Clothes are on everybody’s mind – don’t try to deny it. Unless people like walking around campus in the middle of fall naked, they’re thinking about wearing something, even if it’s skimpy.

Most people want to look good in their clothes. However, not everybody knows how, and those who do seem unable to communicate instructions properly. For the rest of the semester, I will be your knight in fashionable armor.

The words “fashion” and “style” are thrown around carelessly, and it’s imperative that they’re understood.

Guys and girls alike don’t usually think about the statement they’re making with a short skirt or a deep V-neck T-shirt. Classy or slutty, sexy or douchey, people have eyes that listen while your outfit speaks.

Fashion and style are the only two words that can effectively explain the who, what, when, where and why of proper clothing application. Yet they’re used as synonyms and misinterpreted on a daily basis.

Style is the medium. Fashion is the trend. How someone looks, acts, talks, sees, feels, tastes, thinks and believes leads back to his or her sense of individuality.

 Joan Ellishair, associate professor and chair of the Apparel, Merchandising, Textiles and Design Department, defines style as a way of life – fashion being that which is accepted by a larger group of people.

“Style goes beyond the body,” she said. “It’s the clothes you wear, your facial hair, the food you eat, the movies you watch…computers, phones, cars, houses…. All of those are a part of fashion and lead into one’s sense of style.”

Fashion is pre-determined and dictated by a commonality that brings masses together as one entity. Style is the individuality that follows and stimulates the influences that fashion feeds from.

“Fashion and style is hard to define because it’s not something that can be explained, but seen, heard and experienced,” said Anthony Melo, a junior majoring in apparel design. “It doesn’t settle for boundaries. It’s always taken to the next level. It’s honestly a personal preference.”

Melo spent a semester abroad in London last year. He said the experience radically changed his entire understanding of fashion and style.

Style dominated because individuality was strong. Fashion, instead, stole what was popular and sold it as the only thing people should be wearing.

“If you want to be in style, you only have to do one thing,” he said. “Instead of following trends, set trends. Fashion designers like Gucci and Prada watch us, and vice versa.”

Ellis and Melo stressed that the reason fashion and style are confused and misused so often is because they depend on each other’s definition to exist. Without individuality, unique clothing wouldn’t exist, and if unique clothing didn’t exist, fashion wouldn’t have inspiration to constantly feed off of.

As a college student, it’s important be educated and be aware. Math, science and English are all important, but knowing what you’re wearing and how you’re wearing it is just as relevant.

Fashion is commonality. Style is individuality. Think about it. Memorize it. Live by it.