Codey James’ Fall/Winter ‘25

My latest ongoing series, Personal Campaigns, highlights the styling choices of individuals in their own personal space. The shoot is a collaboration—each subject plays the role of stylist, and I capture their looks. The outfits you see here (and in future shoots) are what they sleep in, wear around the house, go to work in, and hit the town with. I’ve also included bits of interviews with each subject about their personal style.

For our third edition of the series, I speak with Codey James — a stylish thrifter extraordinaire whose expertise in finding the gems buried in the chaos of thrifting is seriously admirable. His style is classic with a hint of something new. A little western here, a little contemporary there — but overall, just plain Codey. It’s fire!

We shot in the East Village apartment he shares with his girlfriend, Olivia Stauber.

Check out the interview below — and follow him on TikTok here.

 Jacques Morel: How would you describe your fashion sense? Are you particularly into name brands? Do you thrift or prefer buying brand new?

Codey James: I’d say my fashion sense is kind of just a collection of old stuff. Almost every item I wear is thrifted or shopped at a vintage store.

JM: What is your favorite piece of clothing you own? Did you wear it in this series?

CJ: I don’t think I have one specific item that I’d consider my favorite. My favorite type of clothing to wear is anything to do with blazers or suits. They’re almost like an obsessive collection of mine. I’m constantly looking for them and getting inspired by how they’ve evolved since their inception.

JM: What story do you feel your home tells about your style and personality?

CJ: My home (specifically the office/closet) has a lot of stuff and is filled with things that I find interesting. Whether it be guitars, books, old frames and clocks. It’s very eclectic and a little jumbled up which is kind of how I’d describe myself.

JM: Have you ever experienced a fashion 'aha' moment that transformed the way you dress?

CJ: Once I stopped dressing for trends and just followed what I found to be interesting I got way more into clothes and realized I could find items from different eras and wear them all into one outfit and make it work.

JM: What do you want people to feel or understand about you when they see how you dress?

CJ: I want people to understand how much thought goes into what I buy and wear. The age, the material, any historical references. I want them to know a lot of care went into it.

JM: How do you envision your style evolving in the future?

CJ: I think it’s constantly evolving. With every old movie I watch. Every new musical artist I discover. It all ends up affecting what I think about when making decisions for my personal style so I look forward to keeping on discovering new things to push the evolution of it!