Cambridge Fashion

Maybe the first thing I noticed about how people dress around here, is that it's not that different from anywhere else. There isn't Macy's or Nordstroms, but Marks and Spencer and John Lewis are quite similar. They have H&M, The Gap, Hollister, Zara and other chain stores that you can find the world over. I see a lot of the same trends here that I saw in America. However, I've enjoyed spotting a few differences.

I notice Cath Kidston bags more often around here. But maybe not so many that I would have noticed had my sister-in-law not brought my notice to the brand.

There's a company called "Cambridge Satchel Company" that makes bags I see people wearing around town. I'm not sure if these are tourists trying out their new souvenir- there's A LOT of tourists around Cambridge - or if it is popular among the locals as well.

A popular brand seems to be SuperDry, especially among the teens & 20s. They have stores in the U.S., but I'd never noticed the brand until I came here. In my pictures I caught the exact same logo on three different colors; there is more variety than that.

When we got here I realized Anya was a little short on summer clothes that fit. I went out to buy her some shorts, but couldn't find any anywhere. Now some of that is, I'm sure, the deal where you can't buy clothes for the season you're in (you've got to buy summer clothes in the spring, fall clothes in the summer, etc.). I did see a lot of summer dresses and skirts, and after that I noticed that young girls seem to wear skirts and dresses more often here than where I lived in the U.S.

 A rather unfortunate trend here seems to be taking short-shorts to new levels.

It is really popular here to wear nylons with shorts and even skirts. In this picture the nylons are almost opaque, but I see a lot of sheer black nylons. Maybe this just stands out to me because I was recently living in southern California, where bare legs are the norm year-round.

 Also very popular is wearing opaque black tights with skirts and tunics. This is a look I of course saw before, just not the degree it's popular here.

This woman combines several popular Cambridge trends. One, riding (or in her case, pushing) a bike. Bikes are everywhere here. Two, not wearing a helmet. As I'm originally from Washington where virtually everyone wears a helmet when cycling, I find the lack of helmet use pretty surprising. Three, her bike has a wicker basket in the front. Four, she's got the black opaque tights on. Five, she's wearing a below-the-knee, stretching skirt/dress, which I see everywhere. Especially among the riding your bike to work/school set.

 A look you never, never see in Cambridge is wearing workout wear around town. In SoCal, I'd say it's pretty common and acceptable to wear yoga pants or workout shorts and tank tops around town for grocery shopping, going to the coffee shop, picking up the kids or other errands. While during our recent heat wave you'd sometimes see men walking around town shirtless - a very casual look - you'd never see workout wear. The only times I've seen people in jogging shoes, workout tights and tanks around town they were actually jogging.

 These two guys are wearing very typical mens wear I see around the university area. First, jeans and t-shirts. Nothing new there. Also, green pants - very popular, as well as red or mustard - with a little cardigan or sweater.

This is the English gentleman walking hat. Except that he's wearing shorts, not quite as popular, this is another typical look you see around the colleges and country walking paths. Walking hat, linen shirt, beat-up leather satchel, and short socks with leather shoes.

This is another popular mens look - shirt buttoned up to the top button and rolled up sleeves.

 Rolled up sleeve look, except it's tailored that way.

Then, if you don't go for the rolled-up sleeve look, then the sleeves must be bunched up. This is a very typical look for guys - red shorts, button-up shirt with the bunched up sleeves.