The Evey Style

The fashionista of today’s article is sophomore Evey Lardi. Evey and I go way back since we were in Beauty and The Beast as “Silly Girls” at Lakewood Congregational Church. When asked about how her style can be defined, Evey answered, “This is going to sound really weird, because it’s not really in my ballpark, but kind of Gothic in some elements.” Evey also included that she also draws inspiration from the “modern hippie movement.” Whenever she creates an outfit, Evey focuses on making the more recent “clean girl aesthetic” less uniform. This means taking pieces most associated with that aesthetic and changing them by styling them in unconventional and unique ways. Evey says that if she could have her dream wardrobe, she’d base her style on the “coastal” and “granola girl” styles for the summer. 

Evey prefers earthy tones such as creams, beiges, browns, and greens, which she incorporates into her outfits, even in subtle ways. These colors align perfectly with the Light Academia aesthetic. Evey primarily thrifts, with Value World being her favorite spot. In addition to thrift stores, she occasionally shops at Brandy Melville and the local Lakewood boutique Lion and Blue. She also enjoys borrowing genuine Y2K pieces from her mom.

Jewelry that Evey can’t live without includes her usual ring stack, her silver necklaces, and her gold hoop earrings. Evey mixes metals, “Mostly just because all [her] cool jewelry pieces are not gold, like my mom has so many old, pretty silver pieces, and the places I shop at, gold just isn’t really there.” Most people are scared to mix metals because it might look or feel unnatural, but in reality, it’s just another way to enhance your outfit! “All my face jewelry is preferably gold and then my body jewelry is all over the place because I think it’s okay to mix metals,” Evey exclaimed when asked which metal she prefers.

Accessories that Evey often wears include headbands, tights, glasses, and a couple of different purses that she rotates between. 

The Academia Aesthetic

As the colder weather and snow overtake Northeast Ohio, it’s time to reminisce about comfy fall weather. The style breakdown for this article will be about the Academia style—both dark and light. Autumn is the most important season for the “dark” academia style. Think of cuddling up with a pumpkin spice latte, reading a book, and being dressed in a classy yet comfortable outfit. There’s no better feeling than that. On the contrary, “light” academia is based on Spring weather and vibes. Think of having cute outfits while riding your bike through the freshly green park egg hunting for Easter or eating ice cream from Malley’s.

Fashion YouTuber Silvina Gaiero says that both subcategories of the aesthetic are “internet-created aesthetics,” meaning that they were created by the people on the internet. Most modern-day “aesthetics” are created via the internet—it’s just the truth. Apps like Pinterest, TikTok, and YouTube help to mass promote new styles or trends out into the world. That’s why there seems to be a new stand-out aesthetic every year. But let’s get to the fun part. What makes this aesthetic what it is?

Motifs and Reasons

For Dark Academia, crime and mystery are key aspects of this aesthetic’s gloomy yet intellectual vibe. For Light Academia, romance and poetry are the inspirations behind the style. Both subcategories of the Academia aesthetic are inspired by reading and literature so it makes sense that different genres, or different styles of writing, fit into their respective categories. 

Color Palette

You’d be surprised to know that their color palettes are the only thing that sets the “dark” and “light” Academia styles apart.

When going for the Dark Academia look, you will want to style darker clothing. Colors like black, grey, brown, navy blue, and cream will work well to sell the illusion of the trend. If you want to include more color, stick to autumnal colors like burgundy, burnt orange, and mustard yellow, which combine nicely with this palette.

The same cannot be said about the Light Academia color palette. Since this trend is worn best during Spring, pastels like light pink, sage green, light yellow, and light blue will be best for making up this aesthetic. However, beiges, tans, creams, and whites will make up most of the pieces in this look.

Fabrics and Textiles

In both Dark and Light Academia styles, you’ll see heavier fabrics like wool, tweed, cashmere, and corduroy. Since most of the style is based in the Fall, it makes sense to incorporate thicker, more comfy, and warm fabrics into the aesthetic. There are variations to those fabrics listed for the Light Academia style though. Lace, cotton, silk, linen, and other softer, lighter fabrics make up the lookbook for the Light Academia style. 

The Fun Part—The Fashion

Now it’s time for my favorite part: putting together outfits and explaining what pieces fit the aesthetic. First, we’ll start with the shirts and upper-body wear of this aesthetic. Pompous blouses, or any blouse really (bonus points if it has a “Peter Pan” collar), knit sweaters, sweater vests, and turtlenecks will comprise the upper-body portion of this style.

Pants-wise, tailored pants, pleated skirts, midi skirts, or pinafore dresses make great additions to this style. If you’re looking for outerwear that fits this aesthetic, look no further than trench coats and blazers (especially patterned blazers like plaid). Adding outerwear is good for if you want to go outside, or live somewhere with colder weather. 

Here are a few recommendations for styling these pieces together. Start styling a simple white, creme, or beige sweater with black bottoms. A pleated or plaid skirt would be the cutest, but black fitted pants also work. A black turtleneck over dark-wash jeans or corduroy pants makes for a classy look. A sweater vest or regular vest with plaid pants creates an intellectual business wear look. Think of being a journalist and writing while wearing one of these outfits—basically, you’re going for the partial Rory Gilmore aesthetic. For Light Academia, style a beige cardigan over a pleated skirt with some pearl earrings for an elegant and fancy look. Try wearing a floral pinafore dress with a Peter Pan collar blouse underneath for more romantic vibes. 

Accessories

Like messenger bags, big bags make great purses with this aesthetic. The vibe is that they look like bags you’d have in college or a business job that can hold a lot of papers. Ties, bows, broaches, plaid scarves, leather belts, glasses, stacking rings, and black fleece-lined tights help to enhance the Dark Academia aesthetic. For the Light Academia style, headbands, hair bows, hair clips, berets, pearls (in the form of necklaces or bracelets), and lighter color leather belts make up the accessory portion of this style. 

As always, if you’ve enjoyed this article and want to have a chance to be interviewed, reach out to [email protected]