If you’ve ever noticed an incredibly stylish girl on campus wearing a belted tweed coat, don’t worry, you haven’t suddenly become exceptionally sensitive to excellent outerwear—I’ve noticed her too. Similar to celebrity sightings, I would spot her at a random moment during the day and then wait for my next sighting. Luckily, I saw her toting a camera at a Brace Center presentation and immediately asked her for her name. This girl is Kerry Joyce ’11, a new Lower this year. Although Joyce can’t think of any particular experiences that shaped her style, she cites her parents as the source of her impeccable look since childhood. She said, “My parents dressed me well as a kid but obviously my style has evolved to something a lot more interesting and complex.” I completely agree. Kerry makes good use of accessories—while some of her peers may wear sweatshirts and running shoes, Kerry opts for a structured tweed coat, a scarf for her ponytail in place of a scrunchie and a tiny belt cinched in at the waist. She stands out from a lot of other people because she pays such excellent attention to detail; at the very least, she accessorizes well. The little things can bring an outfit together in the best way. Kerry doesn’t overdo it, she is neither “trying too hard” nor “not trying hard enough.” “Now I tend to dress more for convenience,” she adds, “whereas I used to dress for a particular role. I used to dress up everyday, but now I find it’s harder to do that. I definitely miss dressing up though.” If you ask me for someone who dresses for convenience, she does it quite well. Of her beloved tweed coat Kerry says, “I’ve had it since the fifth grade. The sleeves are short and it won’t button right; it’s ripping at the seams, but I just can’t retire it. It’s my favorite coat. I’m very sentimental, and I think I’m definitely interested in people’s possessions because they have a history. To me my coat isn’t just a coat; it recalls memories of the country as a child.” That’s a refreshing thing to hear. You don’t often get to hear people express their love of such things anymore, because people perceive it as vain or trivial. Kerry isn’t linear and what’s more important than her style is the fact that she portrays emotion with it. What you wear on the outside affects you on the inside. And while a lot of people condemn this thinking, I don’t see a problem with it at all. A lot of us like to think that we’re above those little things, but there’s nothing like seeing a person’s face light up when they look gorgeous; they shine internally too. Maybe Kerry’s interest in the arts plays a role in her style of dress. “Art isn’t something you can schedule in hours per week, or anything so organized, but in my free time I take photographs, paint (oil is my favorite) and read and write poetry.” I was curious to find out who her style icons are. “Oscar Wilde, David Bowie, Edward Gorey and my father.” Two writers (Gorey and Wilde), a British glam rock star with two alter egos (Bowie) and one half of the duo that used to dress her as a child. I find it interesting that they’re all men, yet she has such a feminine style. When she says that she will “never have enough perfume or bow ties,” it makes things a little clearer. To use her own words, her style is that of a “dark, romantic English rose.”
