunday but more likely than not it’s every other Sunday, or so. The result? Come Friday night you are going to a party where the boy you like will be. But you wore your favorite high-waisted skirt for a girls night last weekend and didn’t get a chance to do laundry. Nine out of nine times you will end up wearing the dirty skirt and just settling for spraying it down with your perfume. An excellent trick by the way that I can personally vouch for.
4. Brushing your Hair
Like I said early, us girls are usually waking up for class at the last possible minute. We do not have time to style our hair. I am always impressed (a semi ashamed) when I see a girl who gave up sleep time to take the time to straighten or curl her hair in the morning. However this is a rare siting. Most normal girls who value their few hours of nightly rest do not wake up a moment earlier than need be. This means that our hair is usually worn in a messy ponytail of some sort, or we just wear it down in its natural frizzy state.
5. Wearing Makeup
This is probably the biggest difference between college girls and girls in fashion magazines. Those girls have their makeup done beautifully with flawless looking skin and incredibly long lashes. Us college girls simply do not have the time that it requires to look that effortlessly and unnaturally perfect. Sometimes I spruce myself up with a little coverup when needed or some mascara, but that is on a rare occasion, like when Ryan Lochte came to visit Ohio State. That was a great day.
6. Hiding Undergarments
I usually spot at least a dozen thongs or bra straps throughout the day. I am not sure if it is because some girls are wearing leggings that are too see-through or thongs that are to bright, but either way it needs to be stopped. As for the bra straps, the rule in the fashion world is to wear the same color bra as your shirt so that way the straps blend in better. I’ll be the first to admit that yes, I have once or twice worn a colored bra under a white shirt. But because I am in college, I guess that means I have the right to not care.
7. Not Wearing Workout Clothes outside of the Gym
This rule is almost impossible for girls who workout to follow in college. And it’s understandable, right? I give major props to the girls who manage to fit in working out into their schedules. If they want to show up to class in spandex and sweat bands, then by all means.
8. Wearing High Heels
There are many dresses we own that go best with high heels. However, when you wear that dress to a party that you have to walk half a mile to get to, you are probably not going to accessorize it with stilettos. While the girls in the fashion magazine may be wearing that dress with heels, you are going to be wearing it with gym shoes or slippers.
9. Wearing a Thong with Yoga Pants
While our mothers may disagree (and certainly our fathers), yoga pants MUST be worn with a thong. It is one of the most important tips in the fashion world and unfortunately one of the tips that most girls chose to neglect. Especially college girls it seems. Do not let this happen to you. It does not look good and defeats the whole point of wearing the skin tight pants in the first place.
Photo by lululemon athletica on flickr.com
10. No White after Labor Day
It is hard to avoid wearing white after labor day when your favorite sweatpants or sweatshirt happens to be white. Regardless of what the fashion magazines tell me, I am going to be wearing those sweats all year round.
11. Having Nice Nails
It is understandable why college girls don’t follow this tip. We just do not have the money to be getting manicures or the time to paint our own nails. Instead, we just walk around with them half painted, chipped, or bitten.
Photo by Cesar Vargas on flickr.com