Over winter break, Lauren Teller and I took the initiative to “make over” Slater Dixon. Dixon was at the mercy of our stylistic authority.

To be clear, Dixon is not a bad dresser by any means; he simply could use a new look. Dixon participates in cross-country and track at LHS, and in many ways, it shows in his fashion. His go-to outfit in the warmer months is a cross-country shirt and gym shorts, while in the colder months, Dixon throws on a cross-country sweater and jeans. What I noticed is that he still finds ways to match colors and keep his looks put together.

“[The] goal for the makeover was to spice up Slater’s style,” said Teller. “And to help him explore some new clothing options.”

We figured the best place to try out a variety of styles in Sioux Falls was the mall. Our first stop was Forever 21, the place to try out the Cali-vibe hipster look.

We initially attempted to throw Dixon into the deep end, not maliciously, but to test his strength. Teller and I replaced his usual activity-related T-shirt with a print button-up tee, and his navy blue jeans for a lighter wash, slimmer jean. On top, we threw a dark, distressed jean jacket.

“The first outfit was interesting because I don’t think I’ve ever worn clothes that were that edgy,” said Dixon. “The pattern was wild, but I had to trust [Tim] and Lauren.”

Staying at Forever 21, we decided to stretch Dixon further. Teller spotted the camo pants, and I joked about the black graphic sweater. However, Teller thought it might look good and we asked Dixon to try it on. The result was a unique outfit that definitely brought out a new Dixon.

“The camo outfit was an edgier look for Slater,” said Teller. “The look was definitely more of an experimental look for him to [push] him out of his comfort zone.”

Dixon concurs that this look was a bit more daunting.

“The second outfit had camo pants, which were kind of scary because I felt like I was enlisting,” said Dixon. “The sweater was comfortable, though.”

The second stop was Gap. Our goal there was to find a preppier look.

The outfit we chose here was mostly by Teller’s design. She grabbed the button-up, khakis and a blazer. When the blazer was too large, I suggested a pullover sweater.

She might be a bit biased, but Teller liked this outfit the most.

“My favorite outfit was the khakis and dress shirt,” said Teller. “[It was] very different from his go-to jeans and T-shirts.”

I agree: I thought that this was Slater’s best look, because it was fancy and stuck with his mojo.

The third stop was PacSun, where we knew we could find our edgiest skater look. That’s exactly what we found. Pairing a Huf Worldwide tee and matching Adidas beanie with ripped black pants definitely brought out the “skater in Slater.”

“[This] outfit helped me embrace my inner skater boy,” said Dixon. “It was interesting to wear a shirt with stripes.”

This final look wasn’t something that Dixon would probably want to wear on a daily basis, which is OK.

In fact, I don’t expect him to implement these styles into his wardrobe immediately. The hope is that Dixon saw this as an experience to broaden his horizons in terms of clothing and maybe branch out a little.

“The overall experience was fun, and it gave me a new perspective on fashion,” said Dixon. “It was weird shopping without my mom, but I tried a lot of new things.”