FRAY MAGAZINE: After Hours Edition

AFTER HOURS FRAY MAGAZINE MODEL LEO KAPLAN

COVER BY ERICK BUENDIA

FRAY MAGAZINE SPRING 2023

TABLE OF CONTENTS Smokescreen by Sarah Liu Before by Alex Ober La Sirena

by Julie Andrea Ordonez Ritual by Xandra Chen and Emmett Levy untitled by Norman Slate Stall

by Siggy Soriano and Victoria Cornejo Indie Sleaze by Margo Morris In Your Dreams: Fantasies, Nightmares & the Absurd

by Lila King and Lauren Horowitz Night Light by Gino Palacios Fear Extinction by Michael Fadugbagbe Antiquity by Kalita Hon The Black Razz Experience by Kofi Agyei-Yeboah

TEAM Organizers Ruby Baden-Lasar Xandra Chen Victoria Cornejo Siggy Soriano Mia Foster Anika Kewalramani

Layout Editors

Ali Eckstein Gaile Ng Norman Slate Michael Fadugbagbe Cate Baldwin Lila King Jenney Ongele

COLLABORATORS

tyler schimpff erick buendia sophie clapacs eugenia shakhnovskaya ray huang neo fleurimond lila king leo kaplan abbi abraham lauren horowitz ayer richmond gino palacios lucy pelletier brianna johnson jenny ongele amelie boose cassidy mcdonough ali eckstein tess macfarlane danae williams lilly hoefflin ken wu kalita hon ellis carter samiya shetty michelle valentine grace warner-haakmat zoe cramer sarah liu hyacinth tauriac jo harkless liam mackenzie jalen richardson aniya akhtar coco cooley jazmin davis margo morris gaile ng judely jean-charles alex glotzer ella matthews kailer brothers vansh kapoor brooks olson kaina remy emma steckline geo wood kayla penza minyoung huh katie meyer kelsey onyia x house dylan cundiff keren mikanda laurence fine alex ober kyla danquah michael fadugbagbe langston woody aisyah nurriza leevon matthews lauren berthoumieux zach berkenkotter natalie williams matty shields lucas buu-hoan mirembe tiah shepherd julie andrea ordonez mcduffie-thurmond xavier samuel maseo refuerzo pelumi sokunbi cate baldwin jordan rivera kofi agyei-yeboah norman slate aoife reynolds dylan ng lucy rossi reder sylvia maxwell laila kewalramani otto do ezekiel poppola emmett levy

What hidden parts of ourselves arise in the night?

What is behind the veneer of our public, presentable daytime selves?

Part photo series and part interview, this project aims to shine a mirror to the most secretive, vulnerable parts of ourselves that come to the surface in the night.

Models (left to right): Brooks Olson, Ella Matthew, Gaile Ng, Geo Wood

By Sarah Liu

I feel safer being vulnerable enough to be seen by myself and others at night because I know that there's this literal safety of not being fully visible.

Taking a second to relax even if I've gotten a lot done during the day feels like a pleasure I can't afford. But at night, I feel like I can lean into the nothingness a little more because all that's ahead of me is sleep.

It gives them space to breathe. They're not really being looked at; the distortion of perception feels like it goes down. It feels more naked and raw.

Sometimes the nighttime feels filled with a yearning.

In the day, I have expectations for myself and who I should be and what I should be doing. But at night time, I can just be free and loose: do whatever I want to do, be whoever I want to be.

I feel like there's such an expectation during the day that I put on myself to be productive and busy. What I do during the daytime is already mapped out for me. But at night, I feel like the only expectation is to have fun.

At night, I feel like whatever emotion I'm having is more dramatic.

When I'm busy throughout the day, that's when I'm working through my emotions and then night time is when I reflect on and document those emotions.

At night I can easily just allow myself to truly be bored and mess around, to just exist and not put any pressure on myself to be doing anything.

Because of what I do in school, nighttime is my time to lean into more of my creative side. Lately, something I've really been enjoying is just watching a show and making jewelry. I like thinking about and assembling my outfit for the next day.

The part of myself that is more neurotic and emotional is pretty loud all throughout the day, but I feel like the freedom I have at nighttime allows me to truly just get lost in a thought or in something that I'm grappling with.

At night, everyone's walking to places and going places with their friends. It's almost inviting: you can feel the campus kind of buzzing.

I feel more shy during the day. The sun's out, everything's exposed. At night is when I feel more confident; I want to go out and I feel more outgoing…

I feel more me at night.

I feel like the realest version of myself is when I'm getting ready, that space between day time order and nighttime party. Because I'm with my friends, I'm getting excited but I'm not really crazy yet.

There's a certain uncertainty to the night time that isn't related to the daytime. Getting ready to go out, it’s like, I don't know what could happen… it could be a really good night, it could be an awful night. I could meet someone.

We'll find out.

by alex ober

before

collaborators: zach berkenkotter lucas buu-hoan otto do xandra chen

models: alex ober aisyah nurriza

Ritual

by Xandra Chen and Emmett Levy

Capturing the vulnerable moments of fear, joy, and love associated with getting ready.

With Dylan Ng Sophie Clapacs Jo Harkless Emmett Levy Xandra Chen

Project by Norman Slate

http://site.ebrary.com/lib/wesleyan/Doc? id=10397484

OUT WITH THE OLD AND IN WITH THE… OLD? The Return of the Indie Sleaze and Rockstar Girlfriend Aesthetic MARGO MORRIS Throw away your stick slick for ballerina Mary Kate and Ashley reigned supreme buns, your darling little lip gloss, your in the after hours of downtown New York cutesie mini gold hoops, and your with their messy beach waves, makeup remover wipes. Make way for a sunglasses that nearly covered their thick bed head, stained red lips, six whole faces, purses that could fit a small layered necklaces, and day-old smudged pony, and vintage cowboy boots. The eyeliner. We are gone with the clean girl two of them sum up the aesthetic aesthetic because the indie sleaze perfectly, reclaiming the look of walking rockstar girlfriend look that once home at seven in the morning, high heels dominated the night scene is back, and it in one hand and cigarette in the other. is better than ever.

Fashion responds to the real world. The Think back thirteen years. Circa 2010. 90s look was a direct rebellion of the Vampire Weekend and Azealia Banks are government regime. However, the indie playing on everyone’s iPod nanos, sleaze movement was weirdly aligned Tumblr is dominating the internet, and it with the politics at the time: decadent is hard to go dancing and not bump into and wasteful attitudes. a hipster clad in heavy bangs, sunglasses But that wasn’t on anyone’s mind as they at night, layered bottoms, and a bold red flailed around to “Right Round” by Flo lip. In a post Y2K world, everybody was Rida. According to someone who was done with the maximalist nature of alive in this era and lived to tell the tale, fashion and looked for a more stripped “gender was at play. It was the first time down look. we were sexy in a while.”

Something effortless. In comes Alexa And now flash forward to summer 2022.

Chung, Chloe Sevigny, and the queens of Scrolling through Instagram is almost like the self proclaimed walk of shame chic, looking in a time capsule from over a Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen. Suddenly, decade ago. However, with some new juicy couture and belly button rings were twists.

Influencer and blogger in the rear-view mirror and Alexa Chung’s @megsuperstarprincess seems to be at ripped tights were all anyone could see. the forefront of the new grunge indie Chloe Sevigny wore suspenders with sleaze. In 2017 she dropped out of jeans and a t-shirt causing hipsters Parsons to become an “ugly hot fashion everywhere to lose their minds. girlie” stylist and photographer.

On her instagram you can see her sporting ratty fur coats, raccoon eyeliner, low rise skinny jeans, and flat rims on an angle. What is so interesting about her look is the incorporation of the indie sleaze with modern fashion trends. She makes sure she still fits in her vintage mid-calf boxing shoes and frilly torn dresses a la Collina Strada. In addition to her seemingly effortless but probably thoughtfully curated wardrobe, she developed a blog called, “Le Hipster Portal” that consists of unfiltered and unfocused photographs and diary entries from her nightlife jaunts and bad behavior.

Below is an excerpt from an entry titled, “Le Prozac Birthday”: After kicking off le month of May with an exhausting week of moving and socializing like my life depended on it (I hit le Marc Jacobs party, le avenue A dives, a private dinner at Christies, le Chelsea hotel, a rando recording studio, and obv flung moi-self down canal street to dimes square barz).... I HIT A MEGA WALL. A MEG WALL. typical. I convinced moi-self that a new apartment (even in brooklyn), a new psychiatrist, a new prozac prescription (OUI I've joined le prozac nation), and new shoez would make for an entirely new lifestyle.

The chaotic and messy behavior described here certainly has original indie sleaze sentiments, but it is also seeped in Gen Z.

Throwing in some of the watering holes for lower east side sleazers, the openness with which she talks about her Prozac, psychiatrist, and new apartment in Brooklyn is something that Mary Kate and Ashley would never come close to. Not to mention, these words from Meg: “I’m insufferable, but it’s feminist because it’s being real.” Spoken like a true fourth wave feminist, gen z, lower east side girlie, with a hint of the untidy qualities from our indie sleaze mothers, Mary Kate and Ashley.

The icons of modern day, after hours, rock star girlfriend sleaze go beyond just megsuperstarprincess. Julia Fox is arguably the most modern version. She redefined what it means to wear thick eyeliner, with her debut look at Paris Men’s Fashion Week. Not to mention, her homemade wardrobe of leather handbags, chunky gold earrings, and denim pants tucked into her boots. She has taken the elements of the original sleaze and made it her own, revolutionizing grunge and making it modern. She is known for the wet hair, leather, and strappy look, all key parts of the night life aesthetic in the mid 2000’s.

However, she pairs this with structure and high end creativity, giving it her own spin. Some designers have also caught onto the trend. Collina Strada’s fall collection of 2022 was sleaze galore.

Filled with low cut pants and loosely fitting belts, uneven hemlines, layered bottoms, enormous bags, and messy hair, the collection caught onto the trend.

However, just like Fox, they also added a 2022 twist, adding vibrant colors, chrome materials, and cinched lines.

As for why we are seeing the resurgence in the afterhours, grunge sleaze, “ugly hot,” chic, the easy answer is the trend cycle. We are coming out of the renaissance of Paris Hilton, Juicy Couture, whale tails, and everything we know and love about Y2K, thanks to Youtuber and influencer, Devon Lee Carlson. Naturally, we are heading on to the next era of indie sleaze. The more complicated answer has to do with, just like everything else, COVID-19. While we were all cooped up in our sweatpants and feeding our sourdough starters, we reminisced on the days when we were shoulder to shoulder with strangers. We yearned to sweat, accidentally spill drinks on people and have them spill drinks on us, and see people besides immediate family members, dogs, and significant others.

When restrictions finally started lifting and selfies with strangers became a possibility again, we did not have time for petty lip gloss, perfect contour, and slicked back buns. There was a mass rejection of perfection, leading people to embrace the excitement of being messy, some for the first time ever and others for the first time in ten years. Not to mention, the affordability appeal. A Maybelline eyeliner is easier to swing than one from Dior.

So how does one incorporate the rock star girlfriend indie sleaze aesthetic into their everyday look, you might ask?

Drugstore eyeliner is always a great place to start. And while you are at your local CVS, might as well pick up a pair of tights to create your own runs in. Mini skirts and some combat boots can never hurt either.

Don’t forget a huge bag to fit all of your crumpled up loose pieces of paper, lip stains, flat shoes for the walk home, and your Ottessa Moshfegh book. And lastly, for la piece de resistance, a faux fur coat, the faker the better. Oh! And if you enjoy a puff every now and then, make the switch from Juuls to cigarettes (sorry sorry! Cheesy I know). Now go out and be the ugly hot fashion girlie that you have always wanted to be.

IN YOUR DREAMS Fantasies, Nightmares, & the Absurd

Lauren Horo wit za nd

ing K la Li

FANTA S Y

Lucy Pelletier

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T M H G A I R N

JACOB CARTON

T HE

ABSU

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Amelie Boose

CLICK BELOW

model: Kalita Hon

models: Lilly Hoefflin, Ali Eckstein photography: Jenny Ongele Make-up: Michelle Valentine

Night Light promotes sustainability and ethical manufacturing through a miniature line of upcycled, handmade looks. Each of the outfits shown were created by Gino Palacios (2025) and combines thrifted clothes, sheets, and blankets. Model Ali Eckstein (2026) wears a sweater created from a thrifted turtle neck and a crochet blanket, and shorts upcycled from sheets and parts of the turtle neck. Model Lilly Hoefflin (2026) wears a fluffy pink hoodie with a matching pair of shorts, both made from the same thrifted blanket. Model Kalita Hon (2023) wears a long cardigan made from a thrifted plush blanket and lavender shorts upcycled from sheets. Night Light goes to show that we don’t just need to look to clothes for fashion inspiration and upcycling—virtually anything can be made into, or inspire a wearable garment.

Fear Extinction

by Michael Fadugbagbe Ezekiel Poppola Kofi Agyei-Yeboah Special Thanks to Siggy Soriano

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shot by anika kewalramani & pelumi sokunbi / graphic design by. aniika kewalramani / directed by kofi agyei-yeboah

"fashion is such a big part of my life! i love how i’m able to express both my femininity and masculinity through the clothes i wear. it brings me so much joy and is one of my favorite forms of self expression"

A Letter from the Editor...

Thank you for reading through our fifth Fray edition, our After Hours issue.

Over the past year, the organizing team has worked day and night to transform the culture of Fray within our team and across campus. We are proud to say that this issue, After Hours, is unequivocally the biggest and best publication yet. We have nearly one hundred collaborators across twelve unique, yet connected, projects ranging from written pieces to videos to thought provoking photo shoots.

This year, we have hosted soirees and parties and pop-up events to connect students across campus through a mutual love of fashion and desire for sustainable shopping. After Hours represents our first ever print issue, a sign of resilience through the pandemic and a continued desire to spread Fray’s art throughout Wesleyan.

After Hours has been a bittersweet experience for me. I have been involved in every issue of Fray – from our first publication to Bacchanalia to Recess to Regeneration and now, After Hours. I have watched the community change and grow and become a family of creatives on campus. I am grateful for the organizers before me, who laid the groundwork and created this magazine, and I am most grateful for the current organizers, Anika, Xandra, Siggy, Victoria, and Mia, for being the strongest, funniest, and most creative group of people at Wesleyan. I cannot wait to see what you do with Fray next year and the year after. I also cannot wait to see what the new iteration of Wesleyan students bring to Fray. I will be rooting for you all -- and reposting every Fray story -forever. Always grateful for this community.

Love, Ruby

issue five

FRAY's AFTER HOURS EDITION

wesleyan's first fashion magazine