Campus Couture: How to spot a Durham student in the wild

It’s well known that Durham students have a certain aesthetic of fashion that mixes the “cool London girl” style with the “mysterious international student” vibe. Whilst we may think it’s become a uniform at this point, we secretly all want to dress like them – so here’s a guide on how to embody the cool Durham student vibe.

Top pieces that you will see

Now there’s certain items of clothes you will always see this person wearing:

-Cotton blouses that look like something a Victorian child would wear

-Stripy jumpers and cardigans that are slightly shrunk in the wash to see your stomach

-Linen trousers that look like pyjamas, even if it’s below 5°C and too cold to wear

-A long wool coat that somehow goes with every outfit, and will save you from the cold

-An insane amount of gold jewelry so that you jingle in every lecture (if you go to them)

Outfits are never planned, and thrown together within 5 minutes before you head out the door. Best worn with slightly messy hair, clean girl make-up and very muddy Adidas Sambas. If your outfit doesn’t have at least one item that doesn’t quite look right, and some low waisted trousers, you’re not doing it right.

Sports and lazy day fashion

Whilst people usually take fashion inspiration from Pinterest or TikTok, my personal favourite place to get inspiration from is the Billy B, where a lot of people surprisingly dress up to “do work’”(chat with their friends and have a coffee break). Don’t get me wrong, I do this too. Treat every day like it’s a fashion show, because it is.

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Now if it’s a sports day (or maybe just a lazy day), here’s what to wear instead:

-Either some Urban Harri joggers that look like they’ve been through the earth and back, or your Bottoms Up joggers repping your sports team on your behind

– Pair this with an oversized sweater or jumper, preferably off the shoulder to show off all your jewelry you’re inevitably going to have to take off at sports training

-Now to complete this look, your sports equipment. Usually a lax stick, hockey stick or

cheer poms poms (but we don’t discriminate with sports around here)

Top brands to shop at

Now you know the outfit formulas and what to wear, where to get them? We love supporting independent brands over high street fashion, but if this doesn’t fit your budget, great pieces can be found on Vinted or in charity shops (and there are many to look at in Durham).

High street: Zara, Mango, COS, Urban Outfitters

Online brands: Motel Rocks, Design by Si

Independent brands: Toms Trunks, Minka Dink, Babble and Goose

Accessories: Bijoux di Mimi, Recreation Jewelry, You Look Hot

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