PLL Clothing: What The Hell Is She Wearing!?

[emma675]

Since we often snark on the clothing in the episodes threads, I thought it might be fun to have one topic dedicated specifically to the crazy clothing the girls (and others) wear.

 

I've noticed in the last two episodes that Hanna's beanie has cloned itself and is now on Spencer's head. Maybe Caleb will get one next, he seems to be in a funk.

Edited July 16, 2014 by emma675d

[Crim]

I like the beanie and they all look great in it.

 

Mona would probably look good too. I liked her in the hoodie. Janel has such a striking face and it looks great with just the plain black hood framing it.

 

(Side note: I think this topic would be 90% screen shots of Aria.)

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I guess Aria is finally out of her bird/feather stage now. I'm going to miss her insane feathered accessories.

My wardrobe thoughts from this week's episode:

Haha, so Hanna passed the black beanie of sadness to Spencer? That beige jumper made her look like either a street urchin or a lunch lady. Then there was Ali's powder blue blazer. Was she going on a job interview? Add to the weird wardrobe this week Emily's blue and black faux varsity jacket. Seriously, who the hell dressed the girls this week?

[Crim]

I don't know anything about fashion, but Ali's clothes are so weird. Not crazy weird like Aria's feathers and multiple animal prints (Maybe Tanner could tell it was her at Ezra's just by that bag.) or dorky, thematic and awesome like Spencer sometimes, just not something I'd imagine a teenager wears - and not in a good way.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

The weird thing is that in the flashbacks, Ali seemed to dress like a normal teenager. I mean, there was nothing weird or inappropriate about he Yellow Tank Top of Death. But since she got back, she's been dressing like a teenage real estate agent circa 1991. Is this supposed to be a sign of her messed up mental state? Has she been possessed by the ghost of Jessica who is stuck in a time warp because she's reliving her high school glory days?

[Crim]

Yeah, Ali dressed like a normal teenager both during flashbacks and in the not!visions when she came back (except when she came to Hanna in the hospital, but that was just awesome), and even when she was on the run. It's only her return to Rosewood that brought this horrible affliction to the surface.

 

Maybe she is raiding her mother's closet.

[AmandaPanda]

Spencer looked like she was wearing a smock in this week's episode. It was so shapeless. My friend actually questioned if Spencer had gotten a job at the Brew and that was supposed to be her apron.

 

Also, Spencer's weird 4th of July sweater outfit from the 100th episode. She had a weird bandana on that made it look like she was needing to cover up about 50 hickies on her neck.

Edited July 16, 2014 by AmandaPanda

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Maybe she is raiding her mother's closet.

Well she did want to wear her mom's black dress to feel closer to her so maybe she went into the attic and dug out the box of Jessica's high school/college clothes!

It just seems so strange that a girl who made sure to get her hair and nails done while she was on the run would finally get to come home and start dressing like that.

Out of all the PLL, I enjoy Spencer's outfits the most because, as you said, she really commits to her themes. Aria's outfits always look like Urban Outfitters and Forever 21 had a baby and then that baby threw up accessories and feathers all over Aria. Hanna used to be a bit dressy for school but she seemed to dress the most like a fashionable teenager (before this season, I would have said that Ali also dressed like a normal but fashionable teenager). Emily always gets the comfiest outfits like this week's white t-shirt and black pants.

Edited July 16, 2014 by ElectricBoogaloo

[mercfan3]

I like Emily's style the best. It's like "Free People" casual. 

 

Aria's outfits..I feel like she's the teenage version of Carrie Bradshaw. (Actually, in more ways than just fashion.)

 

Hanna is very hit or miss. 

 

Spencer is very preppy and thematic. It's usually not too bad, but it also ages her. I actually like her fashion choices best when she's going through her crazy spells. "Haven't taken a shower in a week" Spencer is the hottest Spencer. 

 

Alison...is just WTF. There is no way a girl who dressed like that would be Queen Bee. 

[M1977G]

I snarked on the costuming for this week, but in general Hanna and Emily have my favorite liars' styles.  I find the wardrobe on this show to be very hit or miss in terms of what actually looks good, but I agree with others that the costume designer and stylists do deeply develop themes for some of the characters.  Sometimes, said themes just go awry.  Like Hanna's descent into darkness this season via her grunge look and black streaks.  I get what they're doing, and appreciate the desire to reflect character development through costuming, but they've been a bit obvious and heavy handed with Hanna.  Loved Hanna's sparkly spiky black heels at Lucas's party, though!  And a perfect Hanna shoe for the moment, I thought.  Still ladylike Hanna, in black and with an edge.  Conveys her edgy state of mind, but with a little more subtlety than black shredded leggings.  One thing I do like about Hanna that I think her recent wardrobe change reflects nicely, though:  she's pretty expressive about what she's thinking or when something's bothering her, even if she's not talking about it.   

 

Maybe she is raiding her mother's closet.

 

 

Well she did want to wear her mom's black dress to feel closer to her so maybe she went into the attic and dug out the box of Jessica's high school/college clothes!
It just seems so strange that a girl who made sure to get her hair and nails done while she was on the run would finally get to come home and start dressing like that.

 

ITA.  I think Ali is wearing a lot of her mom's stuff, but I'm not entirely sure why.  Is it about her conflicted grief over her mother's death?  Is it a plot device?  I'm thinking yes to both.  I think the yellow scarf may have belonged to Mrs. DiLaurentis--Mrs. D was wearing one in the picture Eddie Lamb left Ezra, and Aria said she often wore scarves like that--and it also was necessary for the Hitchcock-esque choke scene.  Ali also got rid of a lot of her clothes when she got back home, and when her father suggested she slow her roll on tossing all that stuff out, she said she'd grown out of the stuff and that she wasn't the same person she'd been.  So perhaps this blazer/stewardess style she's sporting is about trying to look or feel more mature, even though she's still trying to outrun the consequences of her twisted girlhood games.  I'm not enjoying these particular blazers, though.

Edited July 17, 2014 by M1977G

[KatWay]

I doubt that Ali's terrible clothes are supposed to be a plot point, because nobody has pointed them out and people were acting like she was making a full queen B comeback.

Now perhaps they are supposed to represent Ali's more reserved approach now with her perpetual victimhood and everything, but I doubt they're actually her mom's clothes (though they sure look it). They're just fugly. Mature doesn't have to mean matronly.

[Sakura12]

I guess Ali could be raiding her mother's closet could explain  why she's dressing like a Real Estate agent. I don't know what the hell Spencer was wearing, a burlap sack? Hanna and Emily were dressed somewhat normally for them. I think the writers distract with their costume choices, because they always make me go WTF? are they wearing when I see them sometimes, making me miss some of the dialogue. 

 

Aria dresses like it's Halloween everyday. This one was one of my favs.

She looks like Lord Licorice from Candy Land if he decided to be a train conductor. 

[larapu2000]

She looks like Lord Licorice from Candy Land if he decided to be a train conductor.

 

And we are supposed to believe that a grown-ass man doesn't find this repellent.

[M1977G]

Ali's white blazer (S5 E7) was more ugly than last week's. It didn't work with that pastel Hawaiian shirt and flowery scarf.  I guess the blazer and scarf are becoming the new Ali's signature wardrobe items?  I enjoy her efforts to mix prints far less than Hanna or Aria's, and am disappointed to see Ali is the third Liar this season to don a goofy beanie. 

 

Hanna's grunge is working better for me than I thought it would.  Loved that Emily told her to brush her hair before showing up for dinner...and that Hanna actually did it.  And I loved Emily's black ankle boots in the scene with her mom in her bedroom.

 

Spencer's dressed down hoodie, T shirt, and pony tail were a major improvement over her art smock from last week. But I'm ready for Spencer to get her fierceness back, and to put some energy into her wardrobe again.  I get that she's rebelling from the Hastings family traditions, which probably includes wearing pearls and chignons, but come on, Spence.  Put on some awesome equestrian boots and show Ali how a blazer is done!  

Edited July 25, 2014 by M1977G

[lorikauai]

WTF is with Ali's blazers? It looks like she has another one next week. She never struck me as a blazer kind of girl.

[Crim]

The worst might be yet to come: in episode 9 Ali is wearing some truly eye-scorching pink. At least it's not a blazer.

[M1977G]

Just saw some pics from episode 10.  In at least one pic, it looks like Spencer is wearing 

another jumper, this one possibly worse than her previous smock that had everyone so up in arms. This one is made of brown leather (because tan twill wasn't enough with the first jumper), has all kinds of seaming and buttons down the front. Plus shoulder epaulettes. Not kidding. Leather shoulder epaulettes.

Edited July 28, 2014 by M1977G

[lion10]

I noticed Emily's been wearing sheer/fishnet shirts that clearly show her bra. Is that against public school dress code? I'm not complaining, she looks good but it just seems like the type of thing to get her in trouble.

Edited August 1, 2014 by lion10

[Crim]

Speaking of fishnet, Hanna's holey stockings. I can't.

[scarletregina]

I know Hanna's having an identity crisis, but she doesn't need to abandon her fashion sense.

[lion10]

Also, the "This is a Dark Ride" Halloween episode had the worst fashion I've ever seen on PLL.  The girls' costumes were fantastic, especially Emily as Barbarella and Spencer in that blue dress but those outfits they had when they were walking down the street were hideous.   All of their outfits were just breathtakingly bad.  I KNOW no one would willingly wear that conductor hat.  And Hanna's frontsplit dress with the black jacket.  Aria looked ridiculous even for her.  Spencer's beige dress was just ugly and Emily...was alright but that combination of the jean jacket with that black and white skirt was atrocious.  The first part of that episode was a shitshow fashion wise.  Nothing could be worse.

 

Hanna looked cute in those leather pants in "Scream for Me".

 

 

Conversely everyone looked beautiful in "Shadow Play", especially the girls..  That episode didn't move the plot along much but it was really cool to see everyone dressed in 50's fashion and the filming and sets for it were really beautiful.  

Edited August 1, 2014 by lion10

[Sakura12]

Some of Aria's "outfits"

 

Do people dress like this in real life?

 

 

Was she auditioning for Wonder Woman?

 

Is she trying to wear the entire jungle in one outfit?

 

It must've been dress like a pirate day at Rosewood High.

 

I don't even know what this is supposed to be.

 

And who could forget this one.

Edited August 2, 2014 by Sakura12

[cuddlingcrowley]

And who could forget this one.

 

 

I could! I'm pretty sure I had all those outfits repressed, thanks for unlocking those memories!

 

This is one of my all time favorites among Aria's (terrible) outifts:

 

 

Girl looked like a child prostitute. Classic!

 

She should just stick to dresses. She usually has a pretty great taste in those. I've coveted all of these ones:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Let's ignore the shoes on next one:

 

 

 

Shirt and Skirt but simply adorable:

 

 

Last but not least the dress she wore in the pilot, which has a special place in my heart because it was the one episode Aria seemed remotely interesting. It looks so pretty and airy and comfortable:

 

 

Aria and I have a very similar body type so I'd kill for any of these dresses...In real life my style is more similar to Spencer's, but she's very tall and lean and she can pull off stuff I never could.

Edited August 2, 2014 by cuddlingcrowley

[ottoDbusdriver]

How could you forget the blue blouse covered in skulls ?  That was pretty bad.

 

http://afterellen.mtvnimages.com/uploads/2013/03/aria-best-outfit-1.jpg

[mercfan3]

The wardrobe people are lucky Lucy Hale is adorable and still looks cute in the crazy stuff they put her in. 

[Crim]

How about this one? http://prettylittleliarsannotations.tumblr.com/post/58930352724/group-poll-this-is-far-and-away-the-most

[M1977G]

Someone predicted this thread would be mostly pics of Aria's crazy outfits!  Thanks to those who posted those doosies above for the laughs and gasps.  

[Bort]

This is what Aria reduced me to tonight: pausing my tv and running for my camera, all to get a shot of this:

I mean, WTF? It looks like she's wearing the lovechild of a tutu and a lampshade.

Edited August 6, 2014 by kariyaki

[Sakura12]

Why is no one asking Alison why she's dressing like a Real Estate agent from the eighties?

[scarletregina]

Unpopular opinion: I like the tutu look. Those kinds of skirts are all over fashion blogs these days. 

 

However, I don't like it on Aria. I'm not sure what it is, but Aria's clothes often make Lucy Hale look dumpy. The fit seems all wrong and not in proportion with Lucy's body type.

 

And dear god, what was up with Ali's shirt? The weird neckline with the studs? What was that?

 

Hanna, oh Hanna, just because you don't want to be Ali doesn't mean you have to look homeless. An identity crisis does not mean you should sleep in your ugly clothes and not wash your hair. Even pre-Ali Hanna was obsessed with fashion and looking her best. I don't understand why she's equating edgy with unkempt. 

[Crim]

^ She's too much of a drunk to care? I thought the show is not being subtle about this, what with Spencer's (hilarious) comments about Caleb's living conditions.

[M1977G]

I liked Aria's dress, too, but she was far too short to wear it well.  I agree that she's often dressed against body type.  She's short and curvy, which does not equal looking that good in a white, puffy, tea-length tutu. 

 

Since it looks like Hanna is turning away from the booze and this Zack thing is getting resolved, I'm hoping her wardrobe stops its downward spiral.  This grunge look is not the cute tough rebellion of a few weeks ago.  Old Hanna Style back, please, ASAP.  If nothing else, someone needs to show Ali how to wear a blazer and statement blouses.  Speaking of Ali, what's with her shifting between her age inappropriate "real estate agent" garb to a super girly floral dress and cardigan for the engagement party?  That outfit looked more suited to a 14-year old.  Is Ali trying to dress the part of the innocent girl for the parents of Rosewood?

 

Emily's hair looked amazing, if a little fussy, but I was not a big fan of the blue jumpsuit.  I know they're on trend and all, and she even pulls it off pretty well with that tall body of hers, but it's a bright blue jumpsuit.  You can only do so much with that, I think.  

Edited August 6, 2014 by M1977G

[cuddlingcrowley]

Unpopular opinion: I like the tutu look. Those kinds of skirts are all over fashion blogs these days.

However, I don't like it on Aria. I'm not sure what it is, but Aria's clothes often make Lucy Hale look dumpy. The fit seems all wrong and not in proportion with Lucy's body type.

 

 

I don't like the tutu look but I don't think it looked bad on Aria, it just didn't fit the occasion. I thought that outfit would work a lot better in a highschool dance or something. I totally agree with the comment that she's often dressed against body type. The proportions of her outfits are all over the place.

 

 

Emily's hair looked amazing, if a little fussy, but I was not a big fan of the blue jumpsuit.  I know they're on trend and all, and she even pulls it off pretty well with that tall body of hers, but it's a bright blue jumpsuit.  You can only do so much with that, I think.

 

 

 

Emily needs to chop her glorious mane off I say and, Lord knows I think she looked as good as anyone could look in that jumpsuit but it needs to go and never come back again. It made her look way too old.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I felt for Shay in the scene where she was outside Noel's car talking to Spencer. Her hair was blowing everywhere. I've had the same thing happen to me when my hair was that long and honestly it's that kind of stuff that prompts me to chop it really short.

[ottoDbusdriver]

What the hell was Spencer wearing last night ?  With that brown trench-coat with the cutoff sleeves, it looked like it came from the Hitler Youth Ready-to-Wear collection. </snark>

[M1977G]

Really sad when Spencer's outfit outshines Aria's for its ugliness or nonsensical embellishments.  She looked like she had walked off the set of an Amelia Erhart biopic or something.  When will wardrobe let her stop wearing such hideous romper things?  I get it, Spencer has a buttoned-up conservative Hastings streak, but I never see Melissa or her mom wearing such ugly and unflattering shit.

Edited August 13, 2014 by M1977G

[cuddlingcrowley]

Spencer looked effing gorgeous this past episode. Her hair looked better than it has in a very long time and I wanted both her outfits, especially the first one. The color palette of plaid, black and white is my favorite right now and seriously what I wore to work today.

 

 

 

 

Aria also looked cute at first:

 

 

Then she pulled out that leopard print hooded thing and I was just done.

 

 

 

Am I being paranoid or...?

 

 

 

IT'S BACK!!!!!!!

 

Yet, even with this monstruosity's return, Hanna is the worst dressed in this episode as far as I'm concerned:

 

 

 

Unless she got a job working at a gas station and it slipped my mind.

Edited August 14, 2014 by cuddlingcrowley

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Caleb was the one I noticed this week. He doesn't seem like a tank top kind of guy so did he borrow that from Hanna for his run? And that acid washed looking shirt with a black collar buttoned all the way to the top was terrible.

[bettername2come]

Caleb was the one I noticed this week. He doesn't seem like a tank top kind of guy so did he borrow that from Hanna for his run?

 

I thought it looked like an Emily shirt. Wasn't she wearing the huge armhole tanks a few weeks ago?

[mercfan3]

It's amazing to say this, but I actually think Ali's been the worst dressed since her return. Aria's clothes are ridiculous, but at least they aren't 50 year old real estate agent. 

[Crim]

Yes, the leopard print hooded thing seems to be back. Evil never goes away for good in Rosewood.

 

Ali is dressed inappropriately for her age and it's very wtf, but nothing can beat some of Aria's insanely awful looks. If Aria were on A Team she'd customize the shit out of that black hoodie.

[M1977G]

I did love Spencer's plaid and black outfit.  Thanks for the reminder, as it was overshadowed in my mind by how much I disliked her leather get-up.  The plaid is far more the "conservative Spencer with edge" vibe I dig on her.  One of Spencer's best outfits this season, and I covet that cross-body bag.  And Mona's structured tote.

 

A few people have mentioned on other threads that Ali looked a little thick in the middle, and asked if she is preggers.  I looked again, and her stomach does kind of show in that last drop-waist floral dress that looked like it was 1985 Laura Ashley (after Emily tells her off).  I've noticed more than once that her outfits are not always flattering to her figure (like that peplum top under a blazer when she faced down Jenna), but maybe the costumers are putting her in all these jackets trying to cover up a pregnancy?  Someone also noticed she put a pillow on her lap in one scene.  Could this be a real pregnancy, or might Ali be trying to hide another secret?  Or is this just really ugly and unflattering styling?  Isn't Sasha 18 or something?  Seems young to be pregnant for real with a budding acting career, but if Ali were preggers, I'd think (hope) the doctor who examined her would have noticed.  I'm a little baffled.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Isn't Sasha 18 or something? Seems young to be pregnant for real with a budding acting career

Heh, you mean like Jamie Lynn Spears who got knocked up when she was 16 and starring on her own Nickelodeon series? I would say Sasha is more talented but I also think that is she were really pregnant in real life, the show would be hiding it better. They could put her in empire waists, have her in cardigans that were a little loose in the front, shoot her from the waist up, have her hold a jacket or purse in front of her, etc. I think they are deliberately screwing with us (as usual). "We can put her in her mom's wardrobe fe the 80s which is weird enough already AND we can make the audience wonder if she's pregnant too - bonus!"

[mercfan3]

These shows are filmed a while ago, we'd know if Sasha was pregnant.

 

Honestly, I think she's just not as thin as the other girls, and the stylists..being as they are..don't know how to hide it. (She's heavier in other areas than her mid section too, like her arms and such.) I'm not saying she's overweight or anything, she's just a normal girl and not model thin like the other girls. 

[emma675]

I think Sasha has gained a little weight in her teenage years, like most normal teen girls do, but the wardrobe department doesn't know how to dress her.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Especially now that they have to dress her in something other than the ubiquitous yellow tank top from all those flashbacks!

For the record, I don't think Sasha is overweight. She looks healthy and normal which I really like. I'm tired of so many actresses looking like prepubescent boys. I think the costuming people have put her in some ugly and unflattering outfits this season.

Edited August 15, 2014 by ElectricBoogaloo

[Agent Dark]

I think Ali's clothes are deliberate.  No doubt she would have shed her teenage look immediately, if only to not appear suspicious to random passerby's.  I think she just got into a habit of dressing older out of the necessity of her situation.

[cuddlingcrowley]

For the record, I don't think Sasha is overweight. She looks healthy and normal which I really like. I'm tired of so many actresses looking like prepubescent boys. I think the costuming people have put her in some ugly and unflattering outfits this season.

 

Yeah, the whole pregnancy debate really caught me off guard in the threads so I rewatched the episode and I only caught her tummy for like 2 seconds and there's no way in hell that's her being pregnant. I have one of those and I'm a size 4 and as child-free as you can get. I really hope they don't stick the girl in a gym because she's not super tonned. I actually think that works for her because she looks more womanly and the age difference between her and the other actresses doesn't look so obvious.

 

All the girls on the show are slim but I really appreciate how they all look really healthy. Ashley Benson is naturally very curvy, same goes for Shay and even Lucy Hale who's very tiny is hardly stick thin.

Edited August 15, 2014 by cuddlingcrowley

[M1977G]

For the record, I don't think she's overweight either.  I mostly thought she was just not a super skinny actress, and had a healthy weight, and liked that about her.  Her belly caught my eye more than once in this last episode, but I thought it was my imagination until others floated the preggers question online.  Makes total sense that we'd know if the actress was pregnant b/c these were filmed a while ago (thank you for pointing that out!), but what doesn't make sense?  Putting a healthy 18 year-old girl in a dress that is not only fugly, but that makes her look pregnant!  It's noticeable after Emily's smackdown in Ali's front yard, but especially from 16:36-16:43.  I don't know how to post screen shots, but when she's standing, you can see that her stomach appears to be quite rounded and sticking out a little past her chest.  Then when she sits at 16:43, she grabs the pillow and covers her protruding belly.  Glad to hear she's probably not knocked up Jamie-Lynn Spears style, but I'm still wondering if Ali is pregnant.  If not, I'm wondering about the wardrobe team, and why they are getting away with such horrid outfits for Ali.  Wardrobe should never be responsible for making an actress look pregnant when she or her character are not.  That seems a pretty basic styling guideline to me.  Where is Tim Gunn when you need him?  

 

There should be a show rule that no one gets to wear costuming that is uglier or less flattering than Aria's, A's hoodie excepted.  In fact, they kind of stated that in the last episode, when Ella showed Aria her new sequined miniskirt and asked Aria, "Would you wear this?"  And Aria says, "Yes, which is why you shouldn't."  Of course this was directed at Ella, but not a bad rule for the town of Rosewood as a whole.

Edited August 15, 2014 by M1977G

[mac123x]

It's amazing to say this, but I actually think Ali's been the worst dressed since her return. Aria's clothes are ridiculous, but at least they aren't 50 year old real estate agent. 

 

The pink blazer made me think she was selling Mary Kaye cosmetics.  One way she makes enough money for all her bribes and international airplane tickets is through multilevel marketing. -- the kids in the baement were selling lipstick for her.