Godolphin's Classic Mufti Staples

Although Unpublished is perhaps better known for its judgements, we are also (of course) talented in more ways than one. One of which is to share esteemed advice with our audience on the most pressing questions, such as what to wear on a mufti day? Should you be comfy, or challenge social norms? Stick to your roots, or stand out? Considering these truly impossible questions, finding the perfect outfit is something every dolphin faces on the final day of term. With that in mind, the Easter holidays are fast approaching, so here is some last minute inspiration on what you could wear to make a lasting impression on your peers. This will come, naturally, with some commentary, as we can’t stray too far from our own roots, after all.

Q1: What are your mufti staples?

Jeans and a cute jumper

 A gentle start to the first question and honestly, I can’t blame this one, more often than not it does boil down to just that. Doesn’t mean it’s always basic, it could be a cool jumper or cute jeans, as Kris Jenner would say. No criticism there, I know I’ve said this phrase many times in response to a ‘what r u wearing’ text. 

‘a perfect outfit that ends up being very impractical and I regret it’ 

We have all been there. The overthinking that comes with mufti is intense, prepping it all down to the last earring from Lovisa, just to find out at morning reg that you have hockey later. Horrific, but necessary character building. As is coming into school in mufti when it isn’t, although arguably that is much more traumatic. Not speaking from experience…

‘Normally just baggy jeans, a long sleeve skims top, gold necklaces and hoops. Oh and my golden gooses, Obvi’

Never before have I read such a nonchalant answer from our year10’s. This is clearly from a person who loves a mufti day, but doesn’t overthink it at all. The blasé ‘obvi’ just oozes idgaf energy. Look out world!

A good bandana 

Never in my life do I think I have donned a bandana, but this made me want to. How do you tell a good bandana from a bad? Is it a ‘if you know, you know’ type thing with all bandana lovers? So many questions from such a short answer. Let’s all endeavour to wear our best bandana next mufti, and we might gain a sort of anonymous seal of approval from this bandana connoisseur.

Onitsuka tigers 

A good shoe. You clearly left your airforce behind a long time ago, but maybe thought yourself a little above the adidas frenzy. Bonus points if they are silver. You probably like to think you have a bit of an edge, maybe an ‘interest in fashion’. But it’s still a valid staple and I’m not hating. 

some kind of big gold earring

Aye aye captain! Joking, but hopefully it isn’t actually just the one big earring. Maybe a hook for a hand too? 

Honorable mentions:

‘I don’t know what that means’ 

It’s ok little year7 fledgling. You will catch on soon enough.

Q2: What do you see Godolphin wearing the most on a mufti day?

Uggs

These seemed to accompany every single answer, with variations on platform, minis, and one quite controversial ‘(F)uggs’. It’s true, the water damaged hooves are a staple, whether they are stomping their way to maths or capering precariously to skip the dining hall queue. The platform ones do look particularly risky for the ankles of our godolphin girls, but I appreciate the perseverance both the boots and the wearers show day after day.

North face jackets (and) adidas gazelles/spezials/sambas. 

So we have embarrassingly fallen prey to the rumours surrounding North Face jackets and proved them true. One response went so far as to describe Godolphin girls as wearing a ‘small countries worth’ and calling it a ‘monoculture’. Although they did apologise for being too opinionated, I would have to agree to an extent - we all love the comfort zones of a mildly basic and stereotypical mufti outfit. The adidas are just another case of an abused pair of suede shoes trying to survive a brutal commute and the even more brutal staircases of our school. Although I do like them and the wide variety of colours they provide. Is the beat up adidas going to replace the crusty airforce? Who knows. 

ADWYSD joggers/Stussy

Ah, I remember the days of year9 when both these brands took my year by a storm. It was a pandemic, to say the least. I still see troops of younger years marching through the corridors, their waterline eyeliner dutifully applied, proudly bearing the swirled emblem on their leg, or the scrawled logo of Stüssy on their hoodies. Although it’s nice to see traditions being continued, I know they will look back and cringe violently at themselves. But for now the superiority complex is still unchecked. Good for them…?

Linens

Feeling a little sheepish as I write this, as I was already dusting mine off in lieu of the glimmer of sun peeking through the chocolate covered pall that usually covers London. They are a frequent sight on a summers mufti day but, in their defence, they are the perfect item. When it’s too hot for jeans but you don’t want to wear a skirt, linens are the perfect solution. Of course we all run the risk of everyone knowing what colour underwear we are wearing, but who really cares?

Brandy Melville (anything)

Would it really be a godolphin article if our favourite King's road haunt wasn’t mentioned? Probably not. It is a definite staple, trusty and reliable for when you feel like you own absolutely nothing socially acceptable. It doesn’t have much wow factor, but it’s certainly a brand that has withstood the test of time, and so we must give credit where credit is due.

Subdued 

This one was submitted multiple times, with a focus on ‘that one disco ball top’ and one person saying how they ‘once counted 15 white ruffle skirts on the way back from assembly’. We appreciate the observation, for the sake of this article. Subdued is a fan favourite and I would like to say it’s for good reason, but it isn’t. Subdued thinks it’s a cool brand, but it’s just an annoying version of brandy, but more wannabe edgy. The hoodies that say ‘I'm just a girl’ should be considered visual pollution and offend me deeply. Although the skirts are kind of cute. 

Q3: Any other thoughts or opinions surrounding mufti to share?

following a “quirky outfit idea” liked by over 100k people doesn’t mean you have style, put those always do what you should do joggers down girl

Straight to the point, albeit a touch jaded. I might be biased, as someone with more hours scrolling on Pinterest per week than any google classroom adjacent app combined - needless to say, this one cut deep. As much as it pains me (and my meticulously curated boards) to say, this person does have a point, and one that has been unfortunately reinforced by seeing three people show up in the same scuffer hoodie each week. As for the joggers, every time the acronym “adwysd” comes up on my feed the amount of time spent even trying to decipher its meaning fully takes away any influencing the fitcheck hoped to achieve, no matter how cute the logo is. Anyone bold enough to have to type that out on the daily is being more than brave enough already without even having to be individualistic anyways.

Dear lower school, pls stop using longchamps instead of backpacks hold on to ur childhood while it lasts

Strongly agree with this - can you truly say you’ve survived the lower school if you did not once carry a backpack at least twice your actual weight? Did not have half the contents of said backpack spill to the floor (because there are too many folders for it to close properly) or walk with your shoulders at a 60° angle in an attempt to be “edgy” with a one strap look? Some things are too sacred to be sacrificed.

year 11s have become too comfortable cosplaying as 6th formers and trying to use our privileges in the lunch queue?? please stay in your own lane and wait till you're done with the GCSEs

In an unlikely turn of events, a google form intended to showcase cute outfit choices and combos has been dominated by multiple sixth formers wishing to mark their territory - or as it is more commonly known, the DT lunch corridor. I’m feeling quite thankful for unpublished journalistic integrity (anonymity) right now, as this does not seem like a feud to interfere with. Although 6th form and year 11 appear to be older, wiser, and somewhat weighed down by IB, A Levels or GCSES, it is slightly heartwarming to see the youthful year 7 and 8 beef still remains, buried underneath all the coursework. It appears the inner year 8 never truly stops trying to showcase their newfound knowledge, which was formerly found in experience of the school, although it now seems to be found in the luxury of a lunch “lane,” and one too many question marks.  As for the steadily building animosity between the years, it will be interesting to see how sharing a common room next year pans out. Perhaps then some inter-year community can finally be found… and if not, at least the two years can be united as one when they find new grievances to share due to the lower years.

We need more mufti days. Period. Like, every Friday would be reasonable

I applaud the determination in this submission. The single word sentence ‘period’ is enough to make anyone fear the wrath of insufficient mufti days, although it’s impact is undermined by the following ‘like.’ Mufti Fridays are certainly an interesting concept, in line with casual Fridays found in offices worldwide - only instead of jeans, a subdued shaped horde would be rushing to the school gates once a week. The question is, would mufti lose its appeal if granted so often? As someone who lived in PE kit for the better part of their Godolphin career, seeing mufti lose its charm after waiting to be granted the privilege of DAILY mufti for so long might be too much to bear.

Less jeans more dresses, skirts or trousers! We need to wear other clothes! Or onesies, I love onesies

Although I appreciate the constructive criticism (which was very hard to find, as an aside: #positivityisthebestpolicy) my low rise dark wash jeans can be ripped from my cold, dead, hands. Seeing Godolphin take on more different (or as some suggested, brighter) outfits would be a nice change from being called HIGHKEY BASIC (yes, in all caps), or likened to uncanny valley, as other submissions have done. However, baggy jeans provide a comfort during an overly long maths lesson that I doubt a cow onesie could achieve, although I welcome any ambitious godolphin who wants to try (and to please send us proof if you do, we’d love to share some school spirit.)

Platform uggs are uggers

A very controversial take, although I did appreciate the pun. My main issue with platform uggs is how difficult they must be to walk in, especially when the heel is made of fur and not to mention, shorter than the actual platform itself. Having shoes that get stained by water in LONDON also seems slightly counterproductive.

just please please please please PLEASE put me in your article I read unpublished all the time it’s my life sustenance.

your wish is my command - always nice to meet the fans. If only the upper years felt this much love for Unpublished, as we seem to be synonymous with the school office in their eyes. To be fair, this could also be taken as a sign of trust - although any expectations that we can fix the school lunch system will be sorely disappointed, unfortunately. 

Further honourable mentions go to…

Emo for life 

Rock on 🖤🖤🖤

No cardigans or tight sweaters ew

Slightly confusing considering the two are polar opposites. Perhaps this person should consider the option of (wait for it) a shirt instead.

I expect someone to come in an inflatable costume at least once please :)

I’m seeing a glorious onesie/inflatable collab coming soon… What do we need to do to make this happen?  

I think mufti is wonderful and that we should have it more often 😁

And a lovely note of optimism to end this article. It was very hard choosing which submissions to include - even if we dress similarly, our audiences' opinions are CERTAINLY out there. We hope you enjoyed it, and perhaps our next mufti (coming soon - no pressure) will be just that bit brighter, stylised and enthusiastic. And maybe, we can hope to spot a onesie lurking in one of the lower school corridors…

Xoxo 

The Unpublished Team

walk a mile in these Louboutins....