Let's face it. When it comes to teenagers with the passion to have the latest styles and name-brand clothing, what better place to flaunt it than at school? Even if you're now out of high school, working or heading off to college, the fall ?back to school? months are ?prime time? for reviewing and renewing your style and finding a great new look for the coming year.



School-age teens, both boys and girls, know that first impressions count the most when it comes to their clothes. You want to be able to make a grand entrance on your first day and you only have one opportunity to make it a glorious one. However, even if your first appearance didn't go as planned, never fear, there is always another time, just as there's always room for improvement.

Putting outfits together

Keep things simple for starters ? nothing too flashy or over the top. It's okay to be trendy, but adapting the trend into your personal style is what's most important. You don't want to seem like a trend chaser. You need to have the confidence to wear the outfit you choose. Otherwise, you will look and feel like you're faking it. When you don't have any doubts about what you wear, no one else will either.

If you really knocked them down with a killer outfit on your first day at school or on the job, make sure you can keep the same look going. You don't want to show up in a trendy runway look, and the rest of the year you're wearing jeans and t-shirts. Try to be at least somewhat consistent, while allowing room for experimentation, too.

Be careful about the ?all eyes on me? perspective. You don't want to wear anything that is too eye-popping, especially in a tawdry or classless way. You want to look great and feel comfortable at the same time, and be able to hold your head up, knowing that you have style, confidence and the all-important ?x? factor ? a touch of class.

Lots of looks to like

There are many different looks you can go with. Chic, athletic, Western, sophisticated, trendy-casual and ?artsy? are only some of the styles to choose from. Remember to accessorize, by adding earrings, a necklace, bracelets, belts and scarves. The perfect belt and shoe combo along with the right jewelry can put the finishing touches on any outfit. And the number of outfits increases dramatically with your ability to mix and match (or even mess around) with different combinations of items.

It's not just about the clothes and accessories, because everything you carry with you matters, too. The necessities of school, like your backpack and book covers, should match or ?be in sync? as well. Try to coordinate all the pieces by finding things that are funky and fresh, reflecting your style. Look for cool new versions of old classics, like denim or corduroy messenger bags or backpacks, personalized notebooks or monogrammed binders.

Inspiration is everywhere

In this day of ?always-on? entertainment, with mobile Internet and texting, it is easier than ever to keep up on changing fashions, even the ones that seem to change every minute or two. You are guaranteed to find lots of new ideas, inspiration and ?how-to? information on TV shows (?America's Next Supermodel,? etc.), the web and in magazines like Elle, Cosmopolitan and Vogue. Don't forget the periodicals, websites and TV shows that focus on your own age group, too ? Seventeen, Tiger Beat or even the new Hannah Montana magazine for you ?tweens.?

If you have never had a ?color consultation,? you might give it more than a passing thought. You can shop around town, or around the world via the web, for both low- and no-cost advice, although personal appointments will cost you something.

However, if you have the money (or your parents want to invest in your fashion future), finding out what colors, textures and assorted combinations of both are most flattering to you can pay big dividends. You will learn how to accentuate and coordinate with your skin tone, eye color, hair, fingernail polish, makeup and everything else. It sounds complicated, but it is very sensible and anyone can learn!

Your personal style

Make it a point not to run through all your best duds the first month or two of school (or, for you older teens, the first months on a new job), and then end up wearing sweat pants and t-shirts the rest of the year. Consider planning out a whole month's worth of outfits. That way you won't need to worry about what you're going to wear every single day, and you have more time to focus on the important things about school or the job, like studying, football games, days off ? and let's not forget that little crush you might have on a certain someone.

The more things you've got going, the better. There is a place for sitting around figuring out what to wear, but getting out into the world and ?drinking in? all the colors, combinations, cultural influences and widely divergent styles is the only way to do a ?reality check? on your fashion sense. Whatever tastes you may acquire in this grand, exciting (and partly virtual) worldwide tour will end up, to a greater or lesser degree, in your personal teen fashion formula. You can make sure you don't have a sour aftertaste in your mouth by remembering just who that ?person? is in the term ?personal style.?

That would be you, of course. Now go for it!