What Does Furman Wear?

Furman stands as a very diverse place, the direct result of this appearing in how students express themselves daily. Intrigued by this phenomenon as a freshman, I interviewed 15 students about the clothes they wear, the most visual and preeminent form of expression our students take part in daily. The results were varied, at times hilarious, and also keenly introspective.

Evi-Jane Garnett

Carter Ozburn

February 14, 2024

How would you describe your effort towards your personal style?

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Hannah Butlak ‘26

“Minimal. It’s a classic combination of athleisure, accidentally looking like I’m an athlete here, and wearing jeans and a random shirt.”

Her style in a few words:

“Somewhere between trying too hard in a spin class in some city, and getting ready to go in the woods.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Elsa Rodgerson ‘26

“The effort I put in is from the night before. As I fall asleep, I dream about what I’m going to wear the next day.”

Her style in a few words:

“Athletic or athleisure.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Sydney McCorkle ‘27

“Close to zero. It takes less than a minute to figure out what I’m going to wear. A lot of times because I’m sleeping in as late as I can before class and I just go for the first thing before I’m leaving.”

Her style in a few words:

“Sweatshirts, leggings, anything comfy.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Ashley Razo ‘24

“I’m a math and an econ major, so fashion and my closet is like my pride, my safe space. It’s the one place where I can put all of what I want into it.”

Her style in a few words:

“Y2K, street, loose, everything revolves around my shoes honestly.”

What is your motivation behind how you dress?

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Mariam Nguyen ‘26

“Social media, I guess. What I see, what I like online. I also really like looking at fashion shows and stuff like that.”

Her style in a few words:

“Christian Girl autumn.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Andrew Cooter ‘24

“My shirts that I wear are all from local restaurants. I’m from Greenville so they’re all from restaurants that I’ve been to or times that I had good experiences.”

His style in a few words:

“Pretty leisure, but not aggressive. I just try not to be a wallflower.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Riley Sayegh ’25

“I only dress differently if I’m forced to. I try and keep it very simple, very uniform.”

Her style in a few words:

“Bright, cozy, warm lighting, things like that.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Nicole Warren ’24

“It just makes me feel better. Like I feel even if I’m (comfortable) in my yoga pants and like a big sweatshirt sometimes I just don’t feel like I’m working.”

Her style in a few words:

“I like bright colors a lot, and I always match my earrings. My earrings always determine my outfits.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

David Young ’27

“I’m very inspired by other people, especially my roommate. I feel like he dresses very nicely and I don’t want to be the one person that doesn’t dress at least somewhat nice sometimes.”

His style in a few words:

“Wanna-be Clay Walsh.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Russell Richards ’24

“I like to look on Pinterest to find good outfits, whatever’s trendy, going with the flow. For day-to-day stuff, I just like Lululemon a lot, so I wear a lot of that.”

His style in a few words:

“Wanna-be athletic chic.”

How has your style changed since high school?

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Liz Moody ’26

“In high school I would just do the bare minimum, but in college I feel like I have more energy to put more effort into it. I finally get to express myself and now I’m motivated to do it.”

Their style in a few words:

“Some days I would describe it as indie music. And then some days I would describe it as Mac Miller.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Margaret McCollum ’27

“In high school I was a little more shy. I would just kind of wear whatever one else was wearing, but now I really step outside the box and am comfortable wearing what I want to.”

Her style in a few words:

“Preppy, colorful, girly, and fun.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Melina George '26

“Since high school, I think I’ve found more of an actual style because I tried all types of fashion and some of them did not work. Some of them looked terrible looking back on them, but I think you have to experiment to find a way to be comfortable with it.”

Her style in a few words:

“I’m everywhere, I’m just an everywhere person. Whatever aesthetic I do choose, I want to have elements of me in it.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Achol Atem ’27

“In high school, I wore a uniform, so I wouldn’t really think about it. Now that I don’t have a uniform, I put a lot more thought into what I’m wearing.”

Her style in a few words:

“Laughter, compassion, and living every day like your last, loving everyone.”

(Evi-Jane Garnett)

Carter Ozburn ’27

Hailing from a strictly uniformed high school, I was initially intrigued by the various decades of styles funneling in and out of the library. The dress code from my past still hung on my shoulders, and I felt like I had acquired a freedom I had no idea what to do with.

What is evident from the interviews is that regardless of the motivation you may have for dressing a certain way, there is an absolute freedom here at Furman to express oneself through clothing – a freedom that many students do not take for granted.

The way we dress at Furman is for a smattering of reasons, and the diversity found within the fashion here speaks to the health of our Furman culture.

His style in a few words:

“Millennial Sunday Best with a hint of granola.”

Fashion

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About the Contributors

Carter Ozburn, Assistant News Editor

Carter is a sophomore English major on the pre-law track. He loves writing and working with the wonderful staff on the Paladin, and is so excited for his first year on the board. Outside of his work on the Paladin, he also writes poetry and prose for the Echo and works as a PAL tutor. He’s a bit of an art junkie if you couldn’t tell: he loves music, movies, books, and talking about books that he hasn’t read. Find him running begrudgingly, banging on the piano in Furman Hall or talking too loudly in the library.

Evi-Jane Garnett, Social Media and Photography Director

Evi-Jane Garnett is a sophomore from Winter Park, Florida studying French and Communication Studies. Evi-Jane has a passion for photography that began in high school when she was an avid photographer for the school’s yearbook. She served as the yearbook Photography Editor during her senior year of high school. At Furman, she has taken various photography courses and contributed to The Paladin. Evi-Jane is the current Social Media Director and Photo Editor of The Paladin and is excited to continue to share her love of photography.