Tv shows tell a story, but so do clothing. Here’s a guide to taking inspiration from your favorite fictional characters.
By Sofia Greaves
Zoe Johnson- Blackish & Grownish
If you are in college, not only would you relate to Zoey’s journey through her freshman and sophomore year, but you can see her levels of experimentation with hairstyles and outfits, and how she turns it up when she is at her best. Zoe grew up wealthy, so she has access to the expensive clothes in which she created a colorful wardrobe that helps her be as extra as possible. Whether she is at school or at a party, she is youthful, on-trend, and complete. You only see her go drastically casual when at home chilling with her man and her immediate friend group. This is the only time you see a predominance of neutral tones in her outfit. Her style mimics the ups and downs of her life and of the occasions. It is very realistic of a fashion-enthusiast college student’s mentality of getting dressed.
Rainbow "Bow" Johnson- Blackish
Quirky and eccentric, We can only hope to be this cool when we are moms. Bow carries positive energy with her in almost every situation. Being that she is in scrubs 50 hours a week, her time off is her time to go off with her outfits. Her si You can take any of her outfits to brunch, or a night out with the girls. She does not necessarily fall under the category of “dressing your age” but she takes easy trends and make them mature enough for any mom. Graphic t-shirts are for anyone, but you would see her wear them nicely with a midi skirt. Her signature is bold patterns and florals. A matching set is cute for summer on young teens and girls in her 20s, but rainbows version of it is comfortable and fits her body in a modest, flattering way. I imagine that you could wear this to work in a modest but creative, business casual environment.
Olivia Pope- Scandal
If you work in a corporate environment that does not allow for the more risky and adventurous outfits, Olivia Pope is a great guide. She rarely referenced the clothing on her back of the purse she carries, even though each and every bag she carried was a Prada tote, making it her signature. Washington dc gets cold, so her coats are her statement pieces. The heavier the drama is, the darker her psyche is. And with that darkness, comes intimidating silhouettes. If you take inspiration from Olivia Pope, you will feel like a looming shadow over anyone that ever made you feel insecure.
Fran Fine- The Nanny
Out favorite nanny, the nanny named Fran Fine, from the show with the catchiest theme song ever, Her style is the next stage of the reborn 90s style that is now being replicated on Instagram for a night out anywhere. She gave us cheetah print, sequins, checkered print, Moschino moments, matching sets, and Chanel inspired blazers. Her glam moments were as big as her beautiful hair and as loud as her voice. We love a woman who isn't afraid to use her voice. Fran was never shy, and it shows. A lot of street style night outfits remind me of her; mini skirts today are styled with graphic tees and or turtle necks. Paired with the right hair and accessories, it is bright, fun, and outgoing.
Blair Waldorf- Gossip Girl
Dan Humphry called her "a dictator of taste", and that is the best way to describe her influences on girls that adored this show. There is vacation Blair, school Blair, leisure Blair, and work Blair. All of them have different directions but were on the same journey. At Constance Billard, she carried herself as above everyone. She was the queen of daily trends and focused on classy signature pieces more than statement pieces. Those would be her opaque tights (in any color) and the notorious collection of headbands. She is classy enough that her pieces are timeless, but the colors are seasonal.as she grows up on Gossip Girl and gets different jobs and her social status is defined by different attributes, her style becomes more constant and we see her every day/workwear be more mature and modest as if the stylist for her character is subtly saying that Blair does not need to follow trends or be more feminine because her personality will be sharp enough to show through her choice of dress.
Fallon Harrington- Dynasty
Fallon Harrington, from the new reboot of Dynasty, is the Blair Waldorf of the gen Z television culture. A more grown-up plot, Fallon Harrington exudes confidence and faces her enemies with her best Manolo foot forward. She is sharp and manipulative and rarely follows in anyone's footsteps but her own. She wears her suits with as much power and aggression to match the strength in her personality, and the out of office outfits are no different. She does not fail to use her femininity to her advantage, but she also does not let anyone see her as less serious about business, or more naive about the content of a transaction. She commands respect and looks high fashion while doing so.
Jenny Humphrey- Gossip Girl
Jenny Humphry is a young edgy designer that has taken everything she had seen on her upper-east-side comrades to a subversive level. Like Blair, she too has had a transformation over the years. She was introduced as a soft, innocent young girl who wants to fit in with her Constance Billard mates. When she realized they were all just insecure Blair minions and had no originality to them, she branched off and risked social-death to learn who she is, and freely be that. We see this through the way she changes up her accessories with or sewn on to, her uniform. To put it simply, the darker her make-up, the darker her character becomes. When she is is a senior and the reigning Queen of the school, the skirts get shorter, the make-up gets darker, and the attitude is more assertive. She knows what trends are popular and only implements them on her clothes if she can darken up anything soft and frilly.
The main cast of The Bold Type
Kat Edison
Kat is a social media genius in her workplace. She takes charge and doesn't back down from what she believes strongly in. She knows the beauty of a blazer, but she's not afraid of prints or colors. If anything, she embraces it effortlessly. On her day off, She is more of a risk-taker out of her friends, but overall her style is that of a modern classic. Kat wears many hats: She's a social media executive, an Internet influencer with a decent following, and at one point she was A political figure in her community. So she knows how to push the limits, and, in her personal life, those risks take her to places that might make most people uncomfortable. But at the end of the day people take her seriously she's a force to be reckoned with and her clothes portray that perfectly.
Jane Sloan
All characters in The Bold Type are dynamic, but Jane goes through a lot of growth and hardship in her career at Scarlet on the show. Nevertheless, she turns it out. If she were a battle warrior, her armor would be the most elaborate, detailed, multifaceted textile to exist. All this, and she is not in the fashion department at scarlet. She's a writer! It just proves that you don't have to be an expert in the industry to dress well, but it helps that her bestie Sutton is. We see her in many different black sheer tops, and she knows how to wear leather in a way that is feminine but portrays how untouchable and headstrong she is in her personal life and her writing career. She has a feminine personality with a pinch of hardness. Therefore, She sprinkles these rough textures in her girly silhouettes to truly create a character with her looks.
Sutton Brady
Sutton is moving up in the fashion world but has always had her style locked down. She is rather conservative, but it just proves that you can be stylish without showing much skin. Kat said it best: "sophisticated yet accessible." She loves her colors, and she knows how to layer. She may question herself from time to time but at the end of the day fashion is in her blood it's what she is meant to do for the rest of her life and she will stop at nothing to achieve her goals. With certain, she has no limits and her style is her a comfort zone but from a design aspect, she's always ready to push the limits.
Stay tuned for Don's picks coming soon!