My neighbors who live above me are loud, obnoxious and inconsiderate. One of them is a 16 yr. old who looks somewhat like this: ...which got me thinking. When I was 16, there was no way I would find this attractive. Boys using a flat iron on their hair? Wearing jeans skinnier than any pair I own?? No, just no. I'm only 25 now, but I feel the trends in high schools have changed dramatically from grunge in the 90s, to preppy in the early part of this decade to now what you see above. Focus: So I'm curious...what did you dress like in high school? We're you like my neighbor and dressed extreme? Or were you more conservative and preppy? I dressed like a skater chick because I thought it was the coolest thing ever to wear jeans so big you could fit one person into just one leg. Kind of like this: Horrible.
Honestly, I just wore...clothes. I wore a bunch of things from American Eagle, but I also wore some last year Nautica and Polo stuff that they had at places like TjMaxx and Marshalls. If it fit right, looked ok, and wasn't horribly expensive, I could care less. I guess in that case I was an indifferent preppy who wanted to look put together but not flaunting anything. My girlfriend wanted me constantly clad in A&F, so I bought (and was given) a few things from there until I became fed up with spending $60 on a shirt that fell apart in the wash after 4 months. That, and I also couldn't possibly identify with the I-was-just-attacked-by-a-puma-and-a-coffee-spitting-hobo-all-in-one-night look that all their jeans were going in ("Look guys, when I walk, my nuts fall out of this hole! I'm the coolest.").
Much like shenanigans above I have never really cared too much about style past the typical (typical for me, the white suburban kid) looking American Eagle, Polo, Chaps, Nautica, and Ralph Lauren stuff. I only cared how I looked when I was A) playing in a competitive golf tournament or B) Going on a date. I'm progressively moving away from American Eagle and such because it feels too childish to me. I don't want a giant eagle sprawling over my chest or shoulders, as I feel a bit Ed-Hardyish. But at the same time, I don't want to be "that guy" who only wears Polo stuff because the logo is recognizable. Plus, I don't have the money to completely make my wardrobe look like that. My room-mate's mom worked at American Eagle so we always got deals and such. He's gone a bit Indie on us though and is now wearing a lot of plaid, V-necks etc. I'll never be that extreme, but I'm definetly going to get some American Apparel this summer for my birthday. They have some good looking and new/current stuff that isn't too Indie/Alt.
I mixed grunge and skater chick into one horrifying style. It was a hybrid of Eddie Vedder and Tony Hawk, and it was every bit as awful as you're picturing. Maybe this is why I'm ultra-girly now?
Embarassingly enough I went through a little bit of an emo stage mid-way through high school. I had black hair and wore obscure hardcore band t-shirts. Thankfully, I smartened up and found that I look about a million times better as a blonde wearing dresses and heels.
As a teen I was rarely without my massively baggy jeans.. remember those jnco jeans with pockets that reached down to your knees? Yep, I had many pairs of them which I wore well past functional. I loved them, they were comfortable, (in my mind) looked cool and best of all I could easily stash a bottle of vodka, my drugs and paraphernalia without anyone being none the wiser. However, at the time I was maybe 5' 5 and pushing 110lbs so I must have looked ridiculous. At the time I didn't think I was dressing like a skater or whatever, I was wearing what I wanted to wear, regardless whether or not other people thought it was cool (or not), the only thing that mattered to me, was my opinion of what I was wearing. I'd like to think in the intervening ten years the way I've dressed has grown up, but really all thats happened is my jeans have got progressively better fitting with each year. They will never be skin tight though, as I have a penis and am not a hipster... Infact, I think I still have a pair of my 30" inch wide leg jeans, I bet they are as comfortable as ever.
I dressed like shit until my junior year of college. Somehow I got girls, somehow I just didn't think I needed a lot of clothes, and I've always gotten anxiety in clothing stores. My parents didn't help ever. In high school I barely made it, I was a little skater for a little, all I wore was black, blue and grey, not emo, just plain. Then I decided to float in the middle, of the A&F and Fubu/Sean Jean spectrum. I can't even look at pictures.
I grew up in Australia, and Hypercolor used to be quite the craze when I was in high school. The only problem was, the weather was so hot, that most of the time the color always defaulted to the "hot" color, and the only way you could make it change was to press an ice cube to it, or walk into a giant freezer in a supermarket. All in all, something that was amusing for about 5 minutes.
I had to wear a uniform from grades 6-12. Looked like I was going to a damn job interview. White polo shirt, tucked into khaki slacks or dress shorts, mandatory belt with only one row of holes (so none of that "funky" several-hole shit). Dress shoes or sports sneakers, nothing "funky" or open-toed. Hair no shorter than a #2, but not long enough that it could touch my eyebrows, ears, or collar, and no sideburns lower than my ear lobe. Also couldn't grow facial hair. This was the guys uniform. We all looked the same. Around home and on the weekends, I wore whatever was cheap and comfortable. A lot of regular white undershirts and cargo shorts, basketball shorts, A&F and Old Navy jeans (they fit me the best and were the softest), and whatever t-shirts I found that I liked. In college it was pretty much the same, but even heavier on the cheap side. WalMart slippers were the best. Now it's still basically like college. Except the fiance keeps stealing all of my favorite shit (she says "but it's the softest!" and I say "I know, that's why it's my favorite!"), so I'm left trying to "break in" a few new t-shirts every few weeks or so.
I confess I was a prep, propped collars and all. I wore Izod, Polo, argyle sweaters, Swatches (more than one and they had to have the guard) and such. I wore penny loafers and boat shoes. And then there was a stage when these were actually popluar: Duck shoes. Mine were exactly like those. Awful.
I was a rocker guy. Always wore jeans and a t-shirt, usually a concert T of Iron Maiden, Rush, Van Halen, Motorhead, etc. And I never went anywhere without my original Walkman. With extended life battery pack. What was REALLY funny was watching the Brit-Pop wannabes try and mimic the classic Flock Of Seagulls or Howard Jones hair.
I'm not going to lie. My mom is a fantastic seamstress and worked in a lot of clothing stores throughout her life. Since she picked out my clothes for me from an early age, I never gave a damn about creating my own style because I was too busy nerding it up. So, I dressed in a really preppy fashion. Khakis and polos (and white tennis shoes) were just about all I wore. Hell, the only t-shirts I had were the white Haines or the T-shirts I won from contests (usually academic). I'm guessing you can imagine my race just from how I dressed. Anyway, I wore a lot of baggier clothes because I was a fat body who just couldn't give a damn to work out. I also wore cargo khakis long past their fashion expiration date. These days, what with being more health conscious, I find myself making my own purchases. The fit is a lot better, more casual and I don't walk around looking like I should be going to a classy MTG convention. I got over my fear of wearing jeans, for one. I need to upgrade my khakis though, the pleats died years ago, as Philalawyer was quick to point out in his article.
I don't know how I could forget Keds. They had to be the original with the little blue rubber tab on the back. I may have been a little materialistic. Maybe.
By day I had to were a uniform (brown, plaid skirt, white polo and brown polyester blazer - very sexy). But by night/weekends, well, I have always been a jeans and t-shirt kinds girl, so I was lucky to be in high school in the early 90's and I embraced all that grunge had to offer. Big t-shirts and baggy (sometimes tight rolled) jeans and flannels. Oh yes. Converse and Doc Martens where the only shoes I owned. Long hair (all one length) hair in a pony tail and I was set. Friends look back at old pictures and claim they don't know how they didn't know I was gay back then - but damn, I didn't know then either and besides, it was the STYLE! Jerks.
Oh dear God. This thread prompted me to go through my wardrobe, where I discovered I have jeans and dark unlogoed T-shirts in various shades of black,brown and gray, and NOTHING ELSE. While picking what to wear in the morning is trivial, I should probably go shopping.
I haven't left the house without a collared shirt in 5 years. Even in high school I mostly wore button downs.
I dressed pretty much exactly like LOST's John Locke, only without the shirt tucked in. My mom got free hiking boots through her job, so that's all I ever wore for shoes, and before I was 16 I don't think I owned a pair of pants that didn't come from MEC. T-shirts came from MEC or free from mountain/hiking oriented events. I didn't think about my appearance until I decided to look into WHY everyone (including some faculty) seemed to be worried that I might turn out to be a shooter.
First part of high school, I wore a lot of flannel shirts, khakis, and Boy Scout t-shirts. Obviously, I had women falling all over themselves for me. Starting around Junior year, I moved into jeans and button downs/polos. Still sporting the same look today for the most part. I contend my look is timeless, and would rather not look like an Ed Hardy/ Affliction fan. Those will be as funny to look at 20 years from now as Reebok Pumps are today.