Who: Aubin Niragira, ’20, from Jersey City, NY
Q: What are you wearing today, Aubin?
A: I’m wearing this sweater that’s not thick enough. And then these pants are from my dad, from like the 90s. It’s a little bit big on me but close enough. I actually waited quite some time to be able to wear his clothes. You can tell when clothes are pretty old and I kind of like that, but [my dad] prefers that I wear new clothes.
Q: Do you thrift?
A: Sometimes… it’s not as cheap as what you would think it would be because it’s become a trend, so now it’s more expensive. The other day I went to [a thrift store] in New York called L Train Vintage. I was expecting it to be cheap, but it was extremely expensive, so I got absolutely nothing.
Q: How have you been been dressing for these fluctuating temperatures?
A: I try to start the day off with more layers than I need. I try to stack up on layers and then slowly take them off. But I don’t always do that. Like I didn’t today. I do have this denim jacket that I could honestly wear every single day. It works with most things, and even if it’s hot out it still works. It’s pretty versatile.
Q: What inspires your fashion?
A: I get a lot of inspiration from Instagram. I feel like Instagram is somewhat about showing off, you know? Also just the way people pair things together is something I see on Instagram.
Q: Do you use Instagram to capture your own style?
A: It used to be about just picking up on fashion but now I’m using it to show off my style. It’s kind of stressful, actually, because then I hold myself up to a high standard – but I’m trying to do that less. I follow some random, really upscale brands like Versace. Like I could never buy their stuff, but the silhouette of things and the way that they pair things could apply to regular streetwear.
Q: If you could describe your style in one word, what would it be?
A: I would say, like lately, it would be pretty… simple or minimalistic, ’cause I’ve been wearing a lot of black and white. Which is different to what I used to wear because I used to wear a lot of bright colors. I didn’t notice that I was making the change until recently when I looked in my closet and thought I was just really good at matching, but then realized that I just had black and white clothes.
Q: Tell me about that fur coat that you wore at Gala last year.
A: I got it my Sophomore year of high school. It was actually just a joke at first. I went thrift shopping with my friends and it was around the time that Macklemore’s song came out. Then it ended up being very warm. I actually had kind of a scare ’cause I was smoking a cig and some ash got on it and it’s very flammable, but it ended up being fine. It’s not real fur – I got that question a lot.