stereotyping and its close knit relationship with fashion (teenagers)

These days, teenagers think a whole lot about what they wear.  I know that I do.  I plan out my clothing days in advance for certain events.  Right now I'm thinking about what I'll be wearing to go to the mall with my grandma on Saturday.  That isn't what my post is really about though.  Its about something more than that.  Something more important, that bugs me greatly.

The way that teenagers dress in many circumstances determines what social group or clique they are a part of.  This wave of stereotyping is very interesting.  Lets say that a kid is wearing a Hollister or an Abercrombie shirt with a pair of jeans from the same store.  They are considered a prep.  Most people continue on to think that they are stuck up.  Now, a prep used to be someone who went to prep school.  Seems logical.  Why are kids who choose to wear those brands considered preps?  

Another stereotype which angers me more is "emo".  Most people consider the emo kids the ones who shop at Hot Topic and wear skinny jeans and band t-shirts.  That is pretty much how I dress.  I love wearing skinnies and band t-s.  Emo kids are considered dark and sensitive with low self esteem and are believed to cut themselves.  I've never cut myself and I don't consider myself to have low self esteem.  And every kid is emotional.  What is the point?

I am confused as to why people feel the need to slap labels on people based on the way that they dress.  

I know that this is a fashion blog, but I felt the need to interject that.

Please go to this link and read a full article that I wrote on the subject: Don't Judge A Book By Its Cover

The New Layout

Okay, so I've been making custom style sheet layouts on mibba for a while and I've been fooling around learning HTML code.  I think that I've gotten the hang of it fairly well, so I've made my own blog layout.  Its my first attempt at a Blogger layout and I'm fairly happy with the outcome.  Its a bit more stylish this time around.

Summer Time Style

The weather is getting warmer and the clothes, are well, getting skimpier. Summer brings along all of the seasonal clothing, like shorts, skirts, sandals, and tank tops. It seems like summer is a call to wear less clothing. But that doesn't mean that you shouldn't dress nicely just because you are wearing a tank top and shorts. There are plenty of awesome outfits that you can wear to show off your summer style. Also, be sure to not show off too much. I am going to use some polyvore outfits that I have made to demonstrate. The first outfit is for someone who is a little older. In this set, you'll find a J.Crew short sleeve cardigan to be worn over a J.Crew Cami. Those are paired with some bermuda shorts, also from J.Crew. Accessorize with any color, but I chose to put a Coach rainbow bangle, an orange Coach bag, and some cute Coach shoes with it. Very Summery. Next is the younger set. This is for somebody in their teens. This set includes really simple clothing. It is just a plain T-Shirt, a cute denim skirt, some flip flops and a bag. Its perfect for getting ready and leaving the house. Be on the look out for more summer style outfits from Artsy Panda Style! To view the outfits, please go to the Polyvore badge on the right side of my page!

Oh Yes, Its Glittery and Shiny.....

But sadly, not too glamorous on my standards. I came across this
interesting shirt when I was shopping with my mom. I immediately
thought of how perfect it would be for my blog. And so, I will
discuss the glitter, sparkle, and spangle issue. I don't like
anything with beadwork, sparkles, etc. I think that it just doesn't
work. Most of the time it is over the top and unnecessary. It looks
more like evening wear than everyday wear. I haven't ever really
seen an example this spectacular, because usually there aren't this
much sequins. This shirt looks like an 80's disco party went
slightly wrong. Its kind of got a strobe light effect, even though
it lost some of its powers. My advice is, keep it simple and keep it
non-shiny, not glittery, not beaded...... not a lot of things. I do
like gray, and you could get the glitzy effect by adding some jewels!

Talk in Style

Now there are tons and tons of phone options and there
is bound to be one that suits your style. I'll go
through a few of the more fashionable phones.

AT&T: This wireless provider offers the iPhone, a
chic and mod touch screen phone, but it comes with a
price. The phone itself is $399, but you have to pay
for an expensive plan to go with it.
The most stylish phone AT&T offers is the
LG Shine. Its a slider phone with a mirrored finish.
It is perfect for anyone, and its only $149.
If you are looking for something more
towards the free side, you could always go with the
RAZR, but too many people have them. The Samsung A737
is a cute slider that comes in Lime, Orange, Blue and
Red. The price of it varies anywhere from $50-$0, but
its worth it.

Verizon: Verizon probably has the best phones, but I
still like any of the LGs. The Chocolate and the
Venus are the hippest phones from Verizon. The
Chocolate is $80 and you can take your pick from four
different colors. The Venus comes in pink and black
for $199.
I'm not really sure about other carriers, but these
are definetily at the top of my list.
Pictured is my personal favorite, the LG Shine. It is the phone I have.

My Take on The Fake

I am not a fan of fake purses and wallets. I just
don't see why you'd have to have a fake purse. I
think that some sellers are sort of taking advantage
of people because not everyone knows that the purse is
actually fake. Most of the time, it is pretty obvious
that the bag is a fake because of some details.
Usually, the manufacturer changes some small details.
They may change the color slightly, the shape, or the
material. The truth is that fake purses are most
likely illegal. The logos, like Coach and Dooney &
Bourke etc. are copyrighted or trademarks. The
manufacturer of the fake is taking part in a copyright
infringement. Sometimes a fake will have
'registration' papers, but hundreds of bags could have
that same number on them. Its just better to play it
safe and go with a real bag.

Organizing Your Closet

Okay, I'll admit that my closet isn't always the neatest, but when it is clean.... its just a lot easier to find an outfit! I like to think that I have a specific order to my closet, but I always don't. Anyway, the way I organize my closet is.... first I've hung up all of my tank tops and they're supposed to be in order by color (from lightest to darkest.) Then, I have all of my short sleeve shirts which start with white and end up at black. Next, is the long sleeve shirts and again are organized by color. All of the shirts face the same direction too. To the left of my shirts is a shelf thing where I fold up all of my jeans, by color. And-- to the left of that is all of my hoodies and jackets which are just in any random order. To the extreme right of everything are my skirts, shorts, and pants. They go in that order too.
I just find it a lot easier to have everything organized like that. It works for me, so maybe it would work for you (if you are unorganized)

The Polo

I am a fan of a somewhat classic looking wardrobe. I think that it is essential to have an adequate polo in your closet. I think that some of my favorite polos would have to be the Vineyard Vines Polo, a Lacoste, and Polo Ralph Lauren. Also, Lilly Pulitzer has a cute polo that comes in many colors and fits. Those are a little bit on the expensive side. I think that a Vineyard Vines Polo is around $60, a Lacoste around $70, a Ralph Lauren is $50, and a Lilly varies from around $60-$100. Sometimes you can find these at T.J. Maxx for less. But, if you still want something less expensive, I'd check out J.Crew polos, Abercrombie and Hollister, or even Target. I think that the polo I wear the most is probably one of my Hollister polos. It washes up very nicely and they come in good colors.
A polo is also very easy to make an outfit with. They work well with jeans and khakis, but also lend themselves well to being a little bit more dressed up.

Eeeeeek!!!

I guess that style also extends into the interior and exterior decorating aspects of life. My focus for this entry is exterior Christmas lights. In my neighborhood, the lighting situation is practically ridiculous. There are so many different colors of lighting and most of it is extremely sloppy. Some houses even feature moving lights and speakers constantly playing Christmas music. I really dislike all of the crazy colors and the icicle lights (we live in the south people! no icicles, sorry :) I think that lights should be tasteful and in most cases subtle. Now, if a persons house looks like that much of a mess, what do you thing their wardrobe is like?