How To Embrace Streetwear (& Not Look Ridiculous)

We may know our way around a slip dress and a tattoo choker these days, but there's still one '90s revival that we'll be fine-tuning for a while: streetwear. A mashup of oversized silhouettes, fancy wild cards (think jewels and faux fur), and the occasional flash of skin, it's a dressing technique that's simultaneously casual and complex. Sure, most of us have some key ingredients — hoodie, crop top, sneakers, bomber jacket. But when it comes to putting them all together in a way that feels more fashion week than running to the bodega, we're looking to the queen of bodysuits and boilersuits alike, Aleali May.

The L.A.-based image consultant, model, and blogger has styled some of the biggest names in music. But if you're like us (a.k.a. far from famous), you can still access a virtual streetwear starter pack with a quick scroll through her Instagram feed. Filled with slouchy cargo pants, body-swallowing outerwear, thigh-grazing band tees, and subtle Swarovski gems, May masters that magic mix — and has 145K followers to prove it. Ahead, she explains her signature '90s-girl-group-inspired style, the sex appeal of baggy pants, and totally owning your look, even when you're wearing sweats. Talk about major street(wear) cred.