The New Year is here and with it, the “new look” in teen fashion. This Spring and Summer’s fashion trends are big, bold, loud and proud. The styles are a bit of a throwback to the 1980’s, leaving behind everything bad and bringing back only the good. From bold, beautiful plaids in purples and browns, to spangly danglies jewelry, to chunky footwear, teen fashions for Spring 2009 have a lot to say.

Colors – The colors for Spring 2009 teen fashions are vibrant on the one hand, and classic on the other. Turquoise is the latest shade of blue to hit the runways, showing up in everything from prom gowns to tankinis, hats to scarves. Bright fuschia is the year’s hottest pink. Combine turquoise and fuschia and you’ve got an eye-popping, traffic stopping outfit that could come straight off the runway. On the more laid back fashion scene, navy is turquoise’s hot blue cousin. Whether a jacket or a swim cover, if it’s navy blue it’s going to be in demand. Brown is another of the Spring’s main colors. From handbags to formals, brown continues to be the “new” black for fashion. Coming in the middle of the two color extremes is purple. From deep, royal purples fit for princesses the world over, to more subtle shades of violet, purple stands in the gap, offering you choices that could be either vibrant and bright or laid back and classic.

Prints – From bold and big, prints are a big item in this Spring’s fashions. You’ll be seeing paisleys on everything – tops, skirts, dresses, bed linens, purses, even sunglasses with paisley swoops on the ear pieces. And the bigger the paisley the better, it would seem. Stripes are on the move again, as well. And not just any stripe – big, bold, wide stripes in big, bold colors. Brown and turquoise dtripes can be seen racing on t-shirts. Big stripes of bold purples and fuschias are marching their way across skirts, skorts and shorts for Spring and Summer. Not so big, but no less bold, polka dots of every hue can be found on items as varied as dresses fit for Sunday dinner at Grandma’s to socks so cool your feet will never be the same. Oh, and for those of you who prefer your dots big, a few designers have taken the plunge to create dresses and longer skirts you’ll be pleased to call your own. Plaids are making a noise, too. Everything from this Summer’s tube tops to next Winter’s wool coat can be had in plaid. Like their other cousins in the print scene, the bigger the better, with larger checks winning over smaller ones.

Styles – This Spring and Summer’s fashions are like watching Miami Vice reruns or Madonna’s breakthrough videos. It would appear that everything old has come new again. The skinnier the jeans, the better, at least for this year’s fashion. (Pegged jeans are even making a come-back, for those who don’t care for the stick-legged look.) Dresses and skirts are sporting “bubble hems” – wide bands of elastic that hug the thighs allowing for the rest of the skirt to drape above. Ruffles and criss-cross draping on blouses and dress bodices would make any Material Girl feel right at home. (Check your mom’s closet – chances are she’s still got one or two of her ruffled blouses hanging around.) Paired with today’s colors of turquoise and fuschia, the newest in teen fashion may have your mom wondering if you time-traveled back to her days in high school, minus the big hair and shoulder pads, of course.

Jewelry – No outfit is complete without that “perfect touch” and bling is definitely the thing among teen fashion. As with the bolder colors and prints, teen jewelry has gone big, bold and beautiful, too. Cuff bracelets are in, in a big way. Big, plain cuffs are fine, but sparkly, studded cuffs are better. Necklaces have also gone bold, with large pendants and beads. If you don’t like the big look, go for layers – many of the new styles are made of several pieces put together. Designers create the same effect with smaller chains and strands, layered over top each other. Eco-friendliness and eco-awareness have their place in teen fashion, too. This year’s jewelry features bone, wood and fresh water pearl, along with natural stone pieces, such as jade, turquoise and onyx. Earrings and rings are all about charming – charming charms, that is. And they need to make a statement, as in having something to say. The most popular styles of charms are “emo” or expression charms, touting the wearer as “moody” or “peacfeful.” The spangle has to dangle, ya know?

Footwear – Clunky is funky. While you’ll still find an occasional pair of flip-flops in a designer’s line, clunky and chunky heels are stomping their way to forefront of teen fashion this Spring. Boots with 2 inch heels, wedge sandals, even clogs are getting the “thick” treatment. Strappy seems to be snappy for dress shoes. From Mary Jane’s in sparkling silver to gladiator sandals in bronze, straps are showing up everywhere, too.

With its bold, bright colors and its “bigger is better” attitude about everything, teen fashion seems to be all about making a statement this year. Not only will your fashion choices have something to say about who you are and what you’re like, your clothing and accessories will have things to say about themselves, too. We’re big, we’re proud, we’re beautiful – just like our wearers!

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