This year’s Back to School season probably means a return to, well, actual school. After a forever of dressing decidedly off-site, making a stylish return to boarding bedrooms, lecture halls, or homecoming parades might take some revision. Here’s a lesson from Highsnobiety.
Never mind the homework or understanding shifting social structures — one of the toughest steps to feeling properly prepared for a new season of school, whatever form it might take, is dressing the part.
The majority of regulation uniforms, from boarding school blazers to insignia sweaters, quash any chance of personal style before you’ve even had a moment to mentally lay out your outfit.
But there are always ways to outsmart the institution, and we’ve picked out three fits for three very different back to school settings that’ll let your individuality shine without you feeling out of place.
Homecoming queens live and die at the altar of athleisure, a category that has become increasingly confused with homestaying gear in recent times — see the wealth of luxe sweatpants out there. Varsity jackets by the likes of Louis Vuitton spell out support for your chosen house, while our exclusive Thom Browne skirt lets your cheerlead personal style.
Boarding school is where the prep-style tree is watered, fed, and nurtured before fixing its roots in the adult’s wardrobe. Blazers and ties are regulation. The cricket sweat, coming courtesy of Acne Studios, is a recess must. If you’re treading the corridors after midnight, you better have one hell of a fine pajama suit.
Fashion is still obsessed with dressing adults like giant babies. There’s no single form to this shrunken style, either — Doublet is doing all-out kindergarten clobber, while the house of Margiela prefers a more ‘my first baptism’ approach. After its Prada runway romp, the adult all-in-one is spreading like wildfire, and so are baby-appropriate accessories — see Gucci’s $3K-plus luncher for reference.
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