To some extent, fashion is an artform. Beyond the Valley showcases these aspects of fashion on its Instagram page. Its team works to compile profiles of Deerfield’s best-dressed, sharing the places those students bought their clothing items to allow for viewers to engage more deeply with the fashion world. Beyond the Valley, like many artists, often has its eyes open for different color combinations and other nuances that can make a piece an attention-grabber that fits into the Deerfield dress code but also highlights each student’s individuality. Each student profile also has their own color scheme that is used to label the photos, and the Beyond the Valley team finds complementary colors to decorate the photos.
Devin Trice ’21, co-founder of Beyond the Valley says, “We have an Instagram account that I think is incredibly engaging and offers inspiration for lots of cool conversations and debates about fashion and trends.”
Besides their Instagram account, Beyond the Valley also runs an online blog where they publish articles every two months. The blog has three main pillars that they focus on: Deerfield’s creativity, inspiration, and affordability and sustainability. Trice adds, “I include almost every piece the writers turn into our editing board. Their work is amazing, and I like sharing it with other Deerfield students.”
Beyond the Valley is accessible to every type of person, serving as a form of individual expression and tastes from which anyone can draw inspiration. Not only does it explore the latest fashion trends, but also gives tips on how to have fun with Deerfield’s blazer dress code and use a variety of different color schemes to people’s advantage. In response to the pandemic-related increases in indoor activity, Beyond the Valley also directed its followers to the best places to buy affordable, comfortable loungewear.
In every way, Beyond the Valley is helping to showcase the fashion world outside of the “Deerfield bubble.” In addition to focusing on general fashion, the publication also features luxury brands like Prada or Gucci and how their products affect the Deerfield Community and also the society on a global scale, especially during the pandemic.
In exciting, upcoming news, Beyond the Valley is hosting a fashion show with various campus alliances to showcase Deerfield’s diversity on campus. Scheduled for the first or second weekend of February, the event will showcase different cultures and ethnicities that help define the Deerfield campus culture and diverse student body. Trice says, “I think the fashion show will offer insight on the beauty of the multitude of cultures that exist here at Deerfield, and I hope it can serve as an educational and beautiful experience for whoever chooses to attend.”
To put it nicely, Angie concludes that Beyond the Valley encompasses, “Making fashion choices that move beyond the valley, the Deerfield bubble, and what a stereotypical Deerfield student should look like.”