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 As
craze connoisseurs with fresh insight into clothing's newest
wrinkle, Summer 2011 has called us to re-evaluate what's fashionably
in vogue. Society's standards of style have evolved over the
decades and under the scrutiny of the summer sun, we're here
to declare what age-old rules have lost their longevity, and
what recently accepted trends we need to trash. While we no
longer need Labor Day as our license to stop wearing white,
we've replaced that fashion formula with unsophisticated sins
like bearing our bottoms in shorts or bedazzling our jeans
with gems. Now's a great a time as any to examine what irrelevant
fashion no-no's we've nixed, and what recently added, yet
apalling pages we must immediately tear out of of modish handbooks.
Age-old rules we've brushed
aside
1. Don't mix jewelry metals
While pairing gold and silver was formerly a punishable offense
under fashion law, mixing metals is now a-okay in the newly
flexible jewelry game. Pair a gold watch with silver rings
if you're so daring, or ease into the new practice by picking
up a single piece that incorporates both silver and gold,
like a mixed metal necklace.
2. Don't mix clothing patterns
While combining different prints was perceived as a hot mess
in the past, we now see the couture creativity in it. Feel
free to put a large graphic stripe with a small floral print,
or some leapord-spotted shoes. In 2011, what used to be a
major indiscretion will make you look artsy, not disheveled.
3. Don't mix dark colors (black/navy or black/brown)
This contemporary color clash is widely accepted and no longer
condemned; throw on your sharp black boots with an espresso
chocolate legging in lieu of a matching black leg, and enjoy
a chic winter look. 
4. Don't pair items appropriate for different
seasons
When it comes to falling into seasonal mismatch or climate
clash, we're giving you the thumbs up. Rocking a feminine
floral dress with colder-weather combat boots, some cute cropped
shorts with stockings in the winter, or open toe shoes with
socks are the bold statements that'll make you look like you've
come right off the runway.
5. No red lipstick or black eyeliner during
the day
Years ago, certain facial colors were only appropriate after
sun down. With divas like Katy Perry and Dita Von Teese on
the map however, line your eyes in charcoal colors and stain
your lips in red, regardless of the time of day to perfect
pin-up chic.
6. Always match bag, belt, and shoes
While wearing pumps that matched neither your belt nor your
purse would have been a consistent miss decades ago, it's
now possible to make it a hit. Take the safe route and accessorize
with multi-colored peices that have striking similarities
(like shoes, a purse, and a belt within the brown color family),
or conjure up your inner glam GaGa and go for periwinkle pumps
with a kelly green bag and electric blue belt.
7. Don't wear white after Labor Day
The patriotic interval of time which would normally permit
us to wear white is now part of our fashion past. We can honor
Memorial and Labor Day while wearing crisp white as part of
cute and nautical yachting get-ups, both outside and inside
of this holiday time gap. 
8. Don't wear denim on denim
While mixing fabric used to be wrong, wearing uniform fibers
is all the rage these days. Pair your biker jacket with jeans,
denim vest with ripped jeans shorts, or lightweight jean shirt
with a pair or low-rise pants. Dig deep to your core and pull
out your double denim.
9. Don't defy gender norms
Dainty watches and close-fitting pants are no longer the
only acceptable assets in a woman's wardrobe. The new "boyfriend'
genre of women's wear blurs the lines that divided fashion
according to gender. Throw on a clunky boyfriend watch to
make a bold statement on your wrist, or slip into some baggier
boyfriend jeans for a releaxed yet fashion-foreward appeal.
Large and loosely hanging sweaters are a comfy and grungy
addition to your winter wardrobe as well.
10. No suede or leather during summer
Animal-inspired accesories have shed their seasonal limitations.
Wear a creamy, light-brown leather bag or a pair of soft suede
sandals on the sidewalk and look totally seasonally appropriate.
Trends we need to trash
 1.
Sunglasses inside/at night
If you're not wearing them to shield delicate corneas from
unbearable rays, ditch the shades. While sunglasses are a
fashion tool in addition to their functional purpose, wearing
them is silly when there's no sun to dodge in a restaurant,
during nightlife, or even in school hallways.
2.Exposing secrets that lie below the waist
and above the thigh
The urban 'sagging' trend is far from faddish for baggy pantsed
boys and similarly, excessively low-waisted jeans hardly flatter
aspiring fashionistas. You're the only one who should see
what's below the belt; it's not your clothing's job to convey
these images to others. Excessively short hemlines (skirts
or shorts) are also feminine faux paus, as it is best to keep
your backside blanketed in tasteful bottoms.
3. Exposed underwear/undergarments
Whether your bra strap has escaped the side of your pretty
lace tank top, your shape-forming spanx have transcended the
hem of your dress, or your satin shirt is simply transparent,
granting the public visual access to your undergarments is
gross. As their title emphasizes, undergarments should
remain underneath your ensemble.
 4.
Jazzed up jeans and shirts
Leave the bedazzled garb to Snooki. The Ed Hardy era brought
patterned-pocketed jeans, rhinestone-smothered shirts and
sweatshirts covered in neon splatter paint to mainstream America
when it should have remained at the Jersey Shore.
5. Holes in clothes (that weren't purposed
by the designer)
While tattered jeans and trendily torn leggings rock the
runways, the hole in the armpit of your favorite t-shirt was
not artfully intended by its creator. Ditch the shredded shirt
that's lost its longevity and explore a neater, more refined
expression.
 6.Never-ending
ear buds
If you dare step foot on a college campus and see the thousands
of earbud-clad kids, it will become quickly apparent that
America's youth is either ultra-musically inclined, or addicted
to accesorizing their ears. Worsened by the various popular
brands of gigantic retro-looking headphones, some youngsters
will wear the head-encompassing personal speaker systems without
even connecting them to their iPods; rather...they'll color
coordinate the devices with their outfits and wear them around
their necks. And we can't forget bluetooth obsessed business
execs who remain attatched to their earpiece long after the
conference call has ended. Please, undress your ears before
we come an antisocial and absurdly dressed America.
7. Leggings as pants
The minute you slip into a peice of stretch fabric and strut
as if you're sporting a polished pair of pants, you're hardly
dressed to kill. While not every woman wants to wear tapered
dress pants on a daily basis, and while there is room for
extreme elasticity in fashion according to taste, there is
a fine line between thin threads meant to simply cover the
leg, and pants.
8.Lady gaga leotards 
Slapping on a cut of spandex isn't the best fashion feat
unless you're an avante-garde icon who thrives off defying
the directions. Unless you're a gymnast, a ballerina, or you
frequent the Red Carpet in costume like Gaga and RiRi, normal
people like us should avoid unitards and single slabs of spandex
in favor of multi-part attire.
9. Comfortable but uggly shoes
With their self-explanatory title, Uggs speak for themselves
and Crocs in pinpointing their deplorable ugliness. Sometimes
in fashion, 'cute' trumps 'comfortable', and often it's our
call to bear the blisters in order to have fashionable feet.
10. Clumpy mascara
The lumpy look that comes from wearing masses of mascara
is no longer excusable. It might be time to replace the year-old
tube with some fresh cosmetics, or maybe it means leaning
in a little closer to the mirror and ditching your heavy-handedness
as you set out to define your luscious lashes.
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