Blog Food Hey PDX April 30, 2025 0 Comments

Local Stars Talk Getting Dressed in Portland

You can and should take your style cues from any number of magazines, films, and books. But there’s inevitably a gap between inspiration and reality: how clothes actually function in daily life, especially in a town that prizes rock gyms and breweries over catwalks and boutiques. So we asked notable—and notably stylish—Portlanders what goes through their mind when putting together an outfit in the city.

Paige Powell

Photographer, animal rights activist, former associate publisher of Interview magazine. B. 1950 Portland, Oregon; moved back in 1994.

“It’s very pioneer casual out here. It’s about comfort. It’s a fleece city. People know how to dress here in Portland. I’m not challenging that at all. But it’s a conservative look.” And how would you describe your look? “Well, not conservative. I wear crazy clothes sometimes. I mean, other people think they’re crazy, but I just love them.”

Amir Morgan

Designer and founder of Portland label Barnes & Morgan. B. 1985 Raleigh, North Carolina; moved to Portland in 2010.

“A lot of times people get dressed up for ‘evening events.’ And I’m like, Why would you want to look your best for three hours of the day? Why not look your best all day? I always get that question: Why are you dressed up? And my response is, Why aren’t you?”

Yuyang Zhang

Painter and collage artist. B. 1993 Wuhan, China; moved to Portland in 2017.

“My work revolves around being queer in the United States and being comfortable with my cultural heritage—trying things that might not fit into conventional gender norms or societal practices, both in China and the US. How can I express that, not only through my art, but also through myself as an artist? So my outfit and my work go hand in hand.”

Tiffany Thompson

Interior designer and founder of Duett Interiors. B. 1986 Queens, New York; moved to Portland in 2016.

“It is easy to be overdressed in Portland, but I don’t care. If I’m a little overdressed for dinner, then I’m overdressed. And that’s to whose standard? Not my standard. I look good, you know?”

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