Musings from Students of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem
Posted on December 19, 2011 by Nikki Fig
By Nikki Fig
She’s fun, she’s spunky, and her upbeat attitude can turn any frown upside down. Meet Naomi Zaslow, a 25-year old University of Michigan grad who spent the past 2 years teaching English in South Korea. I sat down to get this well-travelled scholar’s take on fashion and understand how her personal taste in clothes reflects her life experiences.
Nikki Fig: How do you define your personal style?
Naomi Zaslow
Naomi Zaslow: Colorful, that’s basically all I care about with about 90% South Korea inspiration- not North Korea. That would be a very different type of style…
NF: Who is your style icon?
NZ: Hmmmm….I don’t really know, I don’t follow fashion very much at all but I studied art at the University of Michigan. When I get dressed, I often think about Mark Rothko’s prints. Often times, what I wear is centered around different shapes and colors. I just love color!
NF: What do you think about fashion in Israel?
NZ: I think I’m coming to it from a different perspective because I was living in Korea before I came here. They have high fashion. The women wear heels, do their makeup and do their hair no matter where they’re living or what they’re doing. Here it’s very casual. Women don’t even dress up for shabbas! There’s definitely an ‘anything goes mentality which I really appreciate. I feel like I can wear anything here and it would be fine- depending on what neighborhood I’m walking through of course…
NF: What is your favorite item of clothing in your closet?
NZ: My kicks. I have three pairs and can match them to almost anything.
NF: When you wake up in the morning, how do you decide what you’re going to wear?
NZ: I choose a color theme for the day and then whatever’s clean. Im wearing red glasses today so the color of the day is red. As long as it matches my shoes I know that I’m doing I’m okay.
