Often found in the theatre or rolling about on his skateboard, senior Wesley Adams brings an alternative, grungy vibe with each of his outfits. From skate brand t-shirts to experimenting with hair dye, he’s always got something new on the table. Get to know his wardrobe techniques in the interview below!
What are 3 words that describe your style?
“Hand-me-down, skater-ish, and boy. I say hand-me-down-ish because a lot of my clothes were from my uncle. He just gave me big trash bags full of clothes and they were mostly really good. I don’t want to say ‘skater’ in the poser-y way. That’s not what I go for, but just in the sense that a lot of my clothes are skate brands. And, my shoes are skate shoes. And boy? I feel very boy.”
Do you have any fashion icons?
“See, as far as fashion icons go, there are a lot of people that can be seen as an icon. You could look to someone who creates clothes, someone who is a fashion model, someone who’s famous and is known for their fashion. There’s many different people who could be fashion icons, even just people you know in your life. As for my fashion icons, I don’t think I have any right now.
But I like famous people who look cool. Yeah.”
What is your favorite item in your closet?
“Just one item, huh? I’m gonna answer in three ways. For utility, I’m gonna go with my black mesh belt, because it keeps my pants up. And for comfort, I’m gonna go with my mom’s Christmas sweater—ugly Christmas sweater— that I took from her. And for looks, my so-dark-blue-it’s-almost-black corduroy jacket that my aunt gave me for Christmas a few years ago. Got a lot of compliments, so I like that one.”
Where do you get your clothes?
“The majority of my closet is given to me by my family, but when I do need clothes, I’ll usually poke through Goodwill. I’ve gotten a few pairs of pants at the mall, but that’s rare. It’s pretty much just shirts from family, pants from Goodwill, jackets from wherever.”
How do you like to accessorize?
“I like to accessorize with my one skeleton hand necklace that I wear, and that’s it. I would like to have more bracelets. At one point I’m going to want to get into rings. I do have earrings and I guess that counts. I want to get more into jewelry, but for right now I just have one necklace. But in the future, a lot more jewelry.”
What’s your favorite fashion trend?
“I like how people are getting more chalant this year. I’ve seen a lot more colored hair, I’ve seen a lot more of an alternative style going around.”
And your least favorite fashion trend?
“I have some outdated opinions, like those hunter camos, that were popular a while back, those bugged me. It looked dumb, but that’s not a thing anymore. So I guess one that’s relevant would be—I don’t like when people have a style that doesn’t feel like them. Like when I see dudes trying to go with that standard mall skater type of look. A hot topic type of guy. Some people can pull it off, but if it just doesn’t feel like you, it’s more of a costume than an outfit. And this goes for a lot of different styles. A lot of people use fashion to fit into groups they’re not a part of, and it’s kind of easy to see through. I don’t like seeing stuff like that. I hope that makes sense.”
Tell us something unique about your fashion and style!
“To me it feels like 2000s retro, but in a way that doesn’t feel forced. And that’s really just because a lot of my clothes, like I said, are from family who wore them in the 2000s and then they gave them to me. So a lot of my clothes that are more retro are genuinely from that era. I do like the style of that time, but I also like the fact that since some of my clothes are hand-me-downs, it’s happened more happens naturally.”
How did you find your fashion style?
In 2024, I wanted to try something new, so I joined theatre, and I made a friend there that had cool fashion, and kind of introduced me to the world of fashion and caring about how I look and how I dress. And since then, the people around me have influenced me a lot.
Do you have any fashion tips for fellow warriors?
“Yeah! Don’t use fashion to fit in with groups you don’t belong in. If your personality clicks, people will like you, and as far as what you wear, put on what makes you happy, put on what inspires you. If it feels forced, people will be able to tell. There are so many cool outfits that I see people wear outside of school. Just out and about at events and stuff. But the average person is scared to wear it in day-to-day life, and I relate to that as well. Because they think, ‘Oh, I’m doing too much. It’s not gonna look good.’ Don’t worry about that. You’re gonna look cool. Just really have fun, if you’re inspired, don’t worry about doing too much.”