Name: Maddy Fanus

Hometown: Elizabethtown, PA

Major: Psychology with a Law & Policy Minor

What are the most important aspects of the outfit you have on today?

All the jewelry – it’s usually the most important part. Also, the boots.

Is there any particular significance to those items?

Yes, for a few of the rings at least. I have several matching rings with my sister, and my friend made a few of them as well. Some of the bracelets are my nana’s, and others are my mom’s. My girlfriend and I also have a few that are the same or correspond with one another. Plus, my friend group has rings of all different dinosaurs. Mine is a stegosaurus.

Some of my jewelry is functional too: my fidget ring helps me deal with anxiety.

How would you describe your own personal style?

Well, it varies a lot. Yesterday I was wearing sweatpants with a flannel shirt. Today I have this shirt on with jeans and Docs. My looks tend to oscillate between masculine and feminine. I like playing with those binaries, not trying to conform to a particular idea of how someone should dress based on gender. It’s more just whatever I’m feeling that day.

How do you think your fashion sense has evolved over time?

During the COVID-19 pandemic I experimented with what I was wearing a lot more, and since then I’ve become more confident in myself. When we weren’t going to school in-person, we had that period where you didn’t have to really worry about what the other peers at school were thinking about you, you could just do whatever you wanted. It allowed me to explore what I really liked. 

And it wasn’t just freedom from what my peers thought – not having to follow a strict dress code, especially as a woman, allowed me to have a lot more creative freedom.

What would you say to other students trying to find their own unique style?

My advice would just be to look at people you see every day and think, “Wow, I really like that outfit.” Look at various aspects of what you like about that. Or, maybe you see something you really like on social media. Look at specific aspects that you enjoy from outfits, and then just experiment. Not everything you try on is going to be your style; it’s not going to be what makes you happy. But, once you find that out for yourself, you can define your style in a way you never thought would have before.