‘Out There’ Wear: Students show off strange fashion

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EVA CONNORS/The Journal Madison Ridgdill, a freshman animation major, sits in her dorm room wearing her large Blooper hat. Bloopers are the squid characters from the Super Mario video game franchise.

By Andrea Sisney

When Shaunise Frazier talks about her roommate to other Webster University students, the reaction is almost always the same.

“Normally when I describe her — the pajamas, the shark backpack — they know,” Frazier, a freshman biology major said.

Frazier’s roommate is Madison Ridgdill, a freshman animation major with an eccentric sense of style. Ridgdill, who labels herself as “Pikachu obsessed,” wears cartoon characters on her T-shirts and signature pajama pants every day.

“If it’s got Pikachu, I want it,” Ridgdill laughed. “It’s mine.”

Ridgdill shies away from form-fitting clothes, jeans and skirts. She prefers comfort to fitting in, and said she’d rather spend money on video games and food before following fashion trends.
“I’m not necessarily against (other people’s style),” Ridgdill said. “I just wear what I wear. I’m not going to change that.”

But she does have her own fashion rules to follow. Ridgdill doesn’t wear pink, and said she makes sure that the solid color of her pajama pants doesn’t match the color of her shirt. She is drawn to bright, colorful and exciting clothing, particularly if it has a bad pun or joke on it.

Ridgdill likes to accessorize her outfits with her plush, shark backpack and her collection of hand-made hats, five in all, made to look like Pokemon and Mario characters.

“The shark came from my friend,” Ridgdill said. “If anything happened to it, I’d probably curl up in a corner and die.”

Ridgdill isn’t the only Webster student to stand out in a crowd. Ridgdill and freshman interactive media design major Logan Landolt like to use their clothing to make statements.

Landolt, unlike Ridgdill, loves to wear tight skinny jeans and shirts that display his tall, thin body. He often wears eyeliner, has several facial piercings and is a self-proclaimed brand snob.

“The male body has a lot of curves that are appealing to everyone,” Landolt said. “I like to be extreme, to stand out and turn heads.”

The inspiration for Landolt’s style began when he started skateboarding. As he got older, he stocked his closets with bright statement pieces, many of which he has to buy online from the United Kingdom.

“I think (my style) gives me a more sensitive, sophisticated vibe because I take time with my wardrobe,” Landolt said. “I try to make sure I look nice.”

Both Ridgdill and Landolt said they have encountered double takes and mocking whispers because of their chosen fashions. For Landolt, getting someone to turn their head is a point of pride, and he said he has generally encountered positive reactions.

“My clothes are kind of weird,” Ridgdill said. “I think I’m fun, and when you get to know me I’m crazy and out-going. When I hear people say ‘She’s a freak!’ I laugh.”

Frazier said Webster is the perfect place for Ridgdill, and that her friends all like her style.
“I’ve heard people (tease),” Frazier said. “But then again, they’re those ‘normal people.’ ”

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