Hey, I Like Your Style! Exploring the wardrobe of Melbourne model and stylist, Joao Quintao Marcolla

“Uggs for autumn, Havaianas for summer, fringed gladiator sandals from Wish for spring and depression for winter.”

We know personal style is a journey (I’m looking at you, Tumblr years), so we’ve introduced a new series Hey, I Like Your Style!, diving into the fashion psyche of our favourite creatives. We’re talking the good, the bad and the 2007.

While the internet has made our fashion icons feel closer than ever before, even the most effortless of outfits came from a closet with some (well-dressed) skeletons. Clickable product tags, photo archives and lives chronicled in 30-second clips just don’t tell the full story.

For more fashion news, shoots, articles and features, head to our Fashion section.

These are the stories behind the wardrobes, exploring how we develop our own personal style. There’s brilliance behind the way we choose to express ourselves and at Fashion Journal, we know every outfit has a story.

This week, we’re following the personal style journey of Melbourne model and stylist, Joao Quintao Marcolla. Joao’s wardrobe is an embodiment of the sentiment ‘Fashion shouldn’t be taken too seriously’ – a genderless mix of high-end statement pieces, local designer gems and pieces reminiscent of circa-2010 swag culture. Joao’s style is irreverent and alien-sexy, equal parts Lady Gaga and Cobra Starship. Read on for their style journey.

Who are you and what do you like to wear?

 

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I’m a weaboo, I’m currently in debt to the Brasilian government, [I’m a] mukbang content creator, asexual adjacent, aspiring to be an aspiring actor, I’m searching for a protein powder that’s right for me and talking to my lawyers about how I can sue those whose mood boards I wind up in. My best features are my face, my hair, my calves and my ass.

I wish I had smaller feet and have been seriously considering a lip flip for 2026. I like to wear white Havaianas with the little Brasilian flag on them.

 

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I like communicating in bangle talk and wearing things people tell me they could never pull off that look like parts of costumes. I’m currently accepting money for any modelling/styling gigs.

What has your style evolution looked like? Do you feel like you’ve gained confidence in the way you dress?

 

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I definitely started wearing boat shoes when they were only available vintage and stopped before they were mass-produced again in the early 2010s. I used to have really short hair, which was a whole thing. I wore pyjamas to uni a lot and had a Birkenstock tan. [I gained confidence] when I stopped paying attention to how people react to my Aquarius rising, things fell into place and leant into it a bit more.

 

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Personal style is a journey. Have you ever felt like you needed to fit into a particular fashion box?

Yes, when I pretended to be not gay and just the weird reality of gendered clothing.

Take us back to those awkward teenage years. Do you have any fashion regrets?

 

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I mean I used to wear suspenders made of daisy chains with skinny jeans and ugly knit sweaters, but I don’t regret that. My regrets are things I didn’t end up buying, [like] not buying this one unicorn necklace from Shag they posted on Instagram a year or so ago. I regret not being more of a cosplayer. there was definitely a dip in taste at one point in uni.

I don’t know, it‘s also a bit of a red/blue pill sitch. Fashion can be such a headache. If I was never into it, things would definitely be easier – but I guess at some point, I chose the pill that makes you see and care. And unless I go from vision impaired (I failed my driving vision test) to actually blind, that won’t change. Do I regret it, though? I wouldn’t say it was a choice I made, so IDK if I can regret it, but would I if I could? When I’ve been broke, I’ve given it some thought.

What are the most expensive and least expensive items in your wardrobe?

 

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The most expensive is a pair of gold chains (a necklace and bracelet) that my grandma gave me for my 18th birthday, both of which I have lost. But the most expensive that I’ve bought is the green, plume-ridden, bedazzled Palomo Spain jumpsuit I saw Paz wearing in a Buffalo Zine issue.

What is the most meaningful fashion piece you own?

Two years ago, it would’ve been those chains… but nothing really stands out as most meaningful. I get itchy when I don’t own my aforementioned Havaianas.

What’s in your cart at the moment?

 

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I haven’t had one of these for a while ’cos they make me spiral. But mentally, [in my cart] there’s a bf with an aircraft license (and an aircraft) and The B-52’s Universe: The Essential Guide to the World’s Greatest Party Band book. And as I’m in Brasil while typing this, I need to remind myself I have to get collard greens seeds, two cartons of cigs to bring back, two-point-two-five litres of cachaca and postcards for a friend.

What fashion piece are you saving for right now?

There’s this really feral Bougainvillea Porosus Crocodile Bag Birkin I have my eye on, and I think I got a hookup for cheap. [And] Bottega Veneta Puddle Boots in musky pink.

What are the wardrobe items you wear on repeat?

 

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Okay, the only single item I wear almost daily is my Lizzie Fortunato clear arc cuffs, the thickest one they stock. And this ring that’s been stuck on my finger for the past four months. I’m too scared to get it cut off… other than that; Uggs for autumn, Havaianas for summer, fringed gladiator sandals from Wish for spring and depression for winter.

Who are your favourite local designers?

 

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Maroske Peech and Pure Obsession are my go-to local, guilt-free spices for the closet. Michaela Stark is a Brissy ex-pat who has been killing it too. Fuck Quinn has been applying her years of corsetry experience in a lot of well-executed and detailed pieces and I’m on the edge of my seat waiting for her to start taking commissions.

 

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Other than that, I’ve been a fan of Edgeley, Pigsuit, Miracles Official, Egg Lemon, Jordan Dalah, Alix Higgins, Ramp Tramp Tramp Stamp, Jules Bramley, Crochet Bae, etc.

For more of Joao’s looks, head here.