What’s Your Alternative Fashion Style?

While you don’t have to settle on a single look, it’s important to understand your own taste and dress in a way that reflects who you are on the inside. Style is all about sorting out your likes and dislikes and presenting the best version of you to the world. Here’s how:

1. TAKE A LONG, HARD LOOK AT YOUR CLOSET. What do you see? Put together clues from your wardrobe to help solve your style mystery. Odds are, you’ll find you’re a combination of styles.

- Do you have a lot of skirts? If they’re full or pleaded, your style might be ladylike or kind of preppy (think of Anne Hathaway). If they’re long and hippie-ish, you may be a little bohemian.

- Do you have a lot of ruffles and floral prints? That means you may favor feminine, flirty clothes.

- Are you mostly a jeans or pants person? You may have a laid-back California style (like Jennifer Aniston).

- A little bit of everything in your closet? You’re more of a free spirit, and Lindsay Lohan may be your style twin.

2. THINK OF YOUR FAVORITE OUTFITS. You may need to look through a few photo albums for this section. Scan your snapshots, and then focus on your favorites. What do these pictures tell you?

- Do you love the outfit you’re wearing?
- What color it is?
- What’s the cut and style?
- Does it make you feel good about the way your body looks?
- Does it flatter the features you like most and draw less attention to the ones you’re still working on?

Take note of all the details- the hanging earrings you were wearing, a pearl necklace, and the jacket. These are the colors, shapes, and styles that make you look and feel your best, so shop for similarity flattering things.

3. WHAT WERE YOU WEARING THE LAST TIME SOMEONE PAID YOU A BIG COMPLIMENT? If someone tells you that you look great in what you’re wearing, you probably feel great in it, too. Remember your favorite outfits next time you’re out shopping, and look for anything that reminds you of them, whether it’s a similar color, cut, or attitude.

4. WHEN YOU SHOP, WHAT IS YOUR EYE DRAWN TO? Next time you’re “just browsing” at your favorite store, pay attention to where your eyes wander. What fabrics do you reach out to touch and feel? If you can’t tear you eyes away from crisp cotton shirts, maybe you love classic looks. If you’re always trying on big, slouchy, cowl-necked or off-the-shoulders tops, you’ve got a more bohemian edge. Do you love ripped jeans? You’ve got a little rebel inside you. If you like velvet more than corduroy, you’re more glamorous than sporty. If you can’t resist an outrageous pattern or out-there outfit, and couldn’t be bothered with a plain old T-shirt, you’re a true original.

5. WHOSE STYLE DO YOU ADMIRE THE MOST? Here’s where all of those hours you spend flipping through your favorite magazines really pay off. Think of your celebrity photos. What is it about their style that you’re drawn to? Do you love Keira Knightley knack for combining vintage clothes with new things? If you do, then why not shopping at a second-hand store? Do you love how Miley Cyrus tucks her pants into boots? Give it a shot. If you can identify your favorite style when you see it, you’re one step closer to making it own.

6. KEEP A FASHION SCRAPBOOK. Rip out the pictures you love from magazines or catalogs (or print out copies of your favorite online shots), then paste them into a notebook. Once the pages start filling up, you might start noticing a theme. If hanging pearl earrings keep showing up, you may be having a Megan Fox or Beyonce Knowles moment. If the ladylike looks from the red carpet are in there over and over again, try ditching your jeans every once in a while in favor of a skirt. As the pictures pile up, you’ll be able to keep track of how your taste is changing and see what is just a passing, trendy fad, and what, months later, is your true style.