BFFs Dionne and Cher: even their names matched.
I love to people-watch. I’m sure it’s one of the remnants of countless hours spent at the mall with my high school friends, loitering at the food court or loitering outside or loitering in the parking lot (there was a lot of loitering! also that is a fun word to say, loitering). Now that I live in New York, people-watching has become an even bigger part of my life, in part because I take the train all the time and if I’m not reading a book I like to just observe everyone around me.
Generally, nothing makes me happier than when I notice girls (or women) dressed alike. Not in like a “Twin Day” sorta way, which is the way we celebrated Valentine’s Day at my high school–pay 50 cents to wear a matching outfit with your best friend! (we had a uniform)—but in the way that friends always end up wearing similar things without actually matching. Like how Cher and Dionne wore plaid suits in Clueless or Lizzie McGuire and Miranda always had similar elaborate hairdos, with lots of doodads. And it makes sense, you know? When you hang out with the same friend long enough, you’ll inevitably adopt a bunch of their personality quirks, whether it’s a word they use all the time, a facial gesture, or their style trademarks. Matching your outfit with your friend is cute, but unintentionally dressing alike reveals a lot more about a relationship than friendship bracelets or even matching tattoos, because it’s the effect of spending too much time–even though there is no such thing–with someone and creating a new identity for the friendship itself. It shows unity vibez that a million reblogged washed-out pictures of hippie circles on Tumblr never could, and that just warms my heart and renews my faith in humanity and friendship.
Tumblr and Google Images are a treasure trove of matchy friend pics. Here are some of my favorites:
These gals are both feeling floral patterns in purple-y undertones, but each one has a very distinct style. I love the girl on the left rocking cool li’l ankle boots and a slouchy top while her friend is all GLAM in heels (but my favorite part of her outfit is probs the Band-Aid on her knee).
From Daydream Believer
Totally awesome graphic tank tops worn with cuffed denim shorts = the perfect outfit for general outdoor/camping activities. I love that one girl is all into layers with a denim jacket and casual sweater over the shoulders, but what I love the most is that their hairdos TOTALLY match!
From Choo Onthis
Tan sweaters, black leggings, and brown boots are the LOOK of FRIENDSHIP!
From Street Smart
OK these girls aren’t literally matching, but they are matching in VIBEZ. Maxi skirts, dark lipsticks, and intense demeanors. Their witchiness is everything.
And of course one from my personal collection: here’s my BFF Diana and me somewhere around ninth grade. We are both wearing a short-sleeve tee over a long-sleeve tee, because that was like “so alternative, maaan”—never mind that we were boiling in them in the Puerto Rico heat. True LOVE! ♦
I loved this!
Log in to replyWhen I was in eighth grade one of my friends and I would sit in the mall and count the matching things in groups of people who walked by.
A few months ago we had mufti day at our school and of the 8 girls in my friend group 6 wore red knit jumpers and one wore a yellow one. I felt a bit left out because I thought they had planned it without me and left me out just because I don’t own one. Turns out it was totally random and they were all quite embarrassed.
Log in to replyOh. My. God. I. NEED. That. White. Lace. Dress.
All of my friends dress pretty much the same {Graphic tee with cute joke or pop culture reference, skinny jeans, hoodie, converse}. Whenever we make a new friend and they get really close they start to wear the same stuff too. It’s kind of funny.
Log in to replyI always stick out though since my style is so defined, my friends all love it but they don’t want to try it because they know it’s just, like, me doing my thing I guess. I’m kind of an exception.
Now I want to know more about your style, Whatsername.
Log in to replyVery true. The other day, I got together with one of my good friends to watch a movie and maybe find some people to play euchre with, and while we were wandering around talking to people, one of her friends pointed out how cute it was that we matched. Same type of tank top, dark jeans, long flowy black cardigan. I hadn’t even noticed!
Log in to replyMy friends and I somehow always subconsciously match (even if we’re a couple states away from each other.) There have been countless times where I’ve walked into school and found myself wearing a similar outfit to my best friend. The best was one week where my friends and I all unintentionally wore the same color schemes as each other every single day.
Log in to replyAll my friends wear really similar clothes. I’m kind of the exception. That’s not just clothes, either… I’m the only one who hates Twilight, the only one who knows who Wilco is, the only one who owns Docs… it’s lonely.
Ruby
Log in to replytherubylotus.wordpress.com
My bestest friend and I dress totally different – she’s all like polished but boho whilst I usually look like some sort of homeless witch/misanthrope who worships the Olsen twins.
It’s actually quite funny because we both stick out amongst the rest of our friends, who wear a basic uniform of jeans, tank tops and hoodies.
Little&Trivial
Log in to replyOne time I wore leopard print pants and my friend wore zebra print pants, and we actually went out in public like that. :D
Log in to replyYeah it would be nice to have someone dress like you, but my friends don’t think the Bob Marley look is cool anymore. Like. Whatever.
http://misskemi.tumblr.com/
Log in to replyHaha, yes. One time about 95% of the girls in my extended friend group unintentionally wore pink shirts. And it was awesome.
Log in to replyThis really reminded me of my best friend! We always end up wearing similar outfits by accident (and not even noticing it for half of the day) and people watching is our favourite past-time! Also, in the witchy photo, I NEED the girl on the left’s sunglasses! XXX
Log in to replyEpic fail, *right
Log in to replyAll of my friends dress differently, some chavvy and my best freind is more polished and conventional. But I however, dress like a Salvation Army second hand store fairy…
But everyone in my school dresses the same: camel chinos, hollister hoodie and converse sneakers… Not as cute as you’d think…
Http://rockhatesmiriam.blogspot.com
Also, those tumblr pics are DA TOTAL BOMB!!
Log in to replySameness:
http://peopledressedkindofthesame.tumblr.com/
Log in to replyI actually I don’t think I’ve ever had a close friend who dressed similarly to me! The only time I got close was when my best friend in 4th grade and I inadvertently bought the same pair of bedazzled jeans. We always tried to organize wearing them on the same day, but it never worked out. All of my friends in high school have had pretty varied styles, none of which were really similar to mine.
Log in to replyv. good (i tried to start a “on wednesdays we wear pink” with my friends but nobody wanted to)
Log in to replyMy best friend and i have very similar tastes in clothing but wear it very differently, she’s got a funky sort of bohemian vibe and i am a clash between sophistication and dirty rock inspired items.
Recently however, we were sitting in a restaurant and she was wearing a grey turtle neck, a fur vest, jeans and boots and a girl no older than ten sitting a table behind her had the exact same outfit minus my friend’s cool accessories….i couldnt decide if it was embarrassing or just really cool
Log in to replyMy best friend and I don’t dress alike very often, but there was this one time that we were both wearing long floral maxi skirts, tank tops, and had our leather bags… we were a bit creeped when we noticed, but it was pretty cool! Also, I loved lizzie and miranda! I envied their styles.
Log in to replyMe and a friend of mine always happen to wear very similar outfits by accident… I’m usually kind of irritated by us looking like twins, so it’s nice to know that there are people who actually think it’s cool! :)
Log in to replyNot too fond of matchy-matchy outifts. What I love to see in a gang of girls is diversity in style and personality while still being able to get along really well. Putting that aside, the witchy girls look AWESOME.
Log in to replyoh man do i know this feeling, me and my best friends used to turn up in practically the same thing: skinny jeans, keds and t shirts. luckily we’re branching off from that, now she’s a bit more preppy and retro and im going into a strange trying to to be minimalist thing with some scandinavian brand influence ;)
Log in to replybut what was a little more frustrating is that we practically have the same brain, sometimes its a good thing, sometimes its not. you come to school with a project or whatever and its exactly the same, this has happened too many times to remember, i guess it shows how similar we are
I mentioned this on my new blog post!
Log in to replyhttp://fashionhauties.blogspot.com/2011/11/railroad-tracks-im-not-talking-about.html
It makes me laugh- in a good, happy way so much when best friends are matching. I attempted this with my friend and it didn’t match :(
Aah everyone thinks I dress weird, so we never match… I told someone the other day that my clothing inspirations were old men, flappers, hobos, various female punk-rockers, and Marie Antoinette… I wish I had a girl gang to match with :L
Log in to replyFreshman year my best friend and I were partnered to do a presentation (about unit circles, no less) and on the day we were to present we showed up in almost matching outfits, totally by coincidence. We were wearing similar jean dresses, cardigans (mine was blue and green, hers was grey) and purple vans ( mine light purple, hers dark). We only noticed as we were walking up to the front of the classroom. :)
Log in to replyThat is really funny as my two best friends get really annoyed when they both wear similar outfits or if one them buys an item that is similar to the others, que the bitching haha.
Log in to replyUgh, on the first day of school last year(freshman year) my friend and I both wore matching pantsuits from mod cloth and orange lip stick. It didn’t help we both had pixie cuts and a similar demeanor. TWINZ. .
Log in to replyI LOVE seeing girls dressed alike, I think it is hilarious and fabulous xoxo
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