Hello CollegeCandy viewers! My name is Meg, and I’ll be taking over the “Budget Stylista” column. I’m a freshman at the best school in Ohio, so adjusting to the “college budget” has been a tough transition, especially with my passion for style. Though shopping on a budget takes a little more effort, it can keep your closet full and your wallet fuller. With spring approaching new trends have been gracing the malls, outlets, runways and celebrities ensembles.

A few major trends, including color blocking and blazers, have been seen just about everywhere. Designers like Jason Wu, Donatella Versace and Balenciaga have welcomed the trend with open arms. With fresh looks and a refreshing pallet of colors, spring 2012 is looking to be an innovatively stylish season! (Click all the photos for shopping deets!)

Versace Spring 2012: Though neutral frocks ruled the runway, dainty pastels and brights like this little number stole the show. Finally, after months of dreary winter earth tones, it’s time to freshen your look with a burst of color. For those of you cautious stylistas, bold amounts of brights is the first step in your color blocking mission. The recreated ensemble features a coral mini with cream accents and simple jewelry. Total cost: $108

Jason Wu spring 2012: I honestly believe Jason Wu is my spirit animal. Jason has an incredible talent of taking a cup of couture, a quart of quality and a teaspoon of street chic to create gorgeous collections fit for fashionistas and minimalists alike. Take a high waist pair of shorts and pair them a fitted blazer to create a trendy NYC inspired look. Pair with an edgy pair of H&M kicks (did I mention they’re priced at $16?!)  and some funky shades. Total costs: $119

Balenciaga Runway 2012: Balenciaga is never one to disappoint, or fear taking risks. In B’s runway collection, clashing printed ensembles and lace ups were rocked in many different ways. With a Kelly Ewig marbled skirt and an H&M fitted leopard top, the patterns are so wrong they work together perfectly. If there is one thing to learn from the geniuses behind Balenciaga, it’s that opposites do attract; so much so that they go on to create a beautiful love child. Total cost: $140

There you have it fellow budget stylistas, the must-have spring trends recreated to become affordable and adorable. May the frugal force be with you!

I hate to go all crazy department store on you (It’s January 28th? Time to set up a Memorial Day swimsuit display!) but the fashion industry is always 6 months ahead of us normal folk. The elite designers of the trade have challenged us with innovative, advanced looks that put oh-so 2011 trends, like flare legged jeans and feathers, to shame. What? You can’t afford Roberto Cavalli? No worries fellow broke college students; I’ve recreated the looks with budget friendly brands. Prepare to rock 2012 with these inventive spring trends:

Betsey Johnson Spring 2012

What’s Out: The Blazer/Skinny Jean/UGG Boots

What’s In: The Blazer/Tank Dress/Suede Lace Ups

This Betsey Johnson original is a giant step up from the boring blazer over skinny jeans with a pair of classic cut Uggs. Pair a tank dress with a fitted blazer and a layered necklace. Channel your inner-Betsey with some suede lace up heels and a lightning bolt ring.

Badgley Mischka Spring 2012

What’s Out: Leather Jacket/Sequin Top/Jean Shorts

What’s In: Leather Jacket/Bandeu Top/ Hot Pants

This year, forget the overdone mini skirt, tank top tucked in, leather jacket over top club wear. Please welcome back the ever so risqué: Hot pants. The undies-shorts hybrid will give the illusion of legs for miles. Pair your favorite leather jacket with a bandeau top and match with a hot pair of shoes. Is that Amber Rose over there rocking her model bod? Oh wait, that’s just you donning this beautiful ensemble.

Kanye West Spring/Summer 2012

What’s Out: Blue Denim/Fitted Tops/Nude Heels

What’s In: Patterned Bottoms/Loose Layers/Bold Heels

In 2010, colorful denim became a top trend. This year, hold the focus on your bottoms as opposed to the top of your outfit. Pair pattered denim with a solid colored top, a bold colored pair of heels, and a minimalistic piece of jewelry.

L.A.M.B. Gwen Stefani Spring 2012

What’s Out: Neutrals/Long Sleeve/Clutch

What’s In: Metallics/3 Quarter Length/Totes

Ditch the Khakis, coal, and corduroy for some expressive metallic this season. Go for a basic top with 3 quarter length sleeves that allow room for funky bracelets. As much as I love a good clutch, it’s a bitch trying to fit everything into one-so welcome back boxy totes!

If 2012 is the end of the world, then Betsey Johnson, Badgley Mishka, Kanye & Gwen Stefani have definitely saved the best trends for last. Step out of your comfort zone with these looks and make Spring  2012 your most stylish season yet!

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Classy, simple, minimalist ladies, beware! In this season of jewelry, the bigger the better!

While we used to make fun of Mr. T for his over-sized, overwhelming gold chain, we need to face facts and accept that big, gaudy, over-the-top jewelry is here to stay. (But not for long because every so often fashion trends recycle themselves, duh.)

Long ago, we as females reserved our ring fingers for the biggest rock of our lives: our engagement ring.  Since we’ve upped the ante on the jewelry field, the big, statement rock we once saved for a special day is now made in every – and I mean every ­– shape and size for all 10 fingers.

Like peacocks? Buy a peacock ring. Like bunnies? Buy a rhinestone embellished bunny ring and wear it on your pinky.

Because all of our style trends this season are in fast-forward, take a look at some of the most fashion forward statement rings!

initiating the gallery...

By now we all know that trends come and go. They’re in and they’re out before we can even blink, never mind save up the money to splurge on them. But those trends we do manage to indulge in? Even those come back to haunt us. Remember that stuff that you thought was so totally cool back in the 90s (a lot of which happens to be coming back into style now…) that you laugh about now? Well give it another ten years and these will be the trends you’re regretting.

10. Fedoras. So cute. So chic. You’ve got to love menswear inspired pieces. Right now there’s nothing out of place about heading to the beach with a a fedora atop your head. But I fear that a few years from now there definitely will be.

9. Cropped Tops. A couple of years ago I watched movies from the 90s in which Julia Stiles and the likes were wearing midriff bearing tops and I was wondering why girls ever thought the Britney inspired belly shirt was a good idea. Now it suddenly seems cute, retro, and I’d be lying if I said I haven’t recently rocked a cute cropped button down with high-waisted jeans…

8. Neon Colors. The bright pops of color that have been defining my accessories as of late are chic and in style now. But somehow I don’t think a hot pink handbag will still seem on trend a few seasons from now.

7. Oversize Sunglasses. When I look at pictures of people wearing sunglasses form the 90s I can’t help but think, “Why are they so tiny?” completely perplexed by the size of these shades. I feel like I’ll be having the opposite experience when I eventually look back and see pictures of me in my oversize sunnies.

6. Boyfriend Jeans. I know I’ll look back at pictures and question my sanity but right now they’re really, really comfy, okay?

5. Gladiator Sandals. These have been cute and trendy for a few seasons now. Comfy and flat, they’re the perfect summer sandal. But give it a few more seasons and I’ll probably be thinking that we all had Greek god complexes…

4. Wide Leg Jeans. I wore these when I was in junior high. And now I’m wearing them again. Because they look great with chunky wedges and allow me to take part in the 70s trends without looking like an extra on That 70s Show. Meanwhile, in another ten years I’ll probably think I look like an extra from That 10s Show. 

3. Leopard Print. Right now? Cute. Chic. Sexy. The future? Why the hell was I dressing like an extra from The Cheetah Girls?

2. One Shoulder Shirts. This one has been around for a while now but it’s only recently that I’ve indulged in it myself. I was skeptical of the idea of looking like I forgot half my shirt  at home but caved when I saw purple shirt in the perfect print. Let’s hope this new found acceptance sticks.

1. Leggings as Pants. Even now I don’t know what I’m thinking when I do this. “Legging are not pants.” Blair Waldorf says so, and I totally agree. But on lazy mornings, paired with an oversize sweatshirt or t-shirt, that fact seems to slip my mind…

Okay, ladies. What other trends should be on this list?

[This post and contest come hot off the Internet presses from our friends at CollegeFashion!]

Although it’s not officially summer yet, I think it’s safe to say the hottest season of the year is in full swing. Now that the warm weather calls for a change in fashion, it’s time to update your summer wardrobe. Of course, this doesn’t mean you have to spend tons of money on a closet full of new clothes. That’s why I found six trendy, yet versatile items that will keep your look stylish all summer long and can easily be paired with the items you already own.

No matter what your clothing budget this summer, rest assured that purchasing even one of the items here will help to freshen up your summer look.

Feathers have always been huge in the world of fashion — and in the last few seasons, they’ve seen an especially big surge. While in the past, feathers were a glamorous touch added to hats and the collars of jackets, these days the feathers on  clothing and accessories have a more bohemian, earthy feel. Feathers and feather print adorn everything from jewelry to clothing to hair accessories, and I love the way they look with the other seventies-inspired fashion that’s popular this season.

And since feathers are literally everywhere these days, the good news is you don’t necessarily have to spend a fortune on them. Here are a few great feathered choices for just $20 or less!

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Here at CollegeCandy we like to consider ourselves quite the fashion go-to girls. I mean, we tell you where to shop, what to buy, and how to wear it. So it’s only right that today, the first day of Mercedes Benz Fall 2011 New York Fashion Week (gah, that’s a mouthful!), we offer you our two cents on what’s to come.

But not so much on the clothes themselves, or even the designers. We’ll leave that to the professionals. Instead we’d rather focus on everything else. So here’s what’s coming your way from the runways of New York over the next 7 days. Well, besides the great clothes, and the good looking guys, and the gorgeous models, that is.

1. The ugliest clothes you’ve ever seen. They’ll be hideous. Unflattering. Out of proportion. They will break every fashion rule that has ever been made. No one will ever wear them. And no one will ever want to. But for the entirety of Fashion Week people will rave about how brilliant the designers are, and how great the clothes look. And sure they will probably inspire some really cute outfits from some less than Fashion Week-worthy designers, but those clothes? The originals? Those won’t be worn again. Not even by Blair Waldorf.

2. “New trends” that were also new when your mom was your age. True story. We don’t realize how quickly trends resurface in fashion but all of these new styles that we’re currently loving were loved a long, long time ago as well. Two weeks ago I was watching Glory Daze and an unsuspecting sorority girl opened the door in an oversized sweater and leggings. If it hadn’t been for the horrible side ponytail I would have thought the show suddenly jumped ahead 20 years.  So all these new trends you’ll see this week that look like they could have come straight out of the ’70s? They did come straight out of the ’70s.

3. Rachel Zoe’s collarbone. And plenty of other people’s collarbones, as well. Skinny arms. Toothpick legs. And lots and lots of teeny, tiny waists. Love it or hate it, Fashion Week is about the skinny people. So be prepared to be shocked into a sugar coma. Because, personally, there’s nothing I want to do more after watching super tall, super thin models walk down a runway than eat lots and lots of ice-cream. Or jump on the treadmill. We’ll see how it goes. To each her own, you know?

4. Some really weird makeup. Smoky eyes below the eye. Shaved eyebrows.  White liner. Bright lips. If anyone rocked these looks to class, or even on the red carpet, people would look at them like, well, like they shaved their eyebrows. But during Fashion Week it’s fabulous. It’s cutting edge. It’s trying something new. It’s treating the models like a canvas, manipulating them to better present the clothes, which, yes, I totally get. I understand the point of it all, but the makeup is still pretty weird.

5. Anna Wintour’s Bob. The editor-in-chief of Vogue. This woman is synonymous with fashion. And with her page boy bob and oversized sunnies. She’ll be there, loving a select few items while also internally tearing apart all the rest. The woman is like a real life Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep’s evil boss to Anne Hathaway’s scared intern). So watch closely to see if she nods or shakes her head. Or better yet, watch to see if she purses her lips. You remember what that means right? Absolute disaster.

Now that sounds like fun.

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