Quad Style: Michael Tolchinsky

Mar 4

Mar 4 Quad Style: Michael Tolchinsky

How would you describe your personal style? Do you have a go-to look?

I’d say it’s a little all over the place in the sense that I don’t have a consistent look to go to, but generally it’s quite minimalistic. It’s not really in my personality to be super flashy, but I try to add little touches of colour, texture, or a graphic of some kind to keep it interesting. I sort of wish I could commit to a particular style since that would probably make life more convenient, but I appreciate a lot of different styles and enjoy putting different parts together.

Where do you get your style inspiration?

Honestly, despite what some people may say, since I’ve come to campus I’ve consistently noticed a lot of really well dressed people and that’s inspired me in a lot of ways. I think in general seeing someone wear something cool in person makes much more of an impression on me than a picture does. That said, I do spend a too much time browsing the internet for clothes, and I’m only mildly ashamed to say that. My dad also has a lot of really cool clothes and I like to take a lot of his advice (or making fun of me) on board.

Where do you like to shop?

I’m a sucker for a really good deal, so I do a lot of online shopping since I’ve found browsing around different stores you can find high quality, brand names for a fraction of the price. I also like walking around retailers at home in London, or in Chicago, then going online and trying to find anything I tried on for half the price. For this reason, I also spend a fair amount of time on Grailed to find used/old items from name brands for non face melting prices.

Any favorite and/or least favorite trends?

This isn’t a trend per se, but I love how fashion has exploded as an interest with the advent of social media, and how there are probably more unique styles that people show than ever. There’s so many cool things people are creating that might not necessarily be for me, but that I can appreciate. As far as what I’ve personally enjoyed recently, I’ve been wearing a lot of woolly, comfy cardigans and trying to go looser with the pants, although that’s still a work in progress.

On the flip side, I’m personally not a huge fan of intentionally garish designer patterns and labels that have made a resurgence, particularly in a university environment.

What is your relationship to fashion? Has it changed over time?

I’ve always been interested in fashion, but I went to school with a uniform policy, so getting to college has been the first time I can actually wear my clothes outside of the weekend, which has been exciting to say the least. I also find it to be very comforting to be wearing something I think looks passable when I leave the house in the morning. I personally find that I feel much more confident if I’m happy with how I look, and of course what I’m wearing plays an important part in that.

Any fashion regrets?

When I was like 13 or 14, I wore a lot of very tight, multi colored chinos. Coupled with the fact that I tried to convince people I was cool by wearing various snapbacks about 3 sizes too big for my head or a beanie at all times, that was a rough period for me.