Fashion portraits is a format dedicated to our amazing WdKA community and their colorful, diverse and unique styles. We captured their outfits and asked them about their style, relationship to fashion, sources of inspiration and more. Scroll down to read/ see for yourself and get inspired!
Interview: fashion student Betina Mendes
Photography: inhouse journalist Julia De Roo
Design: inhouse designer & graphic design student Ilse Oudheusden
‘‘At school I just see so many people with wildly different styles, that it also motivates me to dress more like myself.”
- Elif (22), Fashion Design from Rotterdam / Turkey.
Elif's style in 3 words: pastel, knitwear, structure.
"For me personal style is feeling comfortable. I’m always wearing colors that match my feelings for the day, things that compliment my mood and that I feel nice in, but also things that I can work in.
For me my fashion and my designs kinda have different meanings, because I work a lot hands on, so sometimes I can’t be the most stylish person in the room. I have to be able to really move in my clothes, so I’ll usually dress a bit more simple when I'm working, and when I design it’s pretty much the opposite. It’s all very maximalist and extreme, in a way.
Sometimes, when I’m not at school I feel a bit judged, like when I walk through the city and things like that. At school I just see so many people with wildly different styles, that it also motivates me to dress more like myself."
"By seeing a lot of people here dress in ways that I've never seen before, it helps me not really care about how I dress and feel more comfortable with whatever I wear."
- Max Erkelens (23), Product Design student from Switzerland.
Max's style in 3 words: funky, colorful, comfortable.
"I wasn’t really thinking about my outfit this morning. I haven't had the chance to wash my clothes so I just picked the ones that were good and clean.
For me, fashion can be a way to express yourself, but also something that is functional. If I think about when I go hiking I just don’t think about style and it’s more practical. School for me can be both of those things: If I'm working at a station I'll usually just take random clothes that can get dirty and fall apart, but sometimes I'll also put on something that looks a little nicer.
By seeing a lot of people here dress in ways that I've never seen before, it helps me to not really care about how I dress and feel more comfortable with whatever I wear."
"For my personal style I'm a bit calmer, but my designs are more about chaos and everything at the same time, so I'd say they tend to be pretty different from each other"
- Kirsten (22), Fashion Design student from The Netherlands.
Kirsten's style in 3 words: colorful, dresses, joyful.
"Being at WDKA helped a lot with accepting my personal style. Before, I was in a way less artsy school , and you realize you stand out quite a lot. Here, I just feel more like everyone stands out, so it’s more comfortable to wear something different. I think style means a lot, it can say a lot about a person and how you want to present yourself.
That’s also partly why I chose to study fashion. It makes quite a big statement about personality, and you’re able to show what you like through clothes and be open to things like that from other people.
In my design practice I'd say I'm a different kind of colorful. For my personal style I'm a bit calmer, but my designs are more about chaos and everything at the same time, so I'd say they tend to be pretty different from each other.
For this morning, I just thought it had been a while since I wore my purple dress, so I wanted to put something purple on this time."
"My style changes with the seasons: in winter I usually only wear black clothing and in summer I wear more white."
- Maoro Bultheel, Product Design student from Brussels.
Maoro's style in 3 words: random, as, fuck.
"What was I thinking for this outfit? That’s a difficult question. I have a lot of black hoodies, so I just put one on because it’s really basic and I didn’t really care too much. The scarf is something I really like, it’s a very nice scarf. I don’t usually think about it for too long.
To me, fashion can be expression, but also functional. Like If it’s cold you wear a coat. Personally they’re both important; in winter I usually only wear black clothing and in summer I wear more white.My style changes with the seasons."
"I’d say personal style to me is about how I present my inner self to the outer world."
- Berke (23), Fashion Design student from Turkey / Belgium.
Berke's style in 3 words: contrasts, black, oversized.
"I’d say personal style to me is about how I present my inner self to the outer world.
As a fashion designer, especially if you’re working commercially, fashion and personal styles can be different, but mostly I feel like they mean very similar things.
These are clothes that I've been wearing for pretty long, definitely more than four years, so in the end I don't feel like school has really influenced my style.
This morning it was very cold, so I really needed some layers and some oversized stuff."
"Personal style means a lot to me, and if I don’t wear the clothes I want to wear that day or if they don’t match my mood, I won’t feel really comfortable when I go out in them."
- Daniel (22), Photography student from Rotterdam.
Daniel's style in 3 words: functionality, texture, combinations.
"I mean, saying that you express yourself through clothing is really a standard line, but it’s actually true. Personal style means a lot to me, and if I don’t wear the clothes I want to wear that day or if they don’t match my mood, I won’t feel really comfortable when I go out in them.
I guess maybe being in school does influence me a little. I've been here for almost four years already, and there’s loads of people with different styles and crazy fits and things that I wouldn't wear, but I really respect that people wear what they want. I probably got some inspiration along the way and eventually stopped giving a fuck what people think.
There's definitely a huge difference between my style now and four years ago, when I first came to school. I’m 22, so when I started I was 18 and didn't even have any money to buy the clothes I liked. It’s really a process of building your own style."
"I come from a country where social structures are usually really tense, so everyone dresses the same. When I went back this year, everyone commented on how I was dressed so strange."
- Sofia (19), Product Design student from Colombia.
Sofia's style in 3 words: thrifted, baggy, creative.
"For my outfit this morning I wanted something comfortable and for the cold (since I'm not good with it), so I just picked the biggest sweater I had. I actually thrifted it two weeks ago in a flea market organized by WdKA students.
Being here in school totally influences my style. Everyone here dresses so cool, and it’s really nice to see how fashion is like a way of expression. It’s a way of saying: 'Fuck it, I’m gonna dress however I want'.
Maybe also because I come from a country where social structures are usually really tense, so everyone dresses the same. When I went back this year, everyone commented on how I was dressed so strange."
"Being here in school makes me feel more comfortable with my actual style, I'm not afraid to wear whatever I actually want to wear."
- Ciro, Product Design student from Madrid.
Ciro's style in 3 words: color, matching, flashy.
"I didn’t get to go home yesterday, so I'm just wearing the same outfit two days in a row, but I chose this because the two shirts match, blue and blue, and the golden just adds some color and matches with the blue as well.
Being here in school makes me feel more comfortable with my actual style, I'm not afraid to wear whatever I actually want to wear. Personal style to me is totally connected to my identity."
"I connect my personal style a lot to my emotions and to what I'm feeling."
- Bent (23), Product Design student from Utrecht.
Bent's style in 3 words: playful, abstract, textures.
"This morning I ran out of warm water in my shower, so I was super fucked up, like shivering, so I just really needed something very warm.
I think being in art school absolutely influenced my style. Before, it used to be totally different: more straight forward and neat. That was around four years ago, and I think seeing others dress more extravagantly helped me be more open and choose different pieces that I normally would have skipped on.
I connect my personal style a lot to my emotions and to what I'm feeling."
