A couple years back I was really obsessed with the Japanese street fashion style, and I stumbled across a Japanese fashion magazine called Fruits somewhere on the web. In the late 90’s and early aughts they released the photo book Fresh Fruits that catalogued the fashion of the current era. The book had pictures of regular people, taken on the streets of Tokyo, accompanied by short interviews, offering a little window into the lives of strangers halfway across the world and decades apart. Every session of camp I find myself inspired and wowed by the crazy, cool, and unique fashion at NBTSC. Here more than anywhere else people are unafraid to dress how they want regardless of the current trends or any standards of respectability. It reminded me of the freedom in the quirky photos from Fruits, so I present to you: Not Back To School Camp Fresh Fruits.
Merlin
age: 19
shirt: Wizard of Barge
pants: Target clearance section with custom patches
scarf: stolen from Fred
point of fashion: if Wendy and Robbie from Gravity Falls were fused into one/a cartoon alternative teenager (according to Fred), and if a hippie were grunge (according to Merlin himself)
one thing you did today: climbed the tree for the first time this session.
Leon (left)
age: 18
sweater: from sister
pants: from Urban Outfitters as a gift from friend, then cropped
necklace: gotten for free from an art walk in Vallejo after a chance encounter with a jewelry maker who also happened to have a tiny baby figurine
point of fashion: to show other people how important self expression is
one thing you did today: Had a tea date with Elijah and Jay on the tea stump
Elijah (right)
age: 19
shirt: tie dyed on a trip with Ava to Michigan, with the mushroom added in sharpie a month ago
pants: thrifted
bag: bought during the NBTSC field trip in 2023
jewelry: from friends and a renaissance fair
point of fashion: transgenderism
one thing you did today: had a tea date with Leon. And met a wonderful woman named Margaret on the nature walk with John Jones. “It seemed like she’d been through so much and seen so much of the world. And it seemed incredible that after everywhere she’d been and lived she lives here.”
Esther
age: 17
shirt: from discount on Amazon because the words are misprinted
shoes: borrowed from Sophie
jacket: NBTSC jacket, gifted from Elaina
bag: Chala with custom decorations and charms added
point of fashion: I like to decorate otherwise less interesting items of clothing to make them more personalized
one thing you did today: took a nap in the field with Ruth
Liz
age: 20
sweater: Uniqlo, originally white and the tie dyed by my mom
pants: heavily mended from my brothers closet
bag: from uncle
charms: Easter squishmallow plush and frog crocheted at camp (first crochet project ever)
socks: gift from mom and every time I see them I think of her
point of fashion: lesbian street wear
one thing you did today: took a two hour nap
Elihu
age: 16
shirt: from a thrift store my great grandma started
pants: REI
shoes: Converse, which I wear every single day. They were drawn on during advisee group last year
belt: found in my house
necklace: from Aubrie’s jewelry making workshop, with pendant from Maya
camara: from mom
point of fashion: storybook adventurer (I’m sometimes called Percy Jackson)
one thing you did today: wrote out lyrics for the morning and evening songs. And led the evening song (Full Moon Rising) which I learned at the wilderness awareness school I attend
Marley
age: 19
sweater: Target
shirt: thrifted
pants: Target
shoes: I don’t remember
mug: handmade, from here at camp with a camp myrtlewood logo on it
point of fashion: the nature here, and to be cozy and warm
one thing you did today: played a silly song at evening meeting
Emilia
age: 19
shirt: from a Mother Mother/ Cavetown show in LA
flannel: christmas gift
pants: I’ve had them for so long I don’t remember
bracelet: handmade
shoes: Ugg boots (apparently they make waterproof hiking boots)
belt: stolen from father
point of fashion: I wear a graphic tee and jeans every day, and the flannel is inspired by the character Will Solace from Percy Jackson.
one thing you did today: went down to pebble beach for the first time
Perry
age: 18
shirt: my favorite punk artist Dune Henry’s east coast tour, I found out last minute and went. It was too big so my mom helped me alter it
pants: from Free Spirit Hawaii at a local market when I lived in Hawaii
socks: compression socks from Amazon. they ended up becoming a fashion statement but were originally intended as a mobility aid
point of fashion: this is a toned down, more comfortable version of my usual post-apocalyptic crust punk/earthy forest spirit style. Usually my outfits tend to lean more towards DIY hodge-podge, like someone took a bunch of scrap shit during an apocalypse and threw it together
one thing you did today: napped through siesta and into dinner with Bowl the dragon plushy on the couch in the lodge
Lewis
age: 15
shirt: Express
pants: pajama pants
shoes: Adidas slides bought in England
watch: Walmart
point of fashion: comfort
one thing you did today: went on the nature hike with John Jones. I liked walking across the swinging rope bridge and picking and eating blackberries.
Donovan
age: 15
hoodie: gift from my mom. she said it was cool back in the 90’s to have a Quicksilver hoodie
pants: Old Navy, for my work restoring windows and buildings for historic preservation
necklace and watch: I needed simple jewelry/accessories to spice up my outfits
shoes: running sneakers, I joined track team and I needed shoes for my wonky-ass feet
point of fashion: simple but nice outfit I can wear during cool weather and the evenings
one thing you did today: gave my fairy god child a massive bag of kettle corn (which was originally a gift from the mama bears after i cut my finger working in the kitchen)
Xena
age: 17
shirt: borrowed from Cassie (who bought thrifted it). I ran out of clothes at camp
pants: Hollister, bought right before camp so I could be comfortable
shoes: Uggs, the perfect fall and winter shoes
bracelet: gift from my fairy god parent (editors note: it’s Donovan)
necklace: from Amazon. I got it because the main character in the show “The Summer I Turned Pretty” wears it
point of fashion: I wanted to be cozy but with a shirt that added some flair, and I love a little 2000’s vibe
one thing you did today: me and Terceira sat on the bridge and she read while I journaled and did homework for my senior year of school
Jane
age: 18
hoodie: thrifted. I wore it for three years and I thought it was getting boring so I bleach dyed it and now it’s one of my favorite hoodies
pants: thrift store, patched
label: Aiden Mooney made it for me because I’m sick
point of fashion: comfiness because I’m not feeling good. In general my fashion is coming to camp and seeing Kara. I like flowy things that make me feel comfortable and people can see who I am, things I will wear for a long time
one thing you did today: I laid in the field in the sleeping bag and I looked at the sky. It was very blue and the clouds were moving very quickly.
Maya Rose
age: 18
shirt: from a consignment store
pants: gift from my grandma
shoes: doc martens I ordered online because my stepmom had the same pair and I really liked them
necklace: Aubrie made it as a birthday gift for me this year during camp
earrings: from a halloween store
point of fashion: flowy. I like wide angles
one thing you did today: picked blackberries and climbed the tree, and sang Connie Converse songs acapella with Merlin and Zoe JDP
Jasmine [left]
age: 19
shirt: thrifted in Santa Monica with my friend Cierra
pants: thrifted by one of my coworkers and they didn’t fit her so she gave them to me. They say “lucky” on the zipper, and were the first pair of low rise jeans I liked
shoes: my mom gave them to me and I didn’t like them at first but they’re really comfy and people complimented me on them so now I love them
necklace: when I was a kid I was trying to sell flowers and one of my moms clients didn’t have a dollar so she gave me the necklace as trade.
point of fashion: I’m not that into fashion I just see what makes me feel good to wear. Lots of crop tops and country style
one thing you did today: I had a lot of good conversations and changed outfits four times
Beck (staffer) [center left]
age: 20
jacket: thrifted in Colorado, I got it cause I thought it made me look like a middle grade graphic novel protagonist.
overalls: yard sale right before I left for camp
shoes: converse covered in doodles from many people at camp
earrings: from my mothers 90’s jewelry
necklace: gift from my circus dad
point of fashion: I wear what I want. I’m inspired more by my friends than celebrities, and by comfort. I’ve been hippie outdoorsy recently but in the past more emo-hardcore alternative
one thing you did today: swam in the creek with some friends and showered after
Kai (staffer) [center right]
age: 21
shirt: Wilt is one of my favorite bands. I bought the shirt when I saw them in concert because it looks fucking awesome
pants: from a recycled fashion store
necklace: Kiki gave it to me today
hat: Tilly’s
point of fashion: skater but kinda queer coded
one thing you did today: left camp and picked up the UHaul and got a giant açaí lemonade from Starbucks
Syd [right]
age: 20
shirt: one of my close friends gave it to me
shorts: hand me downs from someone I don’t remember
jacket: from my older siblings closet
necklace: gift from a friend when i was twelve
hat: just appeared in my house, probably belonged to my older siblings
shoes: my gardening shoes from my best friend when I was ten
point of fashion: whatever I feel good in and is the cheapest. Lately unintentionally I’ve been dressing like a young mom from the 90’s
one thing you did today: finished writing my culminator speech. I’m nervous to read it out loud
Jenna (me)
age: 20
hoodie: borrowed from Aubrie (who’s sister made it)
pants: thrifted
shoes: oboe hiking boots, very good for running from one end of camp to the other
point of fashion: if aubrie were in the movie hackers. my friends say—athletic librarian, soda can without a label, or the film inside cigarette boxes.
one thing you did today: climbed the tree and chatted at the top with the eleven other people up there.