Looking cool, feeling warm: heat wave fashion – The Student Life

Weather in Claremont, much like the ever-shifting fashion trend cycle, is marked by extremes. The city cooled down after a week-long heat wave, which peaked at 114 degrees Fahrenheit, before returning to yet another scorching week. Claiming that winter is imminent feels like saying skinny jeans are coming back.

With November showing no signs of cooling down, Claremont dwellers don’t need much of a winter wardrobe. Many students from colder regions revel in the sunny weather, eager to leave behind cloudy skies and iced windshields.  

But not everyone adopts the bacchic heliolatry that defines Claremont style. Instead, some opt for fashion choices that ignore the weather altogether — they want their leather boots, their 22oz denim, scarves, earmuffs, bell bottoms, sweaters and most of all, their layering. 

As we witness this apparent self-flagellation, the hoods of their coats looking more and more monastic with each rising degree, one couldn’t help but wonder: why do they subject themselves to discomfort? Why are they so steadfast in their fashion choices, even when it’s clearly too hot? 

Jack Sheehan PZ ’27 and Cid Maciel PO ’27 are two notably well-dressed friends hailing from Brooklyn. Their style of dress is inextricably linked with home. However, their version of NY style doesn’t have much to do with the city’s venerable style icons. Instead of Bella Hadid in a Burberry trench coat, think David Beckham in the 2000s: big and bold.

“When I was starting to put stuff on, [it was] definitely that whole world I was introduced to. Like, baggy pants, like weed, like Bladee, Drain Gang kind of shit,” Sheehan said.

Sheehan was wearing a pink hoodie, Rick Owens tight waxed denim and black Air Force 1s with multicolored laces. A lover of jeans of all shapes, lengths and sizes, they counted more than 40 pairs in their closet. 

“When I get to wear my jeans, I’m like, ‘this is exactly what I want,’” Sheehan said. “I’m back to how I could dress in high school. And I mean, sometimes I want to be able to put on jeans every single day, no matter the weather.”

Maciel, somewhat infamous on campus for his stolid commitment to baggy jeans, wore a massive pair by Ed Hardy and a hoodie on one of the first afternoons below 80 degrees in weeks.

“[In New York] this time of year it would be mad cold, probably 50s or 60s daily, so I would be wearing the same exact thing, like jeans and a sweater,” Maciel said. “If it’s above 90 degrees I probably won’t wear jeans or long pants, but below that, honestly, those temperatures sort of feel fine wearing jeans … the sort of style that I was around, I sort of mesh into that style.”

For California native Ivan Ewers PO ’27, a designer for the 5C fashion club THREAD5, fashion that reflects his hometown culture also takes precedence over weather. 

“It’s more so just what goes with the fit for that day, or just what I want for the day. Growing up … in Oakland specifically, that’s kind of where I got that because it’s hoodie season all year long and even if it’s a hot ass day, everybody’s still still rocking hoodies,” Ewers said. 

On a sunny day, Ewers wore gray vintage orange tab Levis, a Burberry cashmere scarf, a black hoodie that he distressed and modified, Alyx jewelry and large raw goatskin boots of his own design. 

“People ask me, ‘Yo, are you not hot in these, it’s like 100 degrees,’” Ewers said. “If I have a fit in mind, as long as it’s not unbearably hot, I’m gonna rock it. I’m not gonna be like … in a pool of sweat in class, but if it’s anywhere near the threshold of tolerable, then like yeah, I’m rocking it for sure.” 

Although many chose to dress how they see fit above all else, not all of them resent the heat. Some even embrace it. Sheehan reflected on how even casual outfits like athletic shorts and tank tops can offer them a break from routine.

“It proves to [me] that I have confidence in more than just what I have conditioned myself to feel comfortable in, because I’ve been wearing that kind of clothing for six years now,” Sheehan said.

Everyone agreed that dressing fashionably doesn’t necessarily equate to dressing inconveniently. Instead, it meant being true to yourself, and at the same time not being afraid to push your comfort level.

“If you got it, pull it out. You can’t pay too much mind to the weather. [You] can’t let comfort get the best of you. Be comfortable, but you don’t gotta be too comfortable,” Ewers said.

Everyone agreed that dressing well pays dividends in their lives and their confidence, both on and off campus. There aren’t many moments in our lives with less risk and more reward than in college, especially in environments like THREAD5. Sheehan felt emboldened by the 5C’s normalization of nonstandard style.

“Exploring my sexuality with [clothing] is like, a whole ‘nother level, because it’s got me cropping my [shirts] up to like here,” Sheehan said, gesturing to their torso. “In the city … sometimes I don’t want to bring that side of me out there, because it feels restrictive. But here, I feel like since it’s such a common [thing and] it makes me feel good.” 

For students like students like Ewers, dressing like yourself no matter the weather can help more than just your confidence: it can help you network.

“I’ve met people I never would have met just because of the fit I had on. Like, definitely at [Paris] Fashion Week. I got into a whole bunch of stuff I was not invited to just because of what I was rocking,” Ewers said. 

Sheehan met many of their closest friends through style. 

“That was how I met Cid.” Sheehan said. “That’s how I met most of my first [friends]. I would be like, ‘Yo, I like your [fit]. I like what you’re wearing’ … The reason we connected is over his jeans and his shoes.”

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