From Abercrombie and Hollister to leopard print and ballet flats, the classic teenage “it girl” fashion style has truly evolved over the years. While it may seem that styles have transformed significantly throughout the past decades, more subtle yet eye-catching fashion shifts also occur each year. For example, 2025 has both brought back fashion trends from prior years and dramatically changed what is considered “in” (as in fashionably appropriate) and what is now considered “out” (as in outdated fashion). So with 2025 rapidly approaching its end, these are this year’s top five “ins” and “outs” of girls’ fashion: 

Fashion “Ins”: 

1. Socks with Ballet Flats/Mary Janes

In the past, shoes such as ballet flats or Mary Janes were considered formal wear, appropriate for events like concerts, birthday dinners, and interviews. It was customary to wear flats with tights, creating a formal and elegant appearance. However, an increasing number of girls today have begun wearing flats as casual wear, pairing them with more typical everyday socks. For instance, a popular combination is flats and white socks, often adorned with laced edges or a knit pattern that maintains a degree of class while also offering relaxation. With the distinctive pairing of Mary Janes and everyday jeans, casual socks with ballet flats or Mary Janes has become a new normal for teenage girls. 

2. Mini Denim Skirts

While floral skirts took a chokehold on 2024 as a summer staple for numerous teenage girls, 2025 reintroduced the classic mini jean skirt. Paired with anything from a baby-doll blouse to a chunky sweater, mini jean skirts have become a go-to piece, especially for warmer seasons. According to BYRDIE, denim miniskirts have been a wardrobe staple for decades, initially rising in popularity during the 90s Y2K style. It’s no surprise that mini denim skirts, alongside other retro pieces, have made a comeback in 2025, as 90s fashion overall has become a source of fashion inspiration for many young girls. 

3. Wired Headphones

Typically, wired headphones remind us of what the world was like before the emergence of wireless audio: being physically tethered to your music via a long cord connected to a listening device. The last thing people would view wired headphones as is a fashion accessory, something to accentuate an outfit. However, recently, high schoolers have started shifting from the convenience of AirPods to the 2010s wired headphones. 2025 has certainly tested the boundaries of what’s considered a fashion accessory, and technology has now entered as one of the largest fashion statements. 

4. Gold Cuffs/Bracelets

While gold cuffs were initially seen more as a Halloween costume accessory, such as a queen or fairy, they have evolved from a last-minute, inexpensive Halloween item to an everyday jewelry piece, elevating girls’ most basic outfits. Ranging from a simple gold bangle to intricate designs of braiding or beads, these bracelets are created in all sorts of styles. Even in winter, gold cuffs are commonly layered over long sleeves.   

5. Italian Jewellery

During the summer of 2025, there was a noticeable increase in the desire for personalized, customizable bracelets. Although jewelry has been customizable in the past by ordering inscriptions or choosing a charm to attach (as seen in popular engravable Pandora bracelets), the Italian charm bracelet has introduced a new style. Typically associated with vintage thrifting, Italian charms are small, hand-drawn squares that are then clipped together to form the entire bracelet, combining charms and distinct engraved designs into one shiny fashion remark.

Fashion “Outs”: 

1. Jorts 

In the summer of 2024, jorts went on a frenzy among teenage girls and boys. As a new, bold denim piece cut just at the knees, jorts were the perfect bottoms for a blazing summer day. With their ability to bring a casual, retro vibe to outfits while serving as a more comfortable alternative to denim shorts, jorts were essential to every girl’s closet. Sadly, as more girls opted for full-length low-waisted jeans in 2025, jorts never fully regained the popularity they once had. 

2. Leopard Print

Prior to 2024, prints of any kind were usually associated with a grandma’s style. Only the simplest prints, such as flowers and stripes, were still visible in teenagers’ clothing. Yet 2024 was marked by the resurgence of leopard print: tank tops, miniskirts, and leopard print on everything. Leopard print became such a staple in 2024 that most assumed the trend would continue into 2025. Yet as summer emerged, fewer prints were being worn, and more leopard-printed items were listed for sale on Depop and Vinted, indicating that they were no longer in demand. 

3. Bows/Coquette 

The coquette fashion trend is a feminine, romantic style that gained traction from one of the largest fashion platforms: TikTok. Coquette is most defined by its use of bows, lace, and pearls. It’s often associated with other types of media culture, such as Lana Del Rey’s music or the famous TV show Bridgerton. Although its media presence remains active to this day, fashion-wise, the use of bows and laces has gradually declined. 

4. Sambas

A key staple in closets for their quiet luxury aesthetic, the classic striped Adidas Samba shoes were in demand worldwide in 2024. Offering over 30 colors for the Samba OG and 16 for the Samba XLG, these shoes were mass-produced for broad consumer appeal. Although the shoe was perfect for everyday versatility, due to the rapid pace of modern fashion cycles, Sambas were soon forgotten and replaced by other brands offering the same level of practicality, such as Onitsuka Tiger. 

5. Graphic Baby Tees

A direct callback to the 90s and early 2000s, 2024 embraced the aesthetic of mini graphic tees, projecting people’s interests ranging from their favourite bands to niche hobbies. First popularized by pop icons such as Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, who often wore these small, fitted tops, baby tees continued to gain fame in the summers of 2023 and 2024. As more summers have passed, however, these once-iconic graphic baby tees have slowly lost their spotlight in teenage fashion, now remembered only for their defining moments.