Stuff Boston

When it comes to stylishness, Boston doesn’t always get a lot of credit. Talk to some fashionistas, and they’d have you believe Boston style is so staid that we’re all still marching around in tri-corner hats and pilgrim shoes. That perception, though, is as ill-fitting as last season’s denim. Maybe we don’t have Madison Avenue on our side, but we still have plenty of fashion-forward folks strutting our streets like a catwalk.

But beyond that, it’s important to recognize the distinction between “fashion” and “style.” The former describes what people wear — but the latter? That tells us something far more interesting: why they wear it. How they wear it. What inspires them to dress the way they do in the morning. Why it makes sense for their day-to-day lives. And most valuably, how their outward image functions as a blank canvas on which they express their inner identity.

We found naturally stylish people whose individuality captured our curiosity. These aren’t necessarily the power players and industry bigwigs you’re used to seeing in other ranking lists. Consider them your antidote to boldfaced names: these folks are reflections of the rest of us, in all our colors, shapes, sizes, and styles. Their looks range from understated to over-the-top, bold and brassy to sedate and sophisticated. But each has a unique story to tell about what inspires them, and we’re happy to let their style do the talking.

ZACHARIAH HICKMAN

Growing up in Lynchburg, Virginia, Zachariah Hickman never thought he’d end up dressing like the Southern gentlemen around him. But now, the 30-year-old Somerville-based musician says he has come to embrace, at least on some level, the “cowboy suits, seersucker, and general haberdashery” that formerly held negative associations. “I don’t associate them with racism and privilege, like I used to,” he says.

In fact, Hickman’s style is a reflection of his bold but quiet sense of humor. “I’m a grown man playing dress-up,” he explains, likening his fashion to a form of “costume” woven throughout his everyday life. After all, you’ll never find him without his trademark Z-shaped belt buckle, a gaudy find from a Georgia flea market that he likens to “cowboy bling.” Though his style has Southern roots, locally he finds boots at Rick Walker’s (306 Newbury Street, Boston, 617.482.7426) and vintage specs at Harvard Square Optical (65 Mount Auburn Street, Cambridge, 617.576.0140), and he praises Jack’s Tailoring & Dry Cleaning (1937 Mass Ave, Cambridge, 617.868.8339) for helping his cowboy suits accommodate “a big guy with awkward sizes.”

“I’m not a very cool person, but I’m a confident person,” says Hickman. “So I wear what I find entertaining.” Usually Hickman is the one entertaining as a major multi-instrumentalist (he plays bass, lap steel, pump organ, and ukulele, to name a few) and longtime musician for singer-songwriter Josh Ritter, whom he met during his freshman year at Oberlin College and Conservatory of Music. Presently touring the UK together, they just finished recording Ritter’s latest album, due in early 2010.

But if there’s any part of his ensemble more prominent than his upright bass, it’s probably his trademark Imperial handlebar mustache. He first grew it when playing the ringmaster during a college circus he produced (“I’m not entirely sure if I just had a circus to justify growing one,” he admits), and he’s been rocking the dastardly train robber look ever since, even claiming to brew his very own Dr. Zachariah’s Mustache Conditioning Wax and Gravity Suppressant. Sense of humor? Sure. The only one not laughing (at least, not all the time) is his other half.

“I can usually tell what she thinks from her face,” chuckles Hickman of girlfriend Callista Wilson, stylist for Rue La La. “She’s a good sounding board, but she does appreciate my style.”

LANA SOUSSAN

As a hair stylist at James Joseph Salon (30 Newbury Street #2, Boston, 617.266.7222), Lana Soussan is used to making other people look good. And as anyone who has ever torn a page out of US Weekly to share with a stylist can attest, that often means trying to mimic someone else’s look. But when it comes to crafting her own eye-catching style, Soussan doesn’t need to turn to outside inspiration: the big picture, she says, is about embracing her own individuality.

“I don’t spend much time wondering what other people are going to think,” says Soussan, whose bohemian-punk aesthetic speaks boldly on its own. And she hopes her clients won’t be slaves to public opinion either — one of her biggest pet peeves is “when the person looks like they got dressed in someone else’s closet.”

If her closet was compared to anyone else’s, she might share hanger space with Andy Warhol and style trailblazers of the ’80s, like personal favorite Cyndi Lauper. Colorful visual art, like the graffiti girls of French street artist Fafi, and pop-cultural curiosities, like those big-eyed Blythe dolls, also make an impression.

Then again, so does Soussan. “Boston is very conservative, but that’s just fine by me. It makes me that much more memorable,” she says. And she’s hard to miss as it is, rocking a serious sleeve tattoo and adorning her hair with Tarina Tarantino’s Swarovski crystal–covered flowers.

Did we mention that hair is already a bright turquoise? Oh yeah, um, the picture accompanying this probably showcases her bold locks.

“The turquoise hair came about almost two years ago,” she explains. “I had hot pink hair [at the time], and then one day I came into work and looked around, and there were four of us with pink hair. Not cool, so I changed mine.”

Somehow, we doubt she needed help standing out.

BORIS CHANG JR.

Most of us wouldn’t consider our grandfathers to be our style heroes (that Eau de Mothballs cologne is hard to pull off), but Boris Chang Jr. feels differently. “My grandfather really had a sharp look,” he says. “He used to rock three-piece suits and have his hair perfectly parted. I never had a chance to meet the chap, but I admire the overall look of that era.”

A 26-year-old graphic designer for PUMA, Chang may be part of another generation — but that doesn’t stop him from combining time-tested style with his own youthful designs, synthesizing gramps’s menswear elements with inspiration from modern fashion icons like Johnny Depp and even, he admits, Justin Timberlake. “I’m an old-fashioned guy,” says Chang. “I like to mix classic looks and give it new twists … I call it the modern classic.”

Think slim fits, suspenders, vests, and fedoras paired with bright hi-top sneaks that Chang finds at favorite spots like Orchard Skate Shop (1562 Tremont Street #1, Boston, 617.730.5700), Riccardi (116 Newbury Street, Boston, 617.266.3158), and Urban Outfitters (361 Newbury Street, Boston, 617.236.0088).  And of course, you’re bound to find pieces from Chang’s own collection, Creep Street, a line of colorful T-shirts and accessories he co-founded with “bromance partner” Chip Marucci back in 2006. The streetwear brand features kitschy designs inspired by skateboarding, sexploitation movies, ’90s pop culture (we’re partial to the retro snap bracelets, available at madcreepy.com and through Boston-based karmaloop.com), and especially B-grade horror flicks. “I’m not a super gore freak,” says Chang. “What really gets me pumped are the old movie posters and how ridiculous [they are]. A so-bad-they’re-good kind of thing.... Besides, who doesn’t like naked chicks running around, especially when they’re getting chased by some melting monster with two heads that used to be her boyfriend? Effin’ genius.”

By mixing old and new elements to achieve the perfect blend of aesthetic anachronism, Chang is the one who proves he has smart style — the kind that never looks dated. In fact, one of his favorite accessories is a testament to timelessness: “My ‘Legendary’ necklace,” says Chang, when asked what item in his closet he could never go without.

“No, seriously. Look at it. Told you.” And you don’t have to tell us twice.

PAUL NADDAFF & URSULA AUGUST 

Talk about a match made in heaven. Relationships, like fashion finds, can be as likely to clash as to complement. But engaged 27-year-old Jamaica Plain residents Paul Naddaff and Ursula August are one of those head(-to-toe)-turning couples that have found a common secret to love and style: keep it simple — and keep it real. They may both rock a basic black top and a pair of trendy jeans, but the way they choose to wear them shows off their unique identities as much as their commonalities.

“[I] keep everything basic with one ‘wow’ feature, normally with the shoes or belt,” says Naddaff, who stocks up on solid colored tees, comfortable jeans, and other “laid-back, classic” trademarks of the James Dean variety at American Apparel (138 Newbury Street, Boston, 617.536.4768) and the Levi’s Store (Natick Collection, 1245 Worcester Street, Natick, 508.647.3177). He avoids “big logos” and anything that makes him feel “like a human billboard,” which is pretty ironic given that Naddaff works as a marketing manager for PUMA. At least he has a go-to source for casual shoes that keep him kicking through favorite outdoorsy pastimes like mountain biking and dodge ball (he’s even founded his own league).

August shares similar style values: “I like to wear clean, classic cuts and juxtapose it with one very bold accessory.” But unlike her best guy, who’s more apt to aim for the coolly understated, August turns to her world travels for dashes of dazzle. Among her most beloved accessories is a handmade bone necklace from Mozambique, says August, who was born in South Africa and finds additional inspiration by “mixing South African street culture, like the designer Craig Native, with classic European styles.” As a multimedia producer, journalist, and member of the United Nations Association of Greater Boston, August adds to her accessories at street fairs, street vendors, and antique shops she finds during her globe-trotting treks. She also enjoys shopping closer to home at small Cambridge boutiques and Club Monaco (Prudential Mall, 800 Boylston Street, Boston, 617.262.2658), but no matter where she culls the contents for her closet, she shares her fiancé’s approach to finding style in what’s simple.

“My black tank top,” says August, listing some of the items she could never do without. And who could? Solid, reliable, perfect for pairing but able to stand on its own … call it love, at first sight.

MESMA S. BELSARE

Style is both a reflection of self and the transformation of it.

The colors, textures, and patterns of her attire reflect the Indian heritage of Mesma S. Belsare, who first came to Boston to earn a Masters degree in art education from Mass College of Art. Formally trained in Bharatanatyam (a South Indian form of classical dance), the choreographer, dancer, artist, and educator has been featured in performances the world over and awarded the Government of India Scholarship for advanced study of dance. She also dances often in local temples, as part of traditional offerings to Hindu deities — yet there is something many would consider untraditional about Belsare: she is transgender.

She says that many who watch her dance are unaware. Those who are often ignore it; a few, on occasion, are unhappy. Her style, though, transcends.

“I performed last year at the University of Wyoming in Laramie in March, which is women’s history month,” recalls Belsare, who also sits on the board of The History Project, a Boston-based LGBT organization. “The local Indian community was incensed at a trans woman representing the Indian arts.... After a two-hour long solo concert, an Indian family apologized to me on behalf of the community, as my dance had said what I couldn’t have in words. The next day, a university professor of gender studies was surprised that her students wanted to talk more about the dance they witnessed than gender issues. Art had once again ruled.”

On one hand, “Style is basically a mirror of your self,” says Belsare. “It’s a reflection of what we think, how we think, our wealth of experiences, life influences — the people with which we associate, the literature we read, the passions we pursue.”

Her style also reflects her creative discipline, as she often wears self-made garments that accommodate and emphasize her art. “The way it [my clothing] is stitched, folded, and ironed is strategically planned to accentuate the movement, the form, the figure, the lines,” says Belsare.

Among her most treasured pieces is her collection of saris. “The sari has a very significant value for me. Not only is it very sexy, but it’s also a beautiful poetry worn on the body, the way it drapes and falls … sexy, but also dignified.”

“Ever since coming here [to Boston], I haven’t established the same kind of relationship with a garment. Except maybe with my winter coats,” she laughs. “Those are friends I need to have.”

LINDSEY BERRY

No matter what her size, Lindsey Berry has always had style on her side.

Take a look now at the 26-year-old general manager of Mizu, the salon at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel (776 Boylston Street, Boston, 617.585.6498), and you’d never know that she struggled with weight issues since childhood. In 2001, she had laparoscopic surgery to reduce the size of her stomach, a procedure that set her on course to a lifestyle of diet and exercise that has helped her lose — and keep off — 150 pounds. “It gave me a new lease on fashion and life,” she says.

What’s really refreshing about Berry’s perspective is that, even at her heaviest, she still worked with the sizes and fashions available to assert her style. “Back in the day, I actually got a job at Lane Bryant, and it taught me how to dress for my size and feel good about my size,” says Berry. “It was invaluable to know that no matter what size you are, there are options.”

But even her positive outlook couldn’t eradicate other people’s perceptions. “I was always stylish!” she chuckles of her heavier days. “But people wouldn’t necessarily look

at me that way. If I had made some fashion decisions, they might have felt embarrassing, or people wouldn’t have looked at it as cool.”

There’s no doubt that Berry comes off as cool now, working a trademark boyish, stark, blonde punk ’do (“I wouldn’t stand out as much if I didn’t take a risk with my hair,” she says) and crafting a low-maintenance rocker-girl style using fashions she may not have been able to wear before. For inspiration, she says she keeps her eyes glued to locally based style blogs like New Brahmin, Punky Style, and Bostonista, and she considers Boston fashion designers like Sam Mendoza, Nirva, and Daniela Corte among her personal favorites. She’s been able to diversify her wardrobe with edgy looks, most recently starting to collect vintage menswear-inspired blazers for her ensembles.

And why not? Even guys want to rip a page from this chick’s street-chic stylebook. “My most prized possession is my Theory leather jacket from Intermix,” says Berry. “I actually left it at a bar one night to return hours later to find different patrons trying it on.” She laughs, “Thanks for taking care of her, boys!”

JESSICA SHAUGHNESSY

Ask Jessica Shaughnessy to describe her style, and “urban hippie” is the phrase she’ll choose. And while there’s certainly a lot to like about the 27-year-old South Boston artist’s hodgepodge of funky fashion, not to mention her open and outgoing spirit, what really gives us the warm and fuzzy feeling reminiscent of a summer of love is how Shaughnessy acquires some of her eye-catching accessories. Many of them are handmade by participants in a local program called Common Art (ecclesia-ministries.org/common_art.html), organized by the Ecclesia Ministries and held weekly on Wednesdays at Emmanuel Church, that provides a creative outlet for Boston’s homeless and low-income residents. That’s how Shaughnessy finds some of her most treasured pieces, and she says that heart, soul, and helpfulness mean a lot more than any brand name. “[The money from] each piece that is bought goes 100 percent to the person that made it,” she explains. “So you take home something beautiful and original while helping someone else out.” 

Of course, Shaughnessy finds style inspiration elsewhere, too — everywhere from “parking lots at concerts to old photographs of family members.”

And you’ll find her sorting through the racks at LF (353 Newbury Street, Boston, 617.236.1213), The Garment District (200 Broadway, Cambridge, 617.876.5230), and, when she’s not helping others fire up their fashion as an employee there, LIT (223 Newbury Street, Boston, 617.421.8637 and 236 Hanover Street, Boston, 617.391.0086). She also gives a little retail support to local Goodwill and Salvation Army locations to fill her closet with good karma. “Always a fun treasure hunt!” she says. 

The tattoo across Shaughnessy’s chest reads “My mouth blooms like a cut,” the poetry lover’s favorite line from Anne Sexton’s “The Kiss.” Maybe we’re just star-struck by Shaughnessy’s Age of Aquarius attitude, but we think her style deserves a big smooch, for sure.

JOE CHEHADE

 Joe Chehade is a shoplifter.

Well, not exactly. Chehade co-owns Motley (623 Tremont Street, Boston, 617.247.6969), the South End boutique that he and his brother Jason took over earlier this year after the two longtime customers found out their favorite shop was itself up for sale. And while Chehade would never condone the five-finger discount there, he admits to one theft-related vice: he tends to steal his brother’s clothes. “I’d say a solid 20 percent of my clothes are his castoffs,” he confesses.

Hand-me-downs are good enough for Chehade, who says the key to style is in maximizing your look by minimizing your effort. “I’ve always appreciated that guy who can look completely unique and interested without trying,” says Chehade. Of course, to many people, he is that guy, someone who can wear a comfy T-shirt and jeans with the cool confidence of haute couture. Ironically for someone who eschews obvious effort, he fronts a band called Action Verbs, but his laidback look certainly fits their indie-rock vibe.

“There’s something to be said about a person who can walk into a room and exude casual coolness,” he elaborates. “I think it translates to the indie-music scene today in the sense of standing on the fringe, looking like you don’t want to come in, while ringing the doorbell and banging on the door.”

But what has his fashion sense meant for his new role running Motley? Now that the stylish South Ender is the one stocking the shelves at his favorite store, has he changed the look to match his own? “Motley was very much in line with how I was already dressing,” he says. “Needless to say, we didn’t want to drastically change something that wasn’t broken.” After all, nothing’s worse than wasted effort.

JENNA RIVERS

There’s no secret to Jenna Rivers’s sense of style. It’s just part of her DNA.

The 24-year-old Somerville designer is one-third of the Future Craft Studio (futurecraftstudio.com), alongside her mother Josephine Rivers, 53, and her grandmother Maria D’Amore, 86, a weaver from Argentina. The three generations of women create hand-woven textiles — scarves, hats, and hoodies of cashmere, bamboo, silk, organic cotton, and alpaca. Founded two years ago and inspired by the colors, textures, and patterns of American crafts, the FutureCraft label is now available through their online store. The youngest Rivers is happy to spread appreciation for garments created with one-of-a-kind TLC, fondly recalling wearing her grandmother’s original creations as a little girl: “I would wear them to school, and I felt special because I had my own dresses that no one else would have.”

The prospect of bringing a personal touch back to the style world is also why Rivers traded New York City for Boston. After attending NYC’s Fashion Institute of Technology, she landed a plum internship with Anna Sui, but the experience was anything but a familial affair. Rivers describes that time as “horrible” and “insane,” filled with fashionista tantrums and diva demands. “I didn’t even come back for the free clothes,” she laughs. She found herself more inspired

by visiting weaving classes and textile shows in
Western Massachusetts, and she “bonded with all these amazing women in the middle of nowhere, making these beautiful crafts and doing it just for the love of it.” Thus was born Future Craft and Rivers’s recently opened design studio Fringe Movement, a 4400-square-foot space housing artists from a wide array of mediums — like architecture, graphic design, videography, and bike framing — and, of course, serving as home to the Future Craft Studio.

She may have thumbed her nose at haute couture, but Rivers knows that style crafted with care is what really stands the test of time. “My grandmother made me a Trolls dress when I was little, and it was amazing. I really want to bring them back!” she chuckles, referring to the frocks worn by those plastic, wild-haired dolls of the early ’90s. “It was high-waisted with spaghetti straps, rainbow colored and poofed out like a baby doll. Now, I could walk that down the runway and sell it for $800 to all the fashionistas.”

AUSTYN ELLESE MAYFIELD

Everyone uses their style to tell a story — and who more so than a writer?

“The same way four modifiers may be too much for a sentence is the same way two necklaces and a pair of chandelier earrings may be too much for a certain neckline. So then you have to edit,” explains fashion blogger Austyn Ellese Mayfield (of blog.theknowledgeofstyle.com and luckytoes.com). When it comes to expressing herself, she can draw some poetic parallels between her approach to fashion and to the written word. “I’m constantly looking for a sense of aesthetic tension and balance.”

As a young college professor teaching mass-media courses at Bay State College and ESL classes at UMass Boston, the 27-year-old Dorchester resident also uses her style to set a tone in the classroom. “I’m usually the youngest instructor,” she says. “So those I can’t win over with my wit and charm, I get props from for teaching in a fierce pair of boots and a fedora. And it’s not the clothes they respect; they respect that I can still handle business without sacrificing my identity.”

And Mayfield says her unique identity is in the details: she considers herself accessories-driven, turning to shoes, handbags, earrings, and assorted baubles

from Luna Boston (205 Newbury Street, Boston, 617.262.3900), Mint Julep (1302 Beacon Street, Brookline, 617.232.3600 and 6 Church Street, Cambridge, 617.576.6468), and Stil (The Mall at Chestnut Hill, 199 Boylston Street, Chestnut Hill, 617.527.7845), where you can catch her working part-time and snagging accents that add interest to her look like vivid adjectives add color to a sentence.

But one of her most treasured finds is a pair of René Caovilla heels from a Neiman Marcus trunk show. “I had just filmed an interview with the company’s U.S. rep, and she asked me, ‘Which ones do you love the most?’ ” recalls Mayfield, who also does freelance video production. “I showed her the pair I’d been coveting, and she insisted I try them on … so I strutted around in them for a moment. I guess I must have really looked happy in them, because when I took them off, she shook her head and said, “No, no, no, you belong in those shoes. Take them home with you, sweetheart — they’re yours.’ ”

See? Even for a writer, sometimes a feeling of style is all you need to say what’s on your mind. Says Mayfield, “I love the way that our style allows us to communicate without ever depending on words.” ’Nuff said.