OOTD: Origins

When I was a young girl, my personal stylist was my grandmother. With a penchant for sticking to one color – a true testament to clothes that are “matchy-matchy”, she sent me out to face the world each day with a cute hair accessory, sneakers (velcro, of course), with the occasional dab of lipstick if she felt like fancying me up. Kids can get away with wearing a lot of ridiculous things as a bonus that comes with their naturally adorable charm -especially if droopy, chubby cheeks are in the picture- so my two all-orange outfits for my eighth birthday party at Shakey’s was definitely excusable. At least, I hope so. Fast-forward to today, I often find myself grimacing at a lot of the clothes she asks me if I like, but funnily enough, I see elements of my grandma’s past stylings of my younger self in my current style today.

Overalls have definitely been making a comeback - a playful get-up that adds a youthful streak to even the most mature of its wearers. The white round-neck tee I wore when I was younger remained largely the same in its modern-day version, albeit a little bit more scandalous with two sheer cut-out details. My sneakers remain as chunky (and actually slightly more obnoxious) as ever.  A dab of Mac’s lipstick in the shade of Sin to top it all of, despite me still believing I haven’t strayed that far from my childhood innocence. What did my lola have to say when I showed her the comparison between the pictures? She just smiled with an amused twinkle in her eyes and said “so that’s why you were posing like that.”

Article by Sammi

Art by Nikki

Call for OOTD Submissions~
Are you reptilian-like with your style, shedding clothes occasionally to reveal a brand new you? Or are you like a chameleon whose colors reflect the trends of the times? Maybe your style has remained true throughout the years, only now it's more realized? Give us a glimpse of any point in your style evolution next to how you would interpret or reinvent that outfit at this point in time.  It can be from when you were just a little 'un or maybe even just last year! Send your submissions to thethingonline@gmail.com :)

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Sammi is a walking Studio Ghibli character in her imagination, in search of a hidden kingdom of cats and/or the next greatest panini sandwich to enter her life. Her fantasies may include being a can’t-touch-this hot tamale hip-hop dancer or the lead in a magical girl anime. But then again - why not be both? 

Nikki Santos-Ocampo is a girl that sometimes feels like a boy, and is also an all-around art enthusiast and a linguist that likes the mysterious sounds words make. She likes wearing round spectacles of any sort, playing with her makeup when she’s bored, and envisioning outfits for various kinds of occasions. She has a style diary here and maintains a twitter that experiences extreme lows and highs of activity.