While the uptown girl may be living in her uptown world, it’s the downtown girl whose no non-sense attitude and cool without even trying style that everyone wants to emulate, whose world everyone wants to be a part of. There’s a reason why the downtown aesthetic goes far beyond being a mere trend. The downtown aesthetic is an entire vibe and way of life. There’s just something about the downtown girl that immediately draws you in.

Her unique style makes you want to shop wherever she does. Her outspoken attitude encourages you to speak your own mind and not to take b*llsh*t from anyone. Her creative spirit makes you want to enroll in an art class.

While there is no cookie cutter formula to becoming a downtown girl (and that is the point, isn’t it? The downtown girl is 100% herself.), there are ways to channel the downtown aesthetic. Follow our map to the downtown aesthetic and you won’t need a downtown zip code to look like you just stylishly stepped out of your Soho or Tribeca apartment.

Leave the prim blouses and preppy sport shirts in your closet. Starting from the top, your downtown style requires graphic shirts, concert tees, and casual tank tops. When it comes to the fit, you’ll want to choose between two extremes. Either go for a fitted, form-hugging top to show off the curves you’ve earned from your (relatively) healthy lifestyle or go entirely oversized, where your shirt could be mistaken for a dress.

On that note, when it comes to styling your oversized graphic shirt, do as the quintessential downtown girl Zoe Kravitz and wear your shirt like a dress, sans any pair of bottoms. Slip into a pair of architectural heels, thrown on a hat and your sunglasses, and you’re more than good to go.

If you’re not quite comfortable running around town without any bottoms, fear not. Your graphic shirt can easily go with a cute mini skirt for a cute downtown style. Just ask Olivia Rodrigo. Alternatively, you can, of course, also style your casual tank top with cool leather pants, casual oversized jeans, or sporty biking shorts. You need not look any further than Taylor Swift who traded her usual sparkly fits with a sporty and casual downtown vibe, wearing an oversized t-shirt, biking shorts, sneakers and a cap.

Part of embodying the downtown aesthetic is looking like you don’t really care about what you’re wearing. Key words being “looking like” because, of course, you care but it doesn’t have to look like you actually do. The most obvious way to do that? Well, it’s by going out in downtown style clothes that are stylishly ripped, purposely uneven, or asymmetrically cut. It’s as if you’re screaming, I just grabbed these clothes out of my closet and don’t really care if it’s old and holey (but actually brand new and holey on purpose).

Forget the slightly distressed jeans that are marginally tattered. It’s all about obvious tears and big rips that leave your clothes with gaping holes. Kim Kardashian swapped her Skims for an oversized shirt that looked like it was old and destroyed enough to use as an old rag. Torn all over and falling off her shoulder, she paired the ripped top with equally ripped blue jeans.

Bella Hadid and Zoe Kravitz have both gone for ripped jeans with a casual sweater, which you can easily do too. The later chose to pair her ripped jeans with an asymmetrical sweater that’s shorter at the front, baring her toned tummy. Speaking of asymmetrical cuts, choose an asymmetrical skirt for an edgy downtown style. Fun, sexy, and edgy all at the same time, it’s no surprise that Kendall Jenner opted for an asymmetric mini skirt to go with an ultra-cropped tank top. Mix and match the rips, tears, and asymmetric cuts for a look that’s fully downtown cool.

When it comes to bottoms, to create the covetable downtown style, it’s all about oversized jeans and cargo pants. If they’re way too big and look like they don’t belong to you, then they’re perfect.

Jenny from the block may not exactly be from a block in downtown New York but over the years, she has certainly nailed the downtown style. J.Lo has made oversized, baggy jeans her own since the 2000s. Celebrities like Sydney Sweeney, Bella Hadid, and Emrata have followed her famed footsteps, wearing their own version of the baggy bottoms. You’ll notice that for the most part, the common styling denominator is it to pair the ultra-loose fitting bottoms with a fitted, cropped top to balance the proportions of the oversized garment. After all, if you can show off your booty and your legs, you should at least accentuate your upper body.

Along with oversized jeans, cargo pants are another downtown style staple. When it comes to cargo pants, you can go with just a couple side pockets or go all out, with multiple pockets all over. Denim, camo, or any other fabric – there are no rules, even in terms of color. With its bulky silhouette, cropped tops and tight tanks are also the favored pairing for cargo pants, as proven by Kim Kardashian, Zendaya, Hailey Bieber, and Gigi Hadid.

It’s all about mocha mousse. No, we’re not talking about dessert. We’re talking about what’s been declared the color of the year. Lean into the fact that the dessert-inspired, deliciously brown shade has been deemed the It color because for the cool downtown girls, shades of brown, along with blacks and grays, have always been the colors of choice.

Put a pause on the magenta and bright pops of color because downtown girls don’t necessarily need loud colors to stand out. They stand out all on their own. Switch candy colored tops for black and grey striped tanks a la Kate Moss or go for a brown and burgundy plaid button up top like Hailey Bieber. Take a break from the standard blue jeans and black coat and swap them for grey cargo pants and a brown coat just like Sienna Miller did. You can also take another downtown style cue from Zoe Kravitz and layer a graphic shirt over a large plaid skirt and top it off with an oversized coat, all in shades of black and grey.

Chunky kicks are giving the term stomping grounds a whole new meaning. Step out like your favorite downtown girls in chunky boots, loafers, or oxfords and you’ll be walking down the streets feeling like you own it. We all know that downtown girls kick*ss and not only with their style. Now, with these cool chunky shoes, you’ll be able to, quite literally.

Like Zendaya, you can wear chunky knee-high boots with a chic, figure-hugging dress or, like Bella Hadid, you can opt to wear a mini skirt with chunky lace-ups, paired with knee-high tights. Scarlett Johansson proved that platform loafers are a cool and unexpected alternative to the typical high heels for a night out. When it comes to chunky combat boots, they’re clearly the perfect kicks to run around any city, whether it be Paris like Kourtney Kardashian or NYC like Gigi Hadid.

While the trad girl may be all about diamonds and everything that shimmers, the downtown girl is not stereotypical or that predictable. When it comes to downtown style, you’ll want to leave your sparklers in your jewelry box and add silveware to your outfit instead. While silver jewelry can fit into the downtown aesthetic, there’s a lot of other silver wear for you to, well, wear. Think grommets, buckles, and chains.

Channel Dua Lipa and slip into a mini skirt with an oversized buckle or a belt with an eye-catchingly unique closure like Kate Moss. Of course, nothing screams downtown cool like a pair of leather trousers with zippers and grommets, similar a pair worn by Suki Waterhouse. For a truly unique fit, look no further than Zoe Kravitz (again!) who chose to accessorize her outfit with a leather choker designed with a silver ring, bangles on her arms, rings on her fingers, and chains along her calves.

Follow our guide and you’ll head straight to downtown style cool no matter where in the world you actually are.