What's my style called?

November 6, 2021 8:34 AM

Instagram has, for the past year, exclusively shown me ads for clothing that I absolutely do want to buy right now, which suggests to me that I maybe do have a style. The problem is, I have no idea what it's called, and I'd love to find some blogs or real-person Instagram accounts to follow that feature this particular preppy-adjacent style.

Whenever you take those fashion quizzes online, you have to be "preppy" or "classic" or "romantic" or "bohemian" and I don't think I am any of those things. When I search for accounts or blogs that feature clothing in one of those styles, I don't see anything that looks like what I wear. If I had to describe my clothes right now, I guess I'd say like, preppy + lumberjack + toddler + '00s sk8er boi?

Stuff in my closet that gets a lot of wear include:
- this Faherty sweater
- this Sugarhill Brighton sweater and several of its cousins, which also feature exciting prints/color schemes
- this Boden dress in blue, with leggings
- corduroys/velvet pants in bright colors (bright green, bright red, mustard yellow)
- flannel shirts in a wide variety of exciting color schemes
- generally shirts/sweaters with big prints (stars, polka dots) or stripes or metallic bits
- vans or "fun" sneakers or boots
- I wear glasses and buy them online so I have a lot of fun colorful plastic frames

If it's helpful, I'm mid-30s, kind of medium sized (like a 12 or 14?), I brush my hair sometimes. Which is why I feel like "preppy" doesn't really fit, despite all the stripes (I wear a lot of stripes). No one would let me into a country club, you know?

So anyway! If you know what this is called or some blogs/accounts that are it, I would love to know! (or you can also tell me if it's just that instagram figured me out and I'm still a style mess, I won't be offended)

posted by goodbyewaffles to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (10 answers total)

Personally I (as someone else who also feels this style in my bones) kind of think of this as "kindergarten teacher / Ms Frizzle chic". I'm not sure how helpful that is in searching up anything but you are definitely not alone.
posted by augustimagination at 9:11 AM on November 6, 2021 [12 favorites]

Toddler Grandma was the name a few years ago, or at least adjacent to your approach.
posted by janell at 9:26 AM on November 6, 2021 [12 favorites]

Oh, this sounds close to my style, at least when I left the house regularly enough to wear real outfits.

I definitely identify as toddler grandma or Ms. Frizzle, but vintage.

I wear a lot of classic silhouettes (fit and flare dresses, shift dresses with tights, etc), but usually with a whimsical pattern. or color. I often enjoy ModCloth, although sometimes their aesthetic isn’t exactly right.

I feel like perhaps my ideal would tend more toward dresses than yours perhaps? But Jess from The New Girl/Zooey Deschanel in general are often cited as folks who exemplify the style.

Also, as augustimagination says, you are not alone! We are right there with you :D
posted by itsamermaid at 9:36 AM on November 6, 2021

Best answer: Your style is what if someone who coveted the Delia's catalog in 1997 is in their mid to late 30s now.

I don't know if there's more efficient terminology for that but it's exactly what that look is.

Toddler grandma has some overlap but is far too twee.
posted by phunniemee at 9:40 AM on November 6, 2021 [5 favorites]

Best answer: I love this style! I never related to the term “toddler grandma” because I hate dresses, but since I came out as nonbinary I have found myself describing my outfits as “androgynous toddler”/“grandpa”. I have also used the term “1950s French feminist college professor/Patti Smith/Athleisure/Cate Blanchett in Ocean’s 8”.
posted by matildaben at 9:43 AM on November 6, 2021 [8 favorites]

Response by poster: Yeah, my style is definitely less feminine/Zoey Deschanel than toddler grandma is, though I agree that it’s adjacent.
posted by goodbyewaffles at 9:56 AM on November 6, 2021

Best answer: Your style signals a certain degree of delightful queerness IMO and would warrant a head non from this masculine of center person. You might find things you like in masculine of center blogs or just stuff for queer people, however you identify.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 10:38 AM on November 6, 2021 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Try the adjective "funky". That gets you the bright, bold, a little bit retro color combinations you enjoy.

If you look at things described as funky women's fashion, you'll also get a lot of busy floral prints, but you can combine "funky" with a keyword such as "preppy" or "queer" to narrow in on something closer to your personal style.
posted by yarntheory at 4:00 PM on November 6, 2021

Have you checked out Modcloth? They have a lot of stuff like this.
posted by radioamy at 5:17 PM on November 6, 2021 [2 favorites]

I would describe this style as Gap Rainbow Sweater.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 10:29 PM on November 6, 2021