Childhood TV Show Fashion Icons & What They Meant to Us Watchers
Graphics by Essence Enwere
Elle Woods, Regina George, Sharpay Evans, and London Tipton. What do all of these four characters have in common? A passion for fashion and having an influence that gripped every young girls in the early 2000s with one trend or another. Characters in popular media always have and continue to influence the ways we dress. Whether it be a celebrity or a lovable fashion-forward side character, our media has a large impact on the way we choose to display ourselves, and it is more important to the way we form our personal styles than we may realize.
These character portrayals in media have created some truly interesting trends throughout the years, including the layered cami trend, the bump-it hair accessory, and the use of bright clashing colors. However, popular feminine characters and celebrities have birthed some of my favorite fashion ideas that many still continue to use today. Taylor Swift owned the skater skirt in the 2010s, and during my elementary years, I (and many others) showed up to nearly every day of fourth grade with a black lace skater skirt and 1989 sweater in tow.
These little stylistic lessons can inform our style for the rest of our lives. While Taylor Swift gave me a never-ending love for the skater skirt, other girls learned to embrace the power suit through the femme power piece Legally Blonde. These movies didn’t just contain fashion lessons though, as they also taught us how to navigate complex social environments. In the movie Mean Girls the phrase “On Wednesdays, we wear pink,” led a generation of young girls at my school to start showing off their matching group pink ensembles. These small stylistic choices such as a thematic color palette or piece gained from a comfort character can create a sense of style that follows for years to come.
I believe that fashion trends can seem especially important to young feminine people, especially adolescents, because of the sense of community they give us. As a young feminine person, the most important thing can feel like making friends and fitting into a group, and this is expressed through the clothes you choose to wear. By finding characters you all enjoy and dressing like them, these simple looks create a sense of community that cannot be overstated.
The media we view in our teens and childhoods impact and influence the clothes we buy, the way we do our hair, and makeup trends. Today's Generation Alpha is pushed by TikTok influencers in the same way that we were influenced by Disney Channel and the latest celebrity fads in our childhoods. However, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It is human nature to be influenced, and with the legendary style work of Sharpay Evans, maybe it’s for the better that we were all influenced after all.
See how childhood fashion icons have inspired Golden staff below!
