Sartorial Outreach

A foot in the door is more effective if they're already admiring your shoes!

Christina is a expert practitioner of sartorial outreach. She intentionally leverages her wardrobe choices to help engage patrons, cultivate professional contacts, interact more effectively with colleagues, signal her presence to like-minded individuals, and generally make life as an introvert in a public-facing profession less taxing. Building relationships is critical to librarianship, but making first contact can be daunting. However, what if people were not only drawn to you but also invited you to expound upon your endeavors and asked how they could help amplify this work?! Sartorial outreach is a fun and effective way to make that happen. People will approach you, pleasantly in awe and wanting to know the occasion, so have your elevator speech ready!

Since 2016, Christina has styled herself as a vintage fashion glambassador. Generally, her look is squarely rooted in the mid twentieth century—largely 1950s and 60s with some outliers in the 20s, 40s, 70s, and 80s. However, as she deeply enjoys the creativity that retro styling inspires in her, she's easily seduced by bright colors, interesting patterns, and unique finds. So in the words of Cole Porter, “anything goes.” 🎶

One of her favorite innovations in this aesthetic has been the inclusion of traditional African prints such as Ankara. She loves acquiring them in circle skirts, swing dresses, and other retro silhouettes that she can accessorize with vintage and vintage-inspired finishing pieces. When it all comes together, she can't help but feel that this nexus speaks to the heart of who she is—a  proud vintage enthusiast of African descent.

So if you see Christina cosplaying a Silver Age version of a classic superhero, know without a doubt that you are, indeed, being invited to inquire why.