Meg Lewis '14 has always been a fashion presence at Stonehill...and this semester, she has continued to experiment with looks and styles while studying abroad in London. While still keeping up with the College Fashionista website by submitting regular posts, Meg's style is still making an impact back in the states. We got the chance to chat with her recently about her experiences with style and fashion on the other side of the pond.
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RS: Describe your style in three words. Has it changed since coming to London?
ML: AH this is tough, probably "function meets style." I think it definitely has changed a little since being here. Living literally in the middle of London gives you a wide range of other people's styles on a daily basis, and I quickly began to realize people really don't care what other people think of what they wear, they wear what they want and that is that! It was eye-opening. I have pretty much worn whatever I pleased to a degree before coming here, but I have definitely stepped it up in the personal style department.
RS: What is the biggest difference you've noticed between European and American fashion?
ML: Everyone has their own way of wearing what they want to wear, while at the same time remaining very functional and comfortable. Living right in the city has taught me a lot about layering and wearing functional pieces, especially in London where it literally could rain, hail, and be 70 degrees within the span of 8 hours. I have definitely learned my lesson to always make sure my bag is big enough for my umbrella.
RL: Have you noticed big style similarities or differences in the different countries of Europe?
ML: The men are so impeccably groomed and styled pretty much everywhere in Europe. I know returning home will be a rude awakening in this respect. When thinking of the different countries in Europe, the only thing I think I can really put my finger on is that when I went to Prague, when people went out at night, they were significantly less dressed up as they are in London or Paris. However, girls seemed to be dressed to the nines when going out in Galway, Ireland which really took me by surprise!
RS: So I hear you got to go to Fashion Week, what was that experience like?
ML: I did! It was amazing. I got the chance to attend a trend show at the Somerset House in Central London which was so amazingly cool. It was right at the tail-end of Fashion week, so they were summarizing the different trends seen in the past week with pieces from some of the shows. I write a personal fashion blog as well as doing a remote internship for CollegeFashionista, so I took a bunch of pictures for those, which were both really well recieved.
RS: Give us a hint as to what might be big this Spring season.
ML: Something that was really present were prints, especially stripes and polkadots. It's hard to believe these designers don't collaborate on their collections considering it seemed that stripes were the staple of Marc Jacobs, Michael Kors, and Tommy Hilfiger, three pretty big names. Also, for a change of pace, there was quite a bit of leather on the runways for the spring, which is usually a fabric considered for fall, so I am pretty excited to see how that translates.
RS: Fashion aside, what has been the biggest culture shock since coming to Europe? And what things do you like the most that we don't have in the States?
ML: Probably the biggest thing that shocked me was how easily we are spotted out as Americans, and how that is typically a bad thing. I also was shocked, and excited, by how well dressed everyone was for class every single day! There were Americans in my classes, but also a bunch of English and other international students, and instead of a sea of sweatpants, it was a stampede of heeled boots and wedges!
What I'll probably miss the most is how much people care about their sense of style on a daily basis, and living in a city and having the ability to see so many different things within walking distance. Also these things called Jaffa Cakes, they are orange and chocolate flavored cookies that are TOO DIE FOR. I will be bringing many back to the Stonehill community to open their worlds to the wonder. I miss them already.
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| Lewis on historic Abbey Road |
You can check out Meg's style and fashion blog at http://clothezonelayers.blogspot.com and check out her posts for College Fashionista here.
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Nicole Colantonio '14
Image credit to Meg Lewis