A vintage cream-colored leather jacket and a similarly-hued 2002 Cadillac DeVille, both inherited from his grandfather, define Phillip Academy senior John Ingram’s personal style.
“I don’t really wear [the jacket] that much,” said Ingram, but the story behind the jacket and the car reveals a close personal connection between Ingram’s style and the influence of his family.
“My grandfather bought the car in 2004, but he really shouldn’t be driving anymore, so my family politely took the car from him. I got it last summer. [It was a] mutual agreement,” said Ingram.
He named his car “Teddy” after his grandfather, whose name is “Theodore.”
When asked to describe the car, Ingram said, “[It is] creamy white. Very, very white.” After a pause, he added, “Grandpa white.”
Ingram believes the Cadillac represents his grandfather very well, adding to his attachment to the car.
“[It is] old-fashioned yet modern….a very American car. My grandfather fought in the Korean War and so his side of the family never really bought a ‘Japanese’ car.” The spacious interior and beige leather seats are Cadillac trademarks.
Ingram keeps orange tic tacs in his car, is a fan of the automatic key, and appreciates how the Cadillac “drives really smooth, just like me. I’m very smooth operating.”
Ingram believes his car does represent him well. He joked, “I’m classy….just like my car.”
Ingram described some of the reactions he faces in response to driving the Cadillac.
“My mom is jealous….she sometimes steals my Cadillac. My friend’s dad just flat out laughed at the car. He thought it was amusing. A lot of people are surprised. When I drive, all the people driving white Cadillacs are over 70 years old,” said Ingram.
According to Ingram, there are a whole range of reactions. “Some people say, ‘Wow, that’s really sick!’ and other people are like, ‘Wow, are you really driving that?’ But I’ve made a lot of boarder friends by driving them to Chipotle.”
If the car was damaged, Ingram said, “I would cry. I would be devastated….I’d probably want another Cadillac.”
And what of the white leather jacket? “PA has given me the confidence to wear anything,” said Ingram.
He talks about his Cookie Monster T-shirt and his comfortable L.L. Bean slippers, and calls J. Crew and Gap “my two staples.”
His white leather jacket fits him well. “My grandpa and I are the same [build],” explained Ingram.
“I was visiting over Christmas and he showed me his closet. He had too many clothes. He told me to ‘pull out the white leather jacket,’ so I did and he gave it to me.” Ingram’s grandfather purchased it in Spain at a store where “they get you drunk so that you have to buy the jacket.”
Ingram admitted that he did not wear the jacket often, but said jestingly, “I wear it to bed.”
Ingram’s jacket and car prove that clothes and style are often more than simple reflections of the owners themselves, but also of the people that trendsetters choose to surround themselves with, the people who are the inspiration.
“Dress how you’d wanna express yourself,” said Ingram. “Don’t feel the need to conform…..oh, and everyone should buy a Sesame Street shirt.”
