Label Me | Teen Ink

Label Me

November 13, 2008
By missxniss BRONZE, East Meadow, New York
missxniss BRONZE, East Meadow, New York
2 articles 0 photos 0 comments

Favorite Quote:
Anything that involves the movie Anchorman.


For years now, namebrands have become more and more popular - as well as expensive. In my high school, I see several students in the hallways with extremely high-priced clothing, jewelry, etc. I'll be honest, it disgusts me. Our parents/guardians have hard-working jobs and most of the things you get are coming from your parents/guardians salary. Is that fair? When you become their age, would you like it if your children spent YOUR money? Because that's how it is. Why do we need all these expensive things? Girls of all ages walk around in UGGS. At Mandee's or Target, they have boots EXACTLY like UGGS, but we choose not to buy them, because it doesn't say the namebrand stamped on the bottom/back of the boots. I'll admit, I bought my first pair of UGGS last year with my own money that I EARNED from babysitting; and I still wear them even though they have some wear-and-tear on them. Let's face it, society is very much so based on namebrand materials. Some people just cannot afford these expensive things. Since when are shirts $24.99? Why are hoodies $45.00? Do jeans really need to be priced at $50.00? Is it fair? Of course not. Will there ever be a decrease in prices? Will there be an increase? Who knows? Unfortunately, people nowadays have to cope with this type of peer pressure to look good. And personally, I'm blind-sided to really... why?


The author's comments:
When I went into middle school three years ago, my life did a 360 turn and I was completely and utterly stunned by why. As my years go on, I am trying to keep up with all the new fashion styles, etc. Apparently, it's not working too well. For most families, money does not grow on trees, so I basically "allowed" myself to "lower" my standards, so to say, and now I shop like anyone else, but rather than buying the most expensive things, I head for the clearance rack first. It's ridiculous to spend that much money on something. Let me know how you feel, please e-Mail me at missxniss@aim.com , I would like to know how you feel about my article.

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This article has 87 comments.


on May. 9 2011 at 10:24 am
Right I feel the same way

cr8artchick said...
on Apr. 13 2011 at 1:41 am
cr8artchick, Yorba Linda California, California
0 articles 0 photos 7 comments
I totally hear you buddy. Not to mention, I've found a lot of deals on the clearance racks, so they should never be ruled out :)

on Apr. 1 2011 at 6:53 pm
Angelnight16 BRONZE, Heuvelton, New York
1 article 0 photos 24 comments

Favorite Quote:
"i used to be normal... until i met those people who i now call my friends."

i totally agree. the whole name brand thing is utterly rediculous. i started wearing naame brands for a while. but stopped becuse i wanted to have my own style not wear somone elses. i even began asking friends who only wear aero, and hollister, and uggs (yuck) why they liked the brands so much. i expected something along the lines of " oh o like all the color selections" or " i love the type of jeans they sell". no. the only answer i got was becuase it was that brand. i wanted to look at them like they ewere idiots becuase they are mainly sheep. thats all it is teenagers are SHEEP. some probably dont even like the brand, they just wear it to be a part of the crowd. even though i can understan wanting to fit in. i even heard a girl in my class( one that fusses over her loks 24/7) say how she 'hated" hollister and how she wasnt going to wear it anymore. that is still practically all she wears. and i dont even know why it bugs me so much....

on Mar. 22 2011 at 3:37 pm
aspiringauthor_ BRONZE, Fairfield, Connecticut
1 article 0 photos 324 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that." - MLK Jr.

I agree... Mostly. I mean, yes, the whole name brand thing is ridiculous. But then again, so is the part about how kids are wasting our parent's hard earned money. Most kids our age (and I'm assuming everyone is at least 13, as this is TEEN Ink) are paying for at least some of our clothes. I know that I have to use my debit card whenever I want to buy clothes. None of my parents' money goes toward buying me clothes. And since it's my money, I get to choose where I get my clothes. And I choose Abercrombie & Fitch and American Eagle and all those other name brand stores. (I am aware that this makes me sound obnoxious and stuck up, just bear with me.) I don't choose them because I am in the mind-set that I have to get all the name brand clothes. I get clothing from those stores because they have cute clothes that look good on me! And pardon me for saying so, but I enjoy looking good! :) The clothes at Target are perfectly acceptable, and I do buy my socks and pajamas there... After all, no one sees me in my pajamas. So, I am basically saying that some people don't shop there for the moose (Abercrombie) or the eagle (American Eagle). They just shop because they like the clothes. :)

sunny said...
on Mar. 18 2011 at 10:25 am
well i agree with all of you guys too because nemed brans are good once there on sale or not, but people shouldn't care of howe you dressed or looked

on Mar. 1 2011 at 4:24 pm
starlight26 GOLD, Miramar, Florida
11 articles 7 photos 174 comments

Favorite Quote:
*life isnt about pretending to be something you're not. It about being who you are and finding someone
who loves every bit of it."

"Life's tradegy is that we get old too soon and wise too late"

I agree 100 percent. I mean I go to Ross, and Walmart and Marshalls.But I still enjoy going to American Eagle or Forever 21 when theres a sale. Bullying based on Labels is extremely pointless when people don't have a single piece of clothing on their backs.

Scarlett13 said...
on Feb. 19 2011 at 5:39 pm
Scarlett13, Hockessin, Delaware
0 articles 0 photos 3 comments
many teenagers commit suicide just because their being peer pressure or bullied because they dont have enough money for expensive clothing.  i mean, people have to face the reality that there are starving people in the place and people who dont have the right clothing.  people are freezing and starving, but yet people have the nerve to buy really expensive clothing?  just because its more expensive doesn't mean it looks better.  i have a pair of boots that look exactly like UGGS except for the name brand on the bottom back of the boots, and it didn't cost me nearly as much.  some teenagers don't have enough money to buy clothes so they wear hand me downs... NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT!!!!  youre saving money and in this economy you need to save money to make it through

on Feb. 17 2011 at 5:49 pm
SkyDeer PLATINUM, Mebane, North Carolina
20 articles 19 photos 49 comments

Favorite Quote:
Respect the nerds, they will be your boss someday- The Computer Guy.
The best is yet to come and baby won't it be fine- A band.
Defiant is the best word in the dictionary!

Honestly, I'm not sure.

Keeper6 GOLD said...
on Feb. 16 2011 at 3:37 pm
Keeper6 GOLD, Buffalo, Minnesota
16 articles 0 photos 39 comments

Favorite Quote:
Giving up doesn't always mean you are weak, sometimes it just means you are strong enough to let go.

so why all the hate? im confused

 


on Jan. 27 2011 at 9:40 pm
silence-is-loud GOLD, Chicago, Illinois
10 articles 0 photos 135 comments

Favorite Quote:
FLOAT LIKE A BUTTERFLY, STING LIKE A BEE- MUHAMMID ALI

sooo true, it isnt hard to find named brand clothes with discounts. And for my school, Aero and Hollister is considered "lame" I don't know who started this new thinkg and why, but it's pretty annoying because I have tons of Aero clothes that are perfectly wearable and no where near "lame". But I guess that for the less fortunate, the pressure is off of them. Instead of buying 40 dollar hoodies that they can't afford, they can simply get a non-named brand shirt for 6 dollars

on Jan. 27 2011 at 9:40 pm
everysecond BRONZE, Chesapeake, Virginia
2 articles 0 photos 4 comments

Favorite Quote:
I'm a lover not a fighter

I agree! I have a big family, with both parents, and four brothers I don't have much extra money at all, no one does. The most name brand clothes i have is aeropostal because all of their clothes are usually on sale, and half of them are from garage sales and such.

Missirules said...
on Jan. 27 2011 at 9:37 am
How do you know that they get their clothes from the stores like Aeropostale or American Eagle. Like me and my friends get most of our brand name clothing from a store called Plato's closet where everything is 70-90% off. And my shoes which look like Uggs cost about 20 bucks with gift cards and when they were on sale. So you dont have to spend alot of money on brand name clothing you just have to know where to find good deals

bjmcrank GOLD said...
on Jan. 5 2011 at 10:12 pm
bjmcrank GOLD, Dayton, Ohio
11 articles 10 photos 14 comments
i agree 100% when i get my clothes i get then from garage sales, were they'er cheaper, and i have some aropostale tshirts that were 25 cents. thats were they should look for name brand clothes! i fit my moms clothes so we tend to trade around. the only name brand thing i buy is at target for 24 bucks i buy converse, and converse lasts awhile and are worth what you pay for. not all people like them or find them comfy. but i think there comfy. and i buy one pair a year.  i think sometimes people take what they have for granted.

jemter GOLD said...
on Dec. 18 2010 at 8:00 pm
jemter GOLD, Oakley, California
14 articles 36 photos 33 comments
I have to admit: most of my stuff comes from goodwill, but whenever a discount pops up at delia's (a totally awesome graphic T place) I'm THERE. I think that spending a little on clothes OCATIONALY is okay, but only if it's what you want to wear, not what everybody else is wearing.

on Dec. 8 2010 at 2:50 pm
SkyDeer PLATINUM, Mebane, North Carolina
20 articles 19 photos 49 comments

Favorite Quote:
Respect the nerds, they will be your boss someday- The Computer Guy.
The best is yet to come and baby won't it be fine- A band.
Defiant is the best word in the dictionary!

Aren't we nice today.

the dude said...
on Dec. 8 2010 at 8:34 am
i hate u i have many pricing's

on Nov. 26 2010 at 5:50 pm
SkyDeer PLATINUM, Mebane, North Carolina
20 articles 19 photos 49 comments

Favorite Quote:
Respect the nerds, they will be your boss someday- The Computer Guy.
The best is yet to come and baby won't it be fine- A band.
Defiant is the best word in the dictionary!

You are so right! I really never wear namebrands- they are way to exspensive! Alot of my clothing is hand-me downs and I'm proud of it!

on Nov. 22 2010 at 3:42 pm
RemmiWrote SILVER, Goshen, New York
6 articles 9 photos 7 comments

Favorite Quote:
Be patient
Life is hard
Be couragous.<3Francis Hoffman RIP

i know what you mean. Im only 13 and all the girls are crazy with their brands and stuff. I dont care because 3/4 of my closet is hand-me-downs.

on Nov. 22 2010 at 1:08 pm
CatherineK SILVER, Omaha, Nebraska
7 articles 4 photos 19 comments

Favorite Quote:
“In all things it is better to hope than to despair”

Most of my name brand stuff I got for christmas or birthdays or I bought with my own money. My mom would NEVER buy me name brand clothing on a regular day if there's something cheaper that is just as good or better quality.

on Nov. 16 2010 at 9:55 pm
ZombieDanceWithMe SILVER, Rockford, Illinois
7 articles 1 photo 98 comments

Favorite Quote:
“To die is nothing; but it is terrible not to live”



-Victor Hugo

dude, everybody at my school wears uggs(or good knock offs) and American Eagle jeans (which aren't TOO bad) If it's not from american eagle it better be Tripp(the Hottopic jean brand) or something by Pac Sun, or else your like nothing. I mean, people are still friends with you, but you get real self conscience. I have 3 pairs of jeans, I did nor work for them, The first was a present for doing something, and my dad was really proud of me, so he got them for me and then the other two were on sale at american eagle and I had just lost 40 pounds, so it was a congratulations gift. All my old jeans I got at Garage Sales and Walmart. I don't see the big deal, as long as you look like the image your trying to portray, why need name brands?