The Look Book

Julia Erdman, NYU Sophomore

"I’m a culture-phile, but I definitely think that food comes first—then art, then fashion."

By Amy Larocca
Published May 21, 2005

(Photo: Jake Chessum)

What’s your major?
French lit. And I also have internships at Alessandro Dell’Acqua and Claire Oliver Fine Art (cofa.info).

You must be very busy.
I make time! I figure if you don’t go to bed exhausted, you’re doing something wrong. My friends are always like, “Julia, if you ever come to school in sweatpants, then we’ll know you’ve pushed yourself too far.”

You’ve never gone to class in sweatpants?
Never. I dress like this all the time.

Where did it all come from?
The green coat is from Barneys, the most recent fall collection. The turtleneck is Celine. The scarf speaks for itself—Hermès. The skirt is vintage Genny. My mother actually found it for me. I had to get it shortened a bit, but now I wear it all the time. The flats are Louis, and the bag is the same. Just a classic. The sunglasses are Gucci, and I made the stupid mistake of getting transition lenses. Now, whenever I go inside, I have this stupid sunglass thing.

Do your parents give you a clothing allowance?
I earn most of my own money. They give me money to feed myself, but, of course, you never really spend your money the way your parents want.

What do you think of the Olsen sisters’ style?
People dress how they are. If that’s their look, then, hey, so be it. I did see one of them—I don’t know which one’s which—at Bungalow 8 with Bob Saget.

Who are your style icons?
Audrey Hepburn, Maria Callas, that librarian from The Mummy [Rachel Weisz]. I don’t know who she is, but I saw her on TV and I was like, “She’s fabulous!”

Where are you from?
Palo Alto, but my parents live in Las Vegas now. My dad is in investments—it’s one of those things where I don’t really know what he does. My mom’s retired, but she loves the casinos, so it works out.

What are you going to do with that French-lit degree?
Actually, at this point, the dream job would be restaurant critic at the New York Times. I’m a culture-phile, but I definitely think that food comes first—then art, then fashion.

How’s the NYU cafeteria food?
I haven’t eaten it in a very long time. You’re required to in your freshman year, but I didn’t even eat it then.