Hey, I Like Your Style! Muskan Sharma on statement jackets, double denim and embracing colour
image via @__muskan_s/instagram
as told to daisy henry
“Have you ever tried justifying the concept of crop tops to ethnic parents? It’s no easy feat.”
We know personal style is a journey (I’m looking at you, Tumblr years) and our series Hey, I Like Your Style! dives into the fashion psyche of our favourite creatives. We’re talking the good, the bad and the 2007.
These are the stories behind the wardrobes, exploring how we develop our own personal style. There’s a brilliance behind the way we choose to express ourselves and at FJ, we know every outfit has a story. This week, we’re diving into the wardrobe of Muskan Sharma, a Melbourne-based digital creator.
For more fashion news, shoots, articles and features, head to our Fashion section.
Born in India and moving to Australia at 12 meant Muskan’s relationship with fashion oscillated heavily between two cultures. “I think that as an immigrant, you hold so much responsibility in representing your community and even at that young age, I was very conscious of not overexpressing my ‘Indian-ness’,” she remembers.
Living in a laidback city like Perth, her formative fashion years were spent negotiating hemlines with her parents and wearing a lot of ‘theatre-kid’ black. “It was funny because I had just moved from Delhi, where the fashion is so vibrant and full of embroidery and sequins and textures,” she says.
Now, colour has become synonymous with Muskan’s personal style. “It reflects my mood, my energy levels and my individuality every single day.” Alongside statement coats and jackets, her wardrobe is full of matching sets, barrel leg jeans and vintage designer finds. As for her approach to cold-weather dressing? “I’m vowing to keep texture and prints alive this winter!”
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Fashion Journal: Hey Muskan! Tell me about yourself and what you like to wear.
Muskan: Hi! I’m Muskan but people call me ‘mus’ with love! Life’s at its busiest right now, so my style is all about balancing practicality with self-expression. I like to think of my outfits as being the perfect blend of masculine and feminine elements. I love structured silhouettes – long coats and statement jackets are my signature. I also love matching sets and denim and intentional pops of colour.
I think fashion is our first point of contact with the world every day and you can absolutely tell a story just through your clothes.
Personal style is a journey. Have you ever felt like you needed to fit into a particular fashion box?
I grew up in a very conservative and traditional Indian home. Having moved to Australia at the age of 12, I always knew I was different and 10 steps behind the trends, just because I was an outsider. In those years, fashion was always an afterthought.
I think that as an immigrant, you hold so much responsibility in representing your community and even at that young age, I was very conscious of not overexpressing my ‘Indian-ness’. Unfortunately, moving to a new and very different country in my formative fashion years meant I completely buried the vibrant culture I came from.
My parents also put a lot of value on education, travelling and extracurricular activities. I didn’t live in a home that looked like it came out of Architectural Digest, mum didn’t collect any vintage designer pieces and the word ‘style’ almost had a negative connotation because it meant you were taking time away from developing more ‘important’ skills. We were simple people and I was always raised not to be very loud or different when it came to my clothes. So naturally, I was trying exceptionally hard to blend in and be invisible.
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Take us back to your teenage years. Who or what was influencing your style at the time, and are there any looks you still think about now?
In my early teens, I was desperately trying to fit in, so a lot of my style was influenced by the older popular girls. The chokers, the rompers and all these new fashion brands I had never heard of. It was funny because I’d just moved from Delhi, where the fashion is so vibrant and full of embroidery, sequins and textures and here I was in Perth where the fashion felt so laidback and nonchalant.
I had the hardest time adjusting between the two worlds and had constant fights with my parents about how short my skirt could be when I left the house. Have you ever tried justifying the concept of crop tops to ethnic parents? It’s no easy feat. Good thing I wasn’t on social media yet because I would’ve gone crazy.
Having so many opposing influences actually made me turn away from expressing myself through fashion, so in my mid-to-late teens, I almost exclusively wore black. It was a simple and respectable colour, flattered my new post-puberty body and was relatively on trend. I was also heavily involved in theatre, where stage blacks were the uniform. You could mould into whoever the script required and I was mirroring that sentiment in my real life.
This is also when I became obsessed with jackets because they shielded me from the outside world and everyone’s opinions. It was like an extra line of defence. However, I must say this was not the best combination in the Western Australian summer.
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What role does colour play in how you get dressed now?
Colour has now become synonymous with my confidence and self-expression. It reflects my mood, my energy levels and my individuality every single day. I incorporate it into my jewellery, which very heavily incorporates gemstones. It feels very empowering to see my journey from the stage blacks to now and finally feeling like I’m my own person who champions the vibrancy of my cultural upbringing.
I saw you work in genetics in your nine-to-five. What’s your approach to work dressing, is it different from your weekend style?
Having worked in corporate for the last five years, my weekend and nine-to-five clothes have become interchangeable and I shop with that intention. I would say it’s more of my eccentric fashion that has bled into my workwear, rather than the other way around.
I wear my Tabis to the office every day, as well as vintage coats and chunky jewellery with structured pants and blouses. I find a way to make sure my corporate outfits always reflect my personality and carry an element of fun. I’m at work 40 hours a week, and just because my job is serious and structured, it doesn’t mean I need to compromise on the joy of fashion.
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What are some of the ‘investment pieces’ in your wardrobe, or items that have stood the test of time?
My (now discontinued) pair of Abrand Jeans. I used to actually work at a store in 2018 that sold Abrand and I bought a pair of mens light acid wash jeans that I still have in my cupboard today. I posted about them so much organically that I landed my first collab with Abrand. B
There’s also my patent leather Fendi Baguette bag that I thrifted in Copenhagen. It’s from the ’60s and I wear it three to four times a week. Rain, hail, snow, spilled cocktails – nothing can ruin that bag because of its finish. The cost per wear of this piece must be like 50 cents by now and she’s still going. And that’s what designer purchases should be. You shouldn’t spend thousands of dollars to watch it sit in your closet.
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What’s your favourite secondhand find?
Aside from my Fendi bag, I have a brown vintage YSL coat that I found in a flea market in Tokyo. It was my seventh hour of shopping for the day when I saw it, and it had the most gorgeous wooden buttons and velvet interior. It was around $300 and I went back and forth for so long trying to decide if it was worth it, but I’d never seen a coat that unique and well-made and maintained, so I bought it!
It has to be the most complimented piece of clothing in my wardrobe and every season I’m so excited to get it out. I did some research on it, and it was exclusively made for Japan and has insane resale value (though I plan on it becoming a family heirloom).
What’s a fail-safe pairing of clothes you always opt for because you know it works?
A Canadian tux! Specifically a jeans and jacket combo. Matching denim sets are the most versatile pairing, in my opinion. You can wear a dark wash with a colourful pump and chunky jewellery and you’re ready for an evening event. Pair the same outfit with Tabis and a white tank and you’re ready for Sunday brunch. It’s so fail-safe regardless of weather, occasion or formality.
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Who or what influences your style today?
Being as chronically online as I am, to find my true personal style, I have to search for inspiration offline. I have very fashionable friends and Melbourne is the powerhouse of unique fashion, so I’m in the perfect spot. I have a very fluid and eccentric fashion sense, so I seek one-off vintage pieces when I take myself out to physically shop and try on whatever I find.
Jonathan Anderson and Matthieu Blazy are my favourite designers and I’m inspired by their philosophy. I love the idea of channelling a balance of elegance and theatrics in all my looks!
Whose wardrobe would you steal if you could and why?
Tania Shroff needs to lock her wardrobe because I’m coming for it. She is the epitome of a cool girl who loves her roots and culture. Her style is so effortless and she sources the most insane pieces from around the world on her travels.
What fashion piece are you keeping in your closet despite it being ‘out of trend’?
I’ve heard that barrel jeans are on their way out, but I adore them and think they look so visually interesting and elevate any simple outfit just by their shape. So they’re staying. People moving onto skinny jeans seems so crazy to me when we have the option of a barrel.
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What pieces do you currently have on repeat?
My current uniform is actually the Maridenim Wide Unikko blue jeans with different tops depending on the occasion. I’ve also been wearing my Unreal Fur pieces (including the Cuvée Rose coat) anytime it gets remotely cold. I’m vowing to keep texture and prints alive this winter!
Who are your favourite local designers?
We’re absolutely blessed in this city with the most talented small businesses and so many women creating clothes that are timeless and beautiful. I have an extensive collection of handbags and apparel from Sage Avenue – Priya, the owner, has the perfect eye.
I usually turn to With Consideration and Steele if I want pieces that will rake in the compliments. And finally, Adelaide label The Wolf Gang is perfect for dopamine dressing. They make the most unique pieces that are so vibrant and bring so much colourful joy to event wear. I’m always refreshing their new arrivals page.
Keep up with Muskan here.
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