How I Shop: Domo Wells

We all buy clothes, but no two people shop the same. It can be a social experience, and a deeply personal one; at times, it can be impulsive and entertaining, at others, purpose-driven, a chore. Where do you shop? When do you shop? How do you decide what you need, how much to spend and what’s “you”? These are some of the questions we’re putting to prominent figures in our column “How I Shop.”

Dominique “Domo” Wells represents the expanding definition of “creative director.” For one, the Los Angeles-based, Washington, D.C.-bred multiphyphenate works across industries: Her background spans music, sports, fashion and culture, and her latest role is not at a high-fashion Maison, but rather the Washington Spirit, a professional women’s soccer team based in D.C. (There’s also the fact she’s not a white man, a demographic that continues to dominate such roles.) All this is to say, Wells is one of a kind — both in terms of her work and how she dresses herself.

“There’s something that Virgil [Abloh] said which is, ‘A creative only has to add a 3% tweak to a pre-existing concept in order to generate a cultural contribution deemed innovative,'” she tells Fashionista. “My job is to slowly elevate [the Washington Spirit team] in a new direction, and find creative ways to introduce new designs and silhouettes to their fan base.” 

Wells’ personal style is equally creative and thoughtful. Ahead, she discusses D.C.’s streetwear scene, why she loves a pair of comfy sweatpants, the brands in her current closet rotation and much more.

“My earliest fashion memories are definitely of my neighborhood in D.C. I feel like it’s like this in other major cities, but we had a lot of local streetwear and people who made their own brands and if you were from a certain part of the area, you would attach to those brands respectively. I was really influenced by that and how that culture showed up.

“[My personal style] has gone through a lot of phases. When I was DJ’ing a lot, especially early on, my style was giving costume. It wasn’t particularly polished… it was a mix of being loud and trendy. I look back on some of it and I’m like, ‘Girl, what was you doing?’ But it was fun and I think [working in] music is interesting because [in] that atmosphere, you [learn] to refine your style. But in the beginning, it was a lot of trial and error… Towards the later tenure, it switched to, I don’t want to be in costumes. 

“My style today is evolving. Right now, I feel more subtle in it than I did, say, three years ago. But it’s still evolving for me because I don’t have a staple or I’m not married to anything yet.

“There’s still some trial and error going on — my style is getting refined. I don’t feel complete in it, but maybe you never are. You look at some people and how married they become to an aesthetic or how they embody an aesthetic that looks like them; I don’t know if I’m ever going to be like that. [My style] is always going to be something that’s evolving, but I feel more settled in it right now than I ever have. 

“I get a favorite thing and then burn it into the ground. I wear it all the time and then I get a new favorite thing and I wear it all the time and so on. The fall before last, I had these Ottolinger boots that I was wearing every other day. So I do go through phases with certain stuff. I’ll have a uniform for a season, but it might not last. Right now, I couldn’t say I have a uniform, but I do have around three or four pieces that have become staples that I wear all the time.

“[I prefer] shopping in-store. I am not a big online shopping girly because I need to try the things on. I’m always reluctant to online shop unless I’m familiar with the brand and I already know my size. 

“In my rotation right now, I really love Lemaire. I think that they perfect silhouette in a way that you can wear it on a regular basis that feels elevated. I have admired Jacquemus, but I had never acquired anything until recently. Girl, I bought these Jacquemus jeans on the fly because this store just happened to have them [on sale] and I was just like, ‘Oh, these eat.’ I wear them every day. I was really surprised because I hadn’t quite explored all of the things that they produce just because this shit be out of my price range sometimes. I have absolutely become a loafer girly recently too, so I’ve been wearing those a lot.

“I’ve been wearing Ester Manas for maybe three years. You can see the evolution in just that period of time. I really like that they’re led by a couple and how inclusive they are with how they construct their pieces and its flexibility, and even their models being all different sizes. Because as much as I would say my size is pretty average — I’m not necessarily plus but I’m not [sample] size either, I fall right in the middle — when I’m in some of these high-end boutiques, I’m often having to wear the largest size that they have. I really like that, with Ester Manas, size inclusion doesn’t feel like an afterthought. 

“My first fashion splurge was a Louis [Vuitton] bag. I scraped up that little $800 and bought it. Girl, my mom got that bag now. I gave it to her.

“My favorite designer piece in my closet is this Loewe jacket I just got. It is still burning a hole in my wallet, but it’s in there. 

“I really appreciate that era of early-2000s streetwear, and I need a proper pair of sweats and a solid hoodie — a nice, loose-fitted, comfy, wide silhouette, drop-shoulder hoodie. Because I’m not getting dressed every single day: Back in the day, I would get dressed to go to the mailbox, but I’m not doing that now. Now I get dressed intentionally and I like to take my time because there is something therapeutic about it for me, taking my time to figure out who I want to be that day. If I want to be a dusty bitch today, then I’m going to be dusty. If I want to be a bad bitch with my legs out tomorrow, then I’ll be her. But on a regular day when I need to just get my work done and run around but still feel cute and comfortable, I need a nice pair of sweats that I can move around in and not be looking like a complete dust ball.

“I can appreciate the new approach to officewear as nightwear. I find it both funny and cool because it makes me think of when I was younger and how we had to dress to go to the club. Certain clubs would be like, ‘Oh, you can’t come in if you have on a baseball hat or sneakers or whatever.’ Seeing a return to that — in a way that feels cooler, though — I can appreciate it. 

“The most important thing for me is to be in a place where I feel happy and fulfilled. I’m still discovering that, as much as I would love to throw out some big title, the most important goal that I have is to find my place where I feel comfortable no matter what, so that whatever I’m doing feels fulfilling. You can chase a lot of things in any industry, including fashion, but a lot of things that seem aspirational aren’t when you get there. You’re like, ‘Oh, this is empty.’ And it’s not because the thing is empty. It’s more because of how you operate within it maybe is empty. I’m trying to understand my own fulfillment beyond a title or a job or an ascension to a thing. Because I think that oftentimes you get to those places and you’re like, this is kind of bleak. I want to get to a place where I’m still doing what I want to do and my integrity is intact and my work still fulfills me and I’m not dragging my ass to work on things that I hate.” 

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Source: Fashionista.com