Ant Pham/Highlander
Ant Pham/Highlander

With the quarter ticking down to the last few weeks before finals, and thus my graduation, I thought it would be nice to do a collaboration for my last few columns! The inspiration for these next two columns is a growing trend in South Korea in which couples match with each other when going out in public. Now while I don’t necessarily have a girlfriend, it did bring about an interesting idea: how could two people of opposite genders work off one another to create a cohesive outfit? I teamed up with fellow fashion blogger Malinda Ouch of Vouchalize to bring you these two guys and girls outfits for winter. It was a challenge for both of us to create looks that worked off of each other because of how vastly different our tastes are in clothes.

In this week’s installment, I chose my current favorite outfit and Malinda created a look that played off of the one I chose. In this look, I layered a thick winter coat over a tailored dress shirt and dress pants. It’s a classic look that’s more often than not failproof. Recently though, I’ve begun to prefer to sling my coats over my shoulders rather than put them on normally. The weather here in Riverside hasn’t gotten warm enough where it warrants me to wear my coats in the way they are usually worn. I really like the cape-like effect that it creates and with the right coat, can often create a really dramatic look. I finished off the entire look with some steel tipped dress shoes from Aldo. As the weather gets cooler, so do my choices in clothes. For the winter, I love to dress more somberly and I work with a very neutral palette that revolves around blacks, whites, greys and browns. With that said, I have to think harder about how I want to layer and accessorize my outfits in order to add interest.

 

Ant Pham/Highlander
Ant Pham/Highlander

 

Malinda: The key to pulling off a menswear inspired look for women is to work closely with proportion, accessories and feminine patterns. From my perspective, the look that Nelson went with is very clean, sharp, and reflects the style that businessmen would go for. This kind of look can be difficult for women to pull off, but with the right pieces and styling, you will be on your way to looking as good as the boys, or maybe even better!

As with other business attire essentials, you will need a pair of slacks or trousers, button up shirt and a nice pair of polished shoes. Keep in mind that you are able to change up the pieces with what you have in your closet or your own taste. For bottoms, I went with these black trousers. The best part is that they’re not your typical plain black pants, which adds a lot more fun and interest into a typical business outfit. These H&M trousers have paisley patterns that are made up of velvet material. I cuffed the bottom of my pants to balance my proportion and height, as well as to add personal style. To resemble Nelson’s gray button up, I paired these pants with a crisp gingham button up, from Forever 21. For coat options, I chose to go with a marled coat from Forever 21 for additional edge. I felt that completing this look with a light gray coat would be better than going with a black coat for several reasons. First, it adds contrast. Second, it lightens up the whole look and feel, giving it a personality and creates a less serious and strict look. Having the right pair of shoes can tremendously clean up the entire look, which is why I chose these pointed shoes from Zara with gold buckles. This is the perfect fit for the look and the best way to resemble Nelson’s shoes since they have gold tips.