After receiving approval from the Student Government Association (SGA), a student-run fashion club on campus with its own blog known as ‘Hopkins Threads’ has formed this spring. Freshman Caroline McCown, a Global Environmental Change and Sustainability major, founded the group and plans to make Hopkins Threads the fashion central for students.
“I hope to promote a sense of community around campus by providing kids with online platforms where they can see friends, teammates and peers being celebrated for their style,” McCown wrote in an email to the News-Letter. “I also hope to promote an appreciation for fashion as a means of self-expression and as a tool to boost self-confidence.”
McCown’s desire to organize Hopkins Threads stemmed from her own belief that personal style and fashion promotes confidence.
“I've loved fashion ever since I was little - experimenting with trends and different styles has always been a source of fun for me. I am also a firm believer that clothing can dictate how someone feels about him/herself. When we
feel good about what we're wearing, we feel more confident, and when we feel more confident, we perform better. Fashion is a great means of self-expression and can really help to boost self-confidence,” McCown wrote.
McCown was inspired by other campus style blogs she encountered and followed to put her love of fashion into action.
“My high school has a really great fashion blog called "The Hotchkiss Lookbook". As a student at Hotchkiss, I loved being able to see friends online being celebrated for their style. It created a great sense of community on campus. I was also inspired by the fashion blogs that exist at other college campuses, like "Bare Street Style" at UC Berkely and "Seen on the Walk" at UPENN. It seemed only fitting that Hopkins have a fashion blog of its own.”
Hopkins Threads highlights diverse fashions as McCown snaps pictures of students who are rocking an eye-catching outfit anywhere on campus. Next, the photos are uploaded online to both Facebook and Tumblr and they are given a caption describing the outfit’s fashionable and unique aspects.
“My favorite photograph I've taken so far is the one of Christina Jimenez (Class of 2014). I love the caught-in-the-moment nature of the shot on the right,” McCown wrote. “My favorite outfit I've photographed is of Ruth Landry (Class of 2017). I love her personalized necklace and stitched collar!”
Because the group is in its initial stages of organization and is still acquiring new members, McCown has taken all of her own photographs thus far.
“I was editor of my high school yearbook, so I am experienced in taking pictures of kids around campus and on the go,” McCown wrote, “I still have a lot to learn about photography though!”
After gaining an approval from SGA, McCown and a few other students organized the club and helped to advertise through social media.
“I have a group of about ten kids, though, who will likely be really involved in Threads next fall. They've already helped out by promoting Threads on Facebook and talking it up with their friends. They've also provided some great tips for how to make Threads a success in the years to come. I can't wait to work with them!”
Hopkins Threads only has a few members now, but plans to grow with further recruitment next fall. Currently taking on most of the blog’s duties, McCown will encourage members to take their own photos for submission.
“This spring has been sort of like a trial run in preparation for next year. All of the photos you currently see online were taken by me, but I will definitely be accepting submissions from fellow Threads club members come next
fall. Threads club members will bring their cameras with them around campus daily and will photograph people wearing eye-catching outfits. Each week, Threads will post an album to Facebook and tumblr with the week's best shots,” McCown wrote.
Looking forward to her next three years at Hopkins, McCown aspires to broaden Hopkins Threads’ popularity on and off campus.
“I hope that Threads grows to become a part of the Hopkins community. I also hope it gains an online following that is separate from the Hopkins community. It would be really cool if the blog became well-known among the college fashion-blog circuit,” McCown wrote. “I will definitely keep up with it! I plan on working on Threads throughout my senior year. If everything goes right, it will be a major part of my experience as a student at Hopkins.”
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