So, it seems that we have a new trend here at Central—a trend I hope sticks. Cardigans are a gift from God… not kidding. Although they have been around forever, cardigans were never really thought of as fashionable. Now, designers are making cardigans key parts of any teenager’s wardrobe. Because cardigans are so versatile, they can be worn with almost anything — except for sweat pants, that’s just gross. With so many colors, shapes and materials, some people seem to get lost on styling a cardigan.

When choosing a cardigan, or what to pair with a cardigan, its important to figure out whether you are going for a formal or informal look. People often make the mistake of wearing extremely casual looking cardigans with extremely formal dresses. I know cardigans are comfortable, but that doesn’t mean you could wear just any cardigan over a prom dress. Trust me; it’s not a good look.

If you are going for casual, pair your cardigan with a patterned sun dress, skirt or v-neck and jeans; all of these are not formal, but don’t make you look like you just rolled out of bed either. Choose colors wisely—pick one color or pattern to be the focus. If you wear a patterned dress with a brightly colored cardigan, you can end up looking like a big blob of color, which no one wants to be. Instead, wear either a bright dress/shirt/skirt with a dark cardigan or a bright cardigan with a dark dress/shirt/skirt. Shoes can play a major role in the informality of the outfit too; wear gladiator sandals, a pair of boat shoes or some Keds to keep the look casual.

Wearing a cardigan formally is difficult but has to do mainly with material and cut. A cotton cardigan is meant for casual look, so it really shouldn’t be worn over your prom dress – it pains me to even need to say that. A silky or thin material is always best. These materials will play up the materials of a formal dress, skirt or shirt. Longer lengths for the cardigans also look more elegant than those that cut off at the hip, but with a floor length gown, the best is probably a cropped cardigan (cut right below the chest). By adding dangled earrings, layered necklaces and/or a small clutch, the outfit will seem more formal too. Use these accessories to accent colors within the original outfit. Pull one color you like from the dress/shirt/skirt and use it in either multiple small pieces of jewelry or one large accessory. I like to pair a black dress and black cardigan with red high heels—attention is drawn to my legs, making me appear taller, which for a short girl, is always good.

All in all, if you don’t own a cardigan, go buy one… NOW.