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Defining Back-to-School Cool

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Colorful video game characters, animal prints, and swear words with one or two missing letters, all splashed on tight fitting tees. Are these the coolest, trendiest and sassiest back-to-school styles for your student?

Marketers of back-to-school apparel have been telling me for months that these are the hottest school duds for my little diva.

Thank God my kid wears uniforms to school.

Animal prints have nothing on the brutality that exists in the wild world of back-to-school fashions. The advertising is relentless. Trends are being pushed left and right; by the time you get through a single primetime program you don’t know which way is up.

Sneakers that light up are so 2008, but jeans that barely cover your butt are all the rage in 2012.

Really?

Oh and how could I forget about the profanity laced tees that Urban Outfitters is hoping kids will wear with pride as they stroll down school hallways.

That is, if the school doesn’t ban the inappropriate T-shirts first.

No matter, the popular teen retailer isn’t letting a little four-letter controversy stop it from pushing more provocative shirts as must-have school essentials. Rather, it is hoping the 21 and under (and over.. and everyone in between) crowd will think it’s uber-cool and fashionable to add “I Vote for Vodka” and “USA Drinking Team” shirts to their back-to-school clothing collection.

I neither a fashionista nor am I am lemming when it comes to trends. Of course, I’m not in high school either. When you are younger you want to fit in with your peers. I get that. Despite the fact that I too wore a uniform to my Catholic school, I wanted a Members Only jacket more than my left arm. No joke. I would have gladly let the left sleeve of the coveted jacket swing in the breeze minus my arm if I could wrap the rest of my torso in its passant covered glory.

What back-to-school styles are your kids begging you to buy them?

This entry was posted in Dealing with Phases & Behavior by Michele Cheplic. Bookmark the permalink.

About Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism. She spent the next ten years as a television anchor and reporter at various stations throughout the country (from the CBS affiliate in Honolulu to the NBC affiliate in Green Bay). She has won numerous honors including an Emmy Award and multiple Edward R. Murrow awards honoring outstanding achievements in broadcast journalism. In addition, she has received awards from the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association for her reports on air travel and the Wisconsin Education Association Council for her stories on education. Michele has since left television to concentrate on being a mom and freelance writer.