With a last name that has been perpetually butchered my entire life, from the days in kindergarten when I was learning to spell the string of twelve letters to high school at graduation, it is no wonder I now resort to a condensed version — a second identity, so to speak. Unless I’m filling out official documents (most of which don’t contain enough space for my name, anyway), I go by Colleen Koches.
I attend the school of business at Towson University in Maryland; however, I began my college career as a pre-pharmacy major. The idea of wearing a white lab coat to work every day while my limited-edition, Michael Kors faux fur vest rotted away in my closet was abhorrent to me, so naturally I switched. Well that, and the fact that I couldn’t seem to get through an anatomy course without fainting at the topics we would discuss.
Being one of four girls, it was inevitable that my sisters would have an influence on my personal style; meaning, if one of my sisters wore a pink scrunchie in her hair, I certainly was not going to do the same. As a fashionable five year old (read: diva), I refused to wear hand-me-downs, like last season’s overalls. A blue silk, sunflower-patterned button-up blouse was clearly a much more style-conscious pick. Dragging my dad to the mall with me as a shopping consultant probably wasn’t the wisest decision, either.
Since then, I’ve traded my sparkly jellies for Louboutins (and yet, ironically, the plastic sandals are back in style) and have surrounded myself with the world of The Devil Wears Prada. I write a fashion and fitness blog, Jimmy Choos on the Treadmill, that admittedly features more handbags than workouts. I have experienced the craziness that is New York Fashion Week and I Instagram stylish finds like there’s no tomorrow (#fashiondiaries). This fall, I am so excited to be joining the CollegeFashionista team — because when else is it perfectly acceptable to stare at the stud detailing on a stranger’s pocket and photograph it?
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