Every week, The Pioneer searches out Whitties who bring an extra splash of fashion consciousness and sartorial daring to campus. This week’s Style Spotlight: First-year Evan Griffis.

Style Soundbites

“One of my dear friends was traveling in London last year, and she was just kind of buying a bunch of souvenirs on her trans-European trip. She got this scarf for herself and decided that she didn’t actually need another scarf, and I also didn’t need another scarf, but when she came back she gave me it. So this is my London scarf, and I really like it because it’s bright, and I think it’s good to not be afraid to use colors. I think a lot of guys especially are hesitant to throw in something that’s really bright like a red scarf, so that’s something I try to do every once in a while. My military jacket: this is one of my more recent purchases. I got it just a few weeks ago at Goodwill: the one in Walla Walla. It was only $6, so I couldn’t really say no to it. I just think it’s kind of cool to have something a little more military to kind of blur the idea of masculinity with a more feminine cut or something more fashionable, I suppose.”

“My ring is, I would say, definitely my favorite piece of jewelry. I bought this in Portland at a foreign import store: it’s called Cargo. I was just kind of walking around the city streets with my best friends and we stumbled upon this little store. I guess it’s kind of special in that it reminds me of my best friends from high school that maybe I don’t always see a lot.”

“My boots are officially my latest purchase because I got these just when I was back home last weekend. I needed boots really, really badly. I guess I had some black ones, but brown wingtip was really my goal. I think boots are a must-have for the fall season right now. Especially crossing Ankeny late at night: you can’t really do it in little sneakers. You’ll get grass and dew all over.”

“A lot of people will look at me kind of strange if I am wearing a necktie just to Jewett dinner or something, but I really feel that every day I feel so much better when I know that I’m looking my best. So I guess my general philosophy would just be to really look your best whenever you can. I think it does more for your self-confidence and your self-esteem than anything else.”

“I think it’s cool to just not dress in ways that are, like, specifically expected of males because I think that’s bullshit: how it’s seen as effeminate to dress nicely. I’m gay and whatever, but still, it makes me mad when guys come up to me and they’re like, ‘I wish I could dress like you,’ or ‘I wish I could wear that,’ or something. It’s like, ‘You can.'”