When you hear the words “best dressed TV shows ever,” what comes to mind? Is it Gossip Girl and Serena’s bodycon dresses and platform pumps? Pretty Little Liars and all those chunky beaded necklaces and leather jackets? That Casino-inspired rabbit fur jacket Nate gives Maddy in season one of Euphoria? All of the above? Makes sense!
For decades, teens have looked to TV not only to see themselves and their lives represented on screen but for fashion inspo, too. Before the dawn of the internet, TV was the easiest way to know what was cool outside of your hometown bubble and what to shop for on your next visit to the mall. Shows like The OC, Sister Sister, and Beverly Hills, 90210 were packed with outfit inspo for viewers of all ages, especially teenagers, who have long been drivers of fads and fashion trends. You can’t say “red tights” without thinking of Blair Waldorf, and there’s a reason for that.
These costumes don’t just look great onscreen; they also play a majorly important role in storytelling and character development, helping us figure out who each character is, what their motivations are, and how they grow and change over the scope of the series.
Below, revisit some of the best dressed teen shows of all time and why they still stand out from the crowd.
The original Gossip Girl went off the air in 2012, but we haven’t stopped talking about S, B, Little J, and the rest of the crew since — and much of that has to do with their wardrobes. Gossip Girl head costume designer Eric Daman cut his teeth on the set of Sex and the City under the legendary Patricia Field and brought a similar high-low, mix-it-up sensibility to the Upper East Side. Blair’s clashing plaids and headbands, Serena’s boho-chic boots and skinny jeans, and Jenny’s evolution from sweet cupcake dresses to black leather and dark lipstick continue reverberating through the fashion trend cycles.
Though the updated version of Gossip Girl only lasted two seasons and wasn’t quite the cultural phenomenon of its predecessor, the clothes were still great. For the 2020s take on Constance Billard and St. Jude’s, Daman and his team gave the costume department a makeover, ditching the headbands in favor of varsity jackets and Christopher John Rogers runway shows. The schoolboy/prep trend never really disappeared, and the Gossip Girl reboot breathed new life into it in the coolest way.
Yes, the clothes of PLL feel extremely dated at the moment, but that doesn’t mean they weren’t influential at the time. It’s a picture-perfect time capsule of the biggest trends of the early 2010s, including dresses paired with cropped jackets, ankle booties, and statement necklaces. In 2016, wardrobe stylist Cameron Dale told Teen Vogue that the stars were intimately involved in shaping their characters’ looks. “The girls are all such fashionistas in their own right, so they absolutely have input in their clothing. I had a conversation with each girl once I joined the family, and we discussed their new 5 years-forward looks,” Dale shared at the time. “They had great ideas to contribute, as well as what styles they were done with. Two requests I remember off the top of my head: Lucy wanted to leave behind the giant statement jewelry and Shay didn't want any more denim cutoffs.”
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HBO’s Euphoria needs no introduction. So much ink has been spilled about the makeup and wardrobe, whether it’s an ode to Zendaya-as-Rue in her late father’s hoodie to Sydney Sweeney and Alexa Demie in their matching cropped top velour sweatsuits. Euphoria has had a major impact on the fashion trends of the 2020s and even spawned a “What I’d wear to Euphoria High” meme on TikTok, where users transformed from their regular school clothes to the clubwear-inspired ‘fits of the characters. Sure, most teens don’t really dress like Maddy, Kat, and Cassie, but they want to.
Each character’s look was a team effort between the cast, head designer Heidi Bivens, and creator Sam Levinson. “We wanted the costumes to give you a quick read if you just glanced at the character,” Bivens told Teen Vogue. “Whatever we did, I wanted it to feel timeless, but at the same time, like a time capsule.”
If you’re curious about what teens actually dressed like in the 2000s, The OC is a good place to start. Despite the fact that Marissa and Summer wore a lot of designer — as in, Chanel designer — the clothes still feel approachable and relatable. Marissa’s baby tees and miniskirts and Summer’s flirty sundresses set the trends for countless Y2K teens, this writer included.
Despite the fact that Buffy Summers was actively slaying vampires and other demons while attending high school, she did it in style. Think leather jackets, high boots with miniskirts, and slip skirts paired with fitted tops — despite the fact that these items don’t seem super conducive to stabbing a vampire through the heart with a stake. But hey, if you’re looking for some solid Y2K inspiration, look no further than Sunnydale.
Though the 2010s reboot had its charms, it’s nowhere near as influential as the original series. Brenda, Donna, and Kelly were the It-girls of the early ‘90s in glam prom dresses, floral sundresses, and high-waisted jeans — and echoes of 90210 are still felt today, given that the biggest trends of the ‘90s are enjoying a moment in the spotlight once more. If the characters time-traveled from the Peach Pit to a modern Target store, they’d feel right at home thanks to the retro-inspired outfits and accessories currently on the shelves.
No show captures the “indie sleaze” era like Skins, the British teen soap that feels like every 2010s Tumblr trend mashed together. Lead character Effy alone looks like the absolute definition of early 2010s style, what with her ripped jeans, fishnet tights, layered necklaces, knee socks and miniskirts.
The CW’s darker take on the Archie comics leaned all the way in with the camp factor, including in the costume department. But they did it the right way, dressing Betty, Veronica, Archie, Jughead, and the rest of the crew in clothing that nodded to the original comic series — Jug’s crown beanie, the Vixens outfits — while bringing the characters into the 21st century. There were vintage elements, like Cheryl Blossom’s entire vibe and Veronica’s fitted bombshell dresses, but the series seemed to exist almost out of time. "Every character is based on either a composite or a decade of the actual Archie comics, but reinterpreted in our new modern way," costume designer Rebekka Sorensen-Kjelstrup told Fashionista in 2017. "So nobody is head-to-toe running around in '70s or '40s [looks]." From time jumps to cult gatherings to high school prom and everything in between, Riverdale and its costumes were never, ever boring.
No one did preppy like Rory Glimore. Gilmore Girls is synonymous with cozy cable knit sweaters, plaid skirts, valedictorian-worthy blazers, and miniskirts paired with thick tights. It’s basically campus fashion in a nutshell. GG has had a resurgence lately, thanks to TikTok, so if you spot chunky sweaters paired with hair kerchiefs and bootcut jeans strolling around your version of Stars Hollow, that’s probably why.
Netflix’s Elite was definitely inspired by the original Gossip Girl and its upscale private school prep aesthetic. When the characters are at school, they’re dressed to the nines in matching jackets and skirts with red piping, but when they go out, they’re all about bright colors, vibrant patterns, and glamorous party dresses. Lead costume designer Cristina Rodríguez told Teen Vogue that she used the uniforms as a base to let her characters express themselves via accessories and styling. “It was tricky thinking about the uniforms and how each character would personalize or customize their uniforms and what accessories they would wear,” she shared. “You have to be able to express a lot through small details. In the beginning, we thought of it as a problem, but in the end, it turned out really well.”
Since Degrassi has existed in different iterations over several decades, they’ve had to dress countless actors in the trending looks of their time. Degrassi is less about fashion and more about the storyline, as soapy as they may be, and the actors actually look like normal teens in their costumes — no small feat!
If you love the grunge aesthetic, you will flip for the clothes on the short-lived but much-loved ‘90s series My So-Called Life. A young Claire Danes plays Angela, whose closet is packed with grunge essentials like oversized flannels, layered shirts, and denim overalls. Channel Angela and her BFF Rayanne in black leotards with baggy jeans and floral print babydoll dresses.
This beloved ‘90s sitcom starring twin sisters Tia and Tamera Mowry as — you guessed it! — twins separated at birth was an absolute dream for young fashion lovers. The Mowry sisters wore so many iconic ‘fits, including lots of bucket hats and berets and plenty of denim-on-denim (including vests!). As the sisters and their onscreen characters aged, their looks got a more fashion-forward twist, incorporating late-’90s trends like faux leather and lime green — items that feel fresh again today.
In Cousins Beach, casual comfort is key. Belly and her friends are all about summer sundresses and effortless separates like sweet, feminine tank tops paired with jeans or cutoffs. Yes, there are more dressed-up moments throughout the series, like the debutante ballgown Belly wears, but the charm of TSITP’s costumes is that they feel like things you would actually wear in your normal day-to-day life — tees you could find at Brandy Melville or American Eagle, a pair of beloved cutoffs, a sweater swiped from your mom’s closet.
The clothing of Netflix’s Sex Education is all about self-expression, especially in later seasons as the students of Cavendish discover who they are and get more comfortable with themselves. Think lots of bright, vivid colors, mixing and matching textures and patterns, and so many great jackets. As the story unfolds, you watch your favorite characters bloom and grow, and their wardrobe reflects that.
