DRESS ME UP IN YOUR LOVE

PHOTOS BY ED ZIPCO

If it were up to me, every female alive would dress like either the girl from

Ratcatcher

or Fairuza Balk from

American History X

minus the haircut and all the nazi shit. Fortunately for the crotch area of my pants, it is not up to me. It is up to each girl and boy how they want to dress themselves. But what if it were up to their boyfriend/girlfriend? What if instead of representing such pragmatic intangibles as "comfort" and "self-image", every single stitch of fabric on our body translated directly to a sick, lecherous thought buried deep in the brain of someone who would like to do hideous things to our genitals? We made six couples make each other over in accordance with their basest carnal desires, just to see just how horny our world would be.

ASHLEY AND CHARLIE (BEFORE)

Charlie says: "I've never been the type of guy who pays a lot of attention to what a girl is wearing, but I've focused more on that since I've been with Ashley because she has better taste than other girls I've dated. Her style is multifaceted and she always looks good whether she's dressed casually or styled up."

Ashley says: "I'm usually attracted to guys who don't fuss over their clothes too much—in other words, somebody who doesn't have better style than me. When I first met Charlie I definitely thought he was attractive but not overstyled. It can get out of hand in New York, and that's something I take into account when I'm judging how someone dresses."

ASHELY AND CHARLIE (AFTER)

Charlie says: "Rachel can pretty much wear anything and look good, but I picked this outfit, which she wears quite a bit in the summertime, because it's very light and short and revealing and simple. It shows a lot of leg, which really catches my eye. The color is very feminine and soft and, like I said, she gets to show off her great long legs."

Rachel says: "Charlie is already on the right path and I don't want him to stray to far from it. Following that logic, I picked out a plain striped shirt. It looks good and accentuates his shoulders, which I think is really sexy for most men and especially for him. His pants are simple, straight-legged dark jeans and I selected the plain brown shoes he wears all the time to complete the look."

MARCUS AND JACKSON (BEFORE)

Jackson says: "Marcus has a sense of style that is the polar opposite of mine so it was very jarring when we first started dating. He goes for the rock star look. It's very over the top, like Steven Tyler or someone. One time I bought him an old Rolling Stones vintage concert tee from the 80s and it wasn't nearly distressed enough for his tastes. He's very particular."

"I'm more of a 'fashion-fashion' person while Jackson is more modest—he's an APC type of guy. I went to Parsons so I live for it. He wears sneakers, jeans, t-shirts, and hoodies. When we first started dating we didn't mesh at all, but once we started chilling things were totally different. I discovered that he designs handbags and shoes, and I think he took some things from me that he enjoyed aesthetically."

MARCUS AND JACKSON (AFTER)

Jackson says: "Marcus has so much clothing that I wasn't able to go through all of it, so I based my choices on outfits he already wears a lot and put my own spin on it. The look is definitely him, with myself injected into how it's all arranged. He usually wears really loud and very apparent things so I chose more simplified pieces that still stand out. About a month ago I made this bag for him. He says it reminds him of my hair and it looks like he's carrying my head around when he uses it."

Marcus says: "I do styling on the side sometimes, so the first look I thought of for Jackson was a cartoon character because he looks cartoon-like. I was going for a Doug Funny or Skeeter vibe, so I picked out this letterman jacket by Balenciaga that he's been wearing nonstop since his parents gave it him for graduation. Underneath is a shredded-up hoodie that he got from me. I can't remember if he stole it or just dirtied it up, but either way it's his now."

MAX AND ELLE (BEFORE)

Elle says: "I deal in shades of gray and Max wears all the crazy colors, which usually clash and I'm pretty sure it's not by design. When I first met him I remember thinking: 'scraggler.' Even when he dresses smartly he still looks a bit scraggly. But he cleans up really nicely. We moved from London to New York pretty recently and left most of our clothes behind, so our selection is rather limited at the moment."

Max says: "Elle is very monochrome and classic and sheik, and I'm all over the place. It's the whole 'opposites attract' thing, but since our move from London we've both become even more regular and distinctive with what we wear. I don't really buy her clothes outside of an occasional pair of shoes because I would just get in trouble if I did. She criticizes me for things I wear all the time, but I don't really give a shit."

MAX AND ELLE (AFTER)

Elle says: "I basically put Max in his pajamas for his look. There's something about the way big, baggy clothes just hang off of a skinny guy's body. Everything is low on the hips and scrunchy. I think it looks super hot—much more so than when they dress up. I'll sometimes get him limited-edition sneakers because he loves them. In fact, I should have made him wear the Jeremy Scott Gold Wings I bought for him recently."

Max: "Elle is the one with the 'serious' charm, the powerful one. So I picked this suit because she looks very confident and sexy in it. When she has an important meeting, I watch her run out the door with this on and think to myself, 'Maybe you can be late…'"

ROCKY AND ALEXIS (BEFORE)

Alexis says: "Rocky, by his own admission, wears a uniform of sorts—button-down, long-sleeved checked or plaid shirts and jeans. He also owns about 80 pairs of the same shoes, so people think he only has one pair and wonder how he keeps them so clean. He's a bit more casual, but he doesn't have a nine-to-five job so he can be. You gotta like a man who knows what he likes."

Rocky says: "Alexis is kind of like me. My 'uniform' is plaid and jeans while she wears black dresses, black skirts, black everything all the time. She has great style, but she's not anywhere close to being into 'fashion' in the way a lot of girls are. Then again, she almost looks like she works in the fashion industry because she wears black all of the time. As far as I know, she has one colored article of clothing that's green and another with a pattern but she never wears them."

ROCKY AND ALEXIS (AFTER)

Alexis says: "Like I said, I like Rocky the way he is, so this look doesn't stray from his standard getup. I've complemented him on this shirt a few times and apparently he's had it since high school. It matches his tattoos well. I picked these jeans because they're my favorite pants he owns—they looked loved. And I wanted him to wear this t-shirt because he was wearing it one of the first times we hung out."

Rocky says: "I had Alexis wear something a little more dressed down from her usual outfits because it was intriguing to see what she'd look like when she tried something slightly different. I picked a baggy t-shirt and he wears these shoes all of the time because they look good, so they were an obvious choice. She just bought this skirt, and I think it's very feminine and sexy so I was like, 'Put that on.'"

CRISTA AND JESS (BEFORE)

Jess says: "Crista has a really great sense of style and since we've started dating she's helped me figure out my style and what looks good on me. In fact, after I met her I got rid of my entire wardrobe and started fresh. I thought I knew what looked good, but Crista suggested some things and I've reached a new happy medium where I feel more stylish yet comfortable. She's very aware of trends and is good at forecasting them."

Crista says: "When I first met Jess I liked her style of simplicity. A basic t-shirt and jeans is my favorite type of thing, and that's what she wore most of the time. We have a different sense of style, and I think I've maybe influenced her since we started dating. And we're both girls, so it's pretty nice that we can swap our clothes whenever. I help her pick out her clothes for work; I'm like her little stylist."

CRISTA AND JESS (AFTER)

Jess says: "I picked out nice black corduroys, charcoal heels, and a really sexy purple tank top with some leather embellishments for Crista. We met in the summertime when she was wearing a lot of tanks, so I wanted to reference that. She hasn't worn this top very much yet, and I selected it because I like the freckles all over her chest and arms. It really shows them off. I think heels are sexy in general, but these particular shoes go great with this outfit."

Crista says: "Crista has really beautiful collarbones, so I went with this v-neck tee. And what do you wear with a t-shirt besides jeans? When we first started dating, this was one of the first outfits I saw her wearing where I was like, 'Wow, my girlfriend is really hot.' It's very simple and something she wears a lot during the summer.

RACHEL AND DAN (BEFORE)

Dan says: "When I first met Rachel I could immediately tell that she had a unique style, but I think what really was most striking was her face—her eyes and her eyebrows. She's really pretty and sexy no matter what she wears, even if it's a t-shirt and blue jeans or sweatpants and a tank top."

Rachel says: "When Dan and I first met he would dress very hipster-y. It was always a hot-pink deep V-neck, a fedora, really tight jeans, and a bunch of long chain necklaces. It was a bit too much for me. Eventually I got him a new necklace and then he lost the fedora, so it all worked out. I think our styles have bounced off of each other since we starting dating two and a half years ago. We kind of dress the same now."

RACHEL AND DAN (AFTER)

Dan says: "I got Rachel this dress when we were out in LA a couple summers back. She's only worn it once, which was her first and only time DJing. We have a framed picture of us taken that night so it's always in my head. We do our shopping together a lot, and I try and get her things that I think are sexy so I bought her this because I think it's hot. I think it's really hot."

Rachel says: "I picked a tank top because he wears them a lot and I think Dan is one of the few dudes who can pull them off without looking too silly. I guess that's because of the way he carries himself: He's pretty tall and lanky and he's not very hairy. He's got nice arms and a nice back, so I like to see that. Sometimes he wears a little stud in his ear, but he hasn't been doing that lately. So I selected it for this shoot because I like it. It reminds me of a Backstreet Boy who I was into when I was 13."