WTWTBTF (What to wear to be totally fashionable)

   It’s the constant struggle in the life of your average high school student: deciding what to wear. It can be stressful trying to balance edgy new fashion with practicality and comfort. But don’t fear! Here, the Tribune has compiled all the latest in spring and summer fashion.

    Let’s start from the toes up:

Shoes-

    One of the biggest up and coming trends this season will be reminiscent of sporty 70s style: chunky sandals. Spotted on all the runways, the red carpet, and in daily fashion blog style, the thick-soled shoes will be popping up everywhere this summer.

     Not only is the sandal practical for the hot, humid Ohio weather, this style perfectly balances the feminine and the practical.

     You might be shying away from this trend for fear of a less girly look- but with all the embellishments, sparkles, metallic colors and unique shape construction, this trend is anything but manly.

    But what’s a girl to do if it’s a cold, rainy day? Your everyday, lazy girl fall back- sneakers- just got even more appealing. This season, sneakers will be more than just basic grey or black fabric; we’ll be seeing sneakers in metallic hues and pops of bright colors, with neutrals taking a backseat, only occasionally taking the stage to accent a shoe.

    Pattern and embellishments will be essential to nailing this casual and cool style; just make sure to pick a pair without too much happening at once, to look cool, not chaotic.

    As far as pattern, anything goes. Pick a floral patterned pair for a flirty feel or a clean-cut striped pair. Pick a pair with a metallic base and cool blue accents to feel classy cool. Just be sure to select a pair of sneakers with only a few colors present.

   Not a sneaker girl, or prefer a different style of shoe?  Then just follow along with the basic shoe trends this summer: stick to a shoes with only a couple colors max (even in patterns), uniquely shaped styles, and embellishments. Whatever style you choose, you’re sure to look and feel great.

 

Bottoms-

     If you’ve been into any clothing stores lately, chances are you’ve spotted one of summer’s most popular trends- it’s versatile, comfortable, and being worn by your everyday girl. It’s high-waisted shorts.

    A trend from last summer, it has survived the sub-zero winter to come and rescue us from boring and basic jean shorts once again. Because this trend is so very versatile, you’ll be seeing it on every type of pants and shorts imaginable.

    From your basic cut-off daisy dukes, to silk shorts and striped corduroy prints, high-waisted shorts will work with almost any outfit. As an added bonus, a high rise short accentuates the waist, making it ideal for any body type. And because of the practicality, comfort and versatility of this fashion, it can be spotted everywhere from celebrities to students here at THS.

    But the shorts don’t halt their unstoppable charge at high-waisted styles. In fact, they’ve teamed up with another style you’ll remember from childhood, and produced one of the most oddly comfortable and intriguing fashions this season: the shortall.

    The shortall is essentially overalls that have been cut to the length of shorts. Though this trend may sound extremely adventurous, it’s actually one of the most casual styles to be worn.

    Typically a jean fabric, shortalls provide a comfortable and versatile base for any outfit. Wear a plain shirt or an ornate and embellished tanktop beneath to create the style you want, without risking looking too preppy. Because the shortalls are loose and so casual, one can dress up an outfit with shortalls to their heart’s content and still look as though they’ve effortlessly pulled off the perfect outfit.

    But wait! Once again, it’s raining and you need something to keep you feeling dry and warm! Baggy jeans to the rescue!

    Yes, you read that right. After being bombarded the past few years with the skinny jeans craze, anything less than jeggings is a bit of a shock.Yet jeans that give you a little more leg room are springing up everywhere.

    Outfits with baggy jeans follow the same rules as outfits with your skinny jeans would, with a few added bonuses: No rules. Loose fitting jeans can add just the right bit of texture to your outfit that wouldn’t have been there with skin-tight jeans. Not to mention the fact that loose fitting jeans can be paired with anything, from t-shirts to crop tops (look for those later in this guide) to flowy peasant blouses.

   Also, as probably the best bonus for any high schooler, your parents will jump right on board with a pair of jeans that leave a little more to the imagination.

 

Tops-

    The burning sun is beating down on you, your stomach has finally reached tanned perfection and of course you’re nowhere near a pool or the beach, unable to relax in your swimsuit top. What’s a girl to do? Well that’s easy! Throw on your favorite crop top.

    Like high-waisted shorts, this is a trend that has enough fashion credit to have lasted from last summer. And boy is it in full swing! The crop top has become an outfit staple, being paired with anything and everything, making it probably one of the most versatile pieces to have in your wardrobe. Crop tops come in very different styles themselves- very loose fitting plain t-shirt styles, body-con tribal print tank styles and everything in between.

    Because of the variance in styles of crop tops and therefore their massive variability, you can enjoy taking this trend and making it your own. If you prefer a more conservative outfit, crop tops have got you covered (well, actually it’s what you pair them with that covers you).

    Try coupling your crop top with a cardigan or other light layers. Team up a pencil skirt and crop top for a classy party look. Even combine with some of the other trends this season- high-waisted shorts or shortalls.

    Some days though, don’t you just feel like having to wear no more than one piece of outerwear? Look no further than the 40s style dress. This trend has a classy-yet-casual vibe, managing to look vintage and fresh at the same time

    Due to the construction of the dresses, it flatters any figure. Nipping in at the waist, flaring out to glide smoothly over hips, it gives you the right amount of style and comfort to become your new favorite “Oh I just threw this on!” style.

    Perfect for going out to dinner with the family, a date, or church, this style is the perfect mix of comfort, style and beauty (actually, the beauty is just you).

    “But wait!” You yell. “I can’t possibly feel prepared without knowing the general trends!” Well you didn’t really think those would be left out, did you?

General trends of the season-

    We’ll start with the trends we can see in the specific styles of clothing and head towards the more particular trends. First up to bat is the sporty influence. Prevalent in the thick soled sandal and sneaker styles specifically, sporty influences are everywhere in this summer’s fashions.

    Look for sporty looks to show up with sports jersey inspired shirts, more athletic socks and sneakers combos, letterman jackets, baseball caps and running shorts with a little more chic style.

    A little harder to see, the next summer trend is art inspired pieces. Showing it’s true colors in the designer sneaker style, this trend has continued it’s brush strokes onto other pieces of your wardrobe.

    Look for this trend to make itself known in pants, shorts, skirts, any and all types of tops, as well as dresses (loose frocks especially).

    Translation? This trend will be showing up in every possible aspect of your wardrobe, from the tips of your fancifully-manicured-toes to the top of your artsy-covered-hat.

    It doesn’t matter what art print you choose (though bigger prints are more on focus with the trend), so long as you don’t go overboard with the rest of your outfit, keeping the focus on that specific article of clothing.

    From the fringes of society during the time of the cowboys comes our next trend: fringe. More so than any other trends this season, fringe has quietly snuck it’s way into this season’s fashion.

    Over the last few years, fringe had slowly integrated itself into fashion, first making an  entrance with purses and 20s style flapper dresses, fringe can now be spotted on the cutting edge yet still relaxed side of fashion (AKA literally all kinds of bottoms, tops, etc.)

    With fringe, there are really no rules. (Enter Little Caesar’s commercial man yelling “There’s no rules!”) Well, just be careful to not go overboard with the fringe, trying to wear only one piece of clothing with fringe. You never want too much of a good thing!

    Enter moody tropical print to contradict that statement. Or at least give it a run for it’s money. Gone are the days when it was only your embarrassing dad wore tropical print (though he probably wore his in boxy, t-shirt, button-up style- never a good combination).

    Perfect for giving off that summer-y, recently vacationed vibe, tropical print exemplifies the mix of free-spirited style with a dash of effort that embodies this summer’s fashion.

   Similar to the art inspired trend, tropical prints look amazing on any type of clothing, from crop tops to flip flops. But here’s where the differences end: tropical print can be worn on multiple articles of clothing at the same time. Yes, that’s the truth. Provided the prints are in the same color family, mixing and matching the same print has never looked so good. (Oh, actually, that’s just you)