When considering how to mark the semiquincentennial of the United States this July, a question arose in the Vogue office: What defines American style now? With more than 340 million people inhabiting the 50 states and 14 territories, the answer was never going to be straightforward. So we turned to writer Biz Sherbert, who surveys how young people dress in her newsletter, American Style, to advise.
Vogue tasked Sherbert with finding 50 young people across the nation who best represented modern American style to her. The rules were simple: we asked U.S. residents between the ages of 18 and 30 to submit four photos, a short video, and answers to four brief questions via the Vogue app. (You can read more about Sherbert’s selection process here.) After Sherbert narrowed down her top 50, she met two of them in person. First she traveled to Shakopee, Minnesota—a suburb of Minneapolis—to see 19-year-old Owen Peters, then to Birmingham, Alabama, to catch up with Chelsi Banks, also 19.
Sherbert’s 50 American Style x Vogue finalists represent the breadth of Americana, their personal tastes spanning Pacific Northwest grunge, classic Westernwear, and everything in between. As children of the internet, they find inspiration on Pinterest and call back to their favorite shows (Sex and the City, Lizzie McGuire, The X Files) and movies (Peppermint Soda, Amélie, Clueless). But they also borrow from life, citing their grandmothers and their dads, Robert Mapplethorpe photographs and Hilma af Klint paintings, Catholic school uniforms and frat boys as influences.
Meet them below.
Chelsi Banks, 19, student, Birmingham, Alabama
Photographed by Ashley Markle
Describe your personal style in 2-3 words: Charmingly twee.
Describe the style in your state in 2-3 words: Colorful athleisure.
Where do you find inspiration? Fashion magazines from the 2000s through early 2010s, runway shows from the same time period, movies (my favorites are Emma and Peppermint Soda), my mom’s old photographs.
What is your favorite item in your closet? My favorite item in my closet is my Miu Miu spring 2008 purple dress. I got it for just $30 on Mercari, and it is truly one of my prized possessions. The dress looks perfect with a ruffled top underneath, similar to how it was styled on the runway.
Read more about Chelsi, one of our American Style x Vogue finalists, here.
