STREET STYLE: WALKING TALL ON BROAD

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MODEL-CITIZEN_02With this article, redbankgreen debuts a new regular feature: Model Citizen, in which we track down individuals on the streets of the Green for impromptu interviews about what they’re wearing – and why.

In a perfect world, we could all power-walk through our days in six-inch Christian Louboutins. But with so much to do and so little tolerance for pain, it’s hard for even a woman of daring style not to settle for a pair of comfortable sneakers or flats.

For Kelly Karagias, though, it’s still more important to be bold in her choice of footwear.

The 19-year-old Oceanport resident majors in business with a concentration in marketing at Northeastern University, and has an eye on a career in PR or fashion publishing. Her entire life has revolved around her love for fashion, she says.

Model Citizen met this slim blonde on Broad Street in Red Bank recently wearing a fitted gray Obey sweatshirt and anchored to the ground by a pair of four-inch platform Jeffrey Campbell boots that wouldn’t look amiss on Herman Munster.

“I don’t care that my shoes are four-inch platforms,” Kelly said. “I take risks and wear what I want for me, people don’t have to like it.”

Known among friends as the one with the best fashion sense, Kelly finds style inspiration in Miley Cyrus — or so she said before the pop star twerked her way to headlines at last week’s VMAs. Surfing the web in her desire to stay ahead of trends, Kelly turns often to Nylon Magazine, an edgy fashion bible for the sub-25 set. For shoes? She swoons over Nastygal, a retailer of footwear for the truly fearless.

By the way, her last name is pronounced ‘courageous.’