Dear Jellybean,
Next year, I start high school. Very soon, it will be time to go back-to-school shopping, and I'm very excited (who doesn't like shopping?!). However, the style thing is pretty hard. How do you find a personal style that fits with your personality? How do you mix styles to create your own? How do you dress up or dress down outfits/styles to suit certain occasions? Its so confusing! I kind of liked the vintage style but wanted to mix it with the preppy look and other things. How do I do that? Also, do you have any suggestions as to how I can incorporate some of my current wardrobe into the new style I'm aiming to achieve? Thanks!
Love,
Star
Dear Star,
Finding a personal style that suits your personality is a process. Meaning, it takes time, and it's always changing and evolving, just as you continally grow and change. You're not the same person from year to year, or even always from month to month, and your wardrobe can reflect that by giving you different options for different moods.
Of course, you do want to have a basic "look" - whether that's preppy, city-girl, vintage chic, or whatever. So how do you figure out which personal style best suits your personality? Start by doing lots of research. Gather a whole bunch of current fashion mags - from Seventeen to Vogue - and flip through the pages. When you see an outfit that catches your eye and makes you say, "Wow, that's awesome" or "I'd love to pull that off", put a sticky note on that page, or rip it out to place in your personal fashion file (any old folder). You can even post the pics you love on a bulletin board, so you can step back and look at all the outfits that get a reaction from you.
Then look at all the pages you stopped at, and try to see what they all have in common. Do they all have a certain proportion, like a flowy top with a tight or short bottom piece? Did you pick a lot of items that are wildly patterned, or chic and clean, or all have some blue in them? Finding out what appeals to you can take some time, but it's worth it.
When you feel like you've got a handle on the kind of look you'd like to try and achieve, it's time to go shopping - in your own closet. What do you have that would work with the look you're trying to pull off? What new items will you need to buy, to make them work? For instance, maybe you want to do the vintage/preppy thing, and you've got an adorable button-down shirt. Layering that under a vintage jumper or beaded sweater could be really cute. (You can get tons more ideas from magazines, and also from fashion-forward friends - don't forget to consult them). Make a list of what you have that you'd like to keep wearing, as you go through your closet, and what you'll need to get new, and take your cheat-sheet to the shops.
Just don't go too crazy on your first trip to the mall! It's tempting to go out and buy all new clothes when you're out to change your look - especially at back-to-school time. But you'll probably find that your taste is going to keep evolving and changing, and what you love when you first go shopping, will change a little bit, a few months later. So don't spend all your money at once, or you could out of cash when you need to update your wardrobe, add new accessories, and so on.
Accessories - shoes, jewelry, belts, purses, scarves, hats, and so on - are mainly what you'll use to dress up/dress down styles for different occasions. Once you have the basics of a good wardrobe, accessories can work wonders to change up your look. Again, check out the mags for examples of how this is done. In Style magazine often has great pictorial features on taking outfits from day to night, or what are the hottest accessories of the season (then you can buy them on the cheap at stores like H&M).
As long as you keep your personality in mind as you shop, and purchase only items that (1) fit into your fashion vision, (2) fit and flatter the body you have today, and (3) fit your real personality, you're going to be fabulous. Good luck on your fashion journey - and be sure to take before-and-after pics for the photo albums!
