Seven Days of Dapper: Ricky Hill

Seven Days of Dapper is back, this time with a S.W. flavor. I have to say that, while each one of our Seven Days of Dapper submissions has been absolutely incredible, this particular one is near and dear to my heart. As a native New Mexican, I am proud to finally present to our readers Burqueño (slang term for one who resides in Albuquerque) queer style. Ricky Hill, who I begged to model for us, shows us that queers are representing dapper swag well beyond the urban Cali and New York streets. Here are Ricky’s stats:

Ricky Hill is a student, instructor, and researcher in the Communication and Journalism Department at University of New Mexico. They are working towards their PhD in health communication, with an emphasis in LGBTQ health. When they aren’t teaching or writing, you can find them chatting people up in any number of gardens or thrift stores around Albuquerque, drinking bourbon on a friend’s porch, or visiting other tender hearts in cities near and far.

Day 1: Office Hours

Teaching has been a surprisingly exciting avenue for me to play around with my style choices. Being in front of a class is a fun performative experience, and it forces me to really think about what image I want to convey. I have a Monday, Wednesday, Friday teaching load, so that’s at least three costumes that I need to consider for the week. They have to be kept within the confines of the somewhat professional. I feel pretty fortunate to live in a place that embraces my gender expression, and I really like being able to play around with the teacher look. I mean, obviously.

Outfit details:  Cardigan, H&M. Shirt, Calvin Klein. Pants,  Levi’s. Tie, Vintage (shockingly picked out by my father at a place in my hometown in Oklahoma called Anty Shanty). Shoes, Belivus (my online shoe secret that I bestow unto you). Little tin bee pin was something I picked up somewhere along the way, but who knows where.

Day 2: Workin’ on my fitness

There’s this really gorgeous elementary school two blocks from my house, and one of my favorite things to do is go shoot around on their basketball court once their classes are out for the day. I don’t do much by way of fashion for my workouts, other than push these sweatpants up some and show a little leg. I do almost always wear some sort of super-thin, summer weight t-shirt. Simple and comfortable are necessary.

Outfit details: Hoodie, KCRW sent this to me when I made a donation. Sweatpants, Hanes. Shirt, American Apparel. Shoes, Nike.

Day 3: Happy Hour

This is something that I would wear on a weekday where I didn’t have to be on campus. It’s a little bit more casual than I might typically wear in front of the classroom, and it’s LOUD. After a very long affair with grey, I am now really into color, and increasingly into prints. For so long ,I felt like everything I owned needed to be in a solid color, something sensible that you could hold onto season after season. I’m trying to let go of that stodginess and branch out. I think that it makes for a more interesting look overall.

Outfit details: Shirt, ASOS (shop clearance, y’all! This shirt cost me $12). Pants, Savers in Albuquerque (I got these for $3! This used to be the best store in town, but they’ve consolidated locations and the selection isn’t as great). Shoes, Converse.

Day 4: Playing in the dirt

Something I love more than almost anything is putting things into the ground and watching them come out again. I live in a small compound with three other houses, and we all share a courtyard and garden space. For the past few years, we’ve been trying to rebuild the soil and really figure out what works best where. We’ve had countless kinds of chiles, kales, chards, so many tomatoes…um, really a lot of stuff. We like feeding one another! And I’m pretty proud of the compost heap we’ve got going on.

Outfit details: Shirt, Salt Valley (you can find these all over Ebay for like ten bucks – the extra small fits narrow guys/butches well). Vest, REI. Jeans, Levi’s; Boot, Aldo (these are my default work boots that I got on clearance – they make smaller sizes for us little foots). Hat, John Deere dealership.

Day 5: Dandy’s Day Out

There’s really no telling where I would wear this outfit. I think the better question might be where would I NOT wear this outfit? Out of all of the looks I have showcased here, this is the one that is most representative of my style at present. I do dandy well—it not only lends itself to my lankiness, but it also conveys the kind of fey masculinity that I exude. I recently had someone describe these pants as “not just salmon, but a salmon bouquet,” which probably also accurately represents my style. I bought this shirt the last time I was in New York at my new favorite boutique, Brooklyn Circus. My friend Liz told me she had a store I would enjoy, and snap, she was right. I could have spent years in there. And everything fit! Oh, and Yasiin Bey was shopping there at the same time. It was basically a dream.

Also, did you know that New Mexico is the only state with a state tie? Hello, bolo.

Outfit Details: Shirt, Brooklyn Circus. Pants, Topman; Belt, Thrift store treasure. Bolo, I crafted it!. Shoes, vintage numbers snagged by my mom in my hometown.

Day 6: Clean it up

I have worn so many variations of this exact outfit so many times, it’s actually a little embarrassing. But when you find something that works for you, you just have to stick with it, you know? This is what I wear if I have to wear something kiiiiiind of nice, but there’s still some latitude to have fun. I actually wore this outfit to a conference in Oklahoma last weekend. The jacket is one of my all-time favorite thrift store finds. I picked it up in the little boys’ section at Savers in Albuquerque about eight years ago. I paid $1.99 for it, and have worn it more times than I could count. It’s polyester and has a Johnny Carson label in it. Indestructible.

Outfit Details: Jacket, Johnny Carson. Shirt, ASOS. Pocket square, Dei Giovani Chicago. Pants, Banana Republic. Shoes, Belivus.

Day 7: Casual Friday into date night

For as much as look number five illustrates my fey flamboyance, this look illustrates what is my most day-to-day style. I like to wear button downs 90% of the time, and I always, always, ALWAYS iron. Oh, if I could give one tip to all of the folks out there trying to figure out ways to amplify their style it would be this: IRON. It’s the easiest, and probably cheapest, way to sharpen your look. As far as this outfit goes, I would wear this to Friday meetings, and then out to dinner and drinks. The black jacket and dark wash denim makes it a look that transitions well into the night.

Outfit details: Jacket, Charles and a Half. Shirt, ASOS. Jeans, Levi’s. Shoes, Polo (These were a $9 Ross find!). Scarf, I got this in a shitty breakup.

Photos by Cameron Gay.

Where to find me:
Twitter: @prettyrickyroo
Tumblr: fuckyeahqueerjews.tumblr.com
Blog: ok4rj.org