Personal Style With a Story

Syd Sailer '25 poses in her thrifted skirt and jacket from her dad.

Photo by Lily Jandrisevits '25

Syd Sailer ‘25 wears her bubbly and eclectic personality on her sleeve, literally. 

You can see her walking around campus wearing a slew of thrifted clothes. “I like pieces that have a story to them and a preloved history,” said Sailer while wearing a beaded, paisley fur-trimmed skirt and rust-colored suede jacket. 

Her skirt, thrifted in Berlin Town, New Jersey, is the statement piece of her outfit. “I always focus my outfits around a specific stand-out piece and I style pieces around that,” Sailer said. 

Sailer said this skirt specifically stood out to her because she likes “weird patterns” and beading which feels unique, but also historical. 

In terms of influences, Sailer likes looking at ‘90s issues of Fruits Magazine, a Japanese street style publication that captured early Harajuku fashion. “I like how they obviously didn’t care about or pay attention to trends,” Sailer said. 

“I definitely get a lot of inspiration from the ‘60s and ‘70s just because growing up my dad played a lot of that type of music.”

Sailer also attributes her love of thrifting to her parents who took her to antique flea markets growing up. Her suede jacket was a gift from her father. “He got it at a garage sale. At first, he wanted it for himself, but when he realized it was a woman’s jacket and it didn’t fit, he still liked it and got it for me as a kid not knowing if I would grow to like it,” said Sailer. “Now I wear it all the time. It’s from a woman in our neighborhood who said she allegedly wore it to Studio 54 when Diana Ross was there.”

Her eccentric style feels grounded in more personal pieces, allowing her to project a unique image that feels genuine and approachable. Sailer is not just wearing what she thinks will look good, but pieces she has a connection to. 

“Just seeing Syd, you’re like she’s interesting. I want to get to know her,” said Sofia Hernandez ‘25, Sailer’s friend. “She just wears what she likes and knows how to pair different patterns really well.”

Hernandez also mentioned, “Syd’s makeup matches her outfits and accessories too.” 

On the day of her interview, Sailer was accessorized with layered necklaces and three arching dots above her eyeshadow that matched her choker and beaded necklace. She joked, “Matching your eye makeup exactly to your outfits was wrong according to America’s Next Top Model,” but it’s something that she loves to do. It also exemplifies her care and attention to detail central to her style, and her personality. 

However, Sailer’s fashion denies being one thing. “I get tired of trying to have one specific style,” she said. “Everything that I like and wear, it’s just very me.”