‘High School Musical 3′ Style

Since everyone's busy revamping their look for the new school year, I thought I'd reach out to Caroline Marx -- the costume designer who gets to dress all the stars in "High School Musical 3" -- to see what the teens will be wearing at East High when they hit the big screen in October.

Chad's (Corbin Bleu) a "Greenster" while Taylor (Monique Coleman) dresses for success. - Disney Enterprises, I …Troy (Zac Efron) clearly loves Gabriella's (Vanessa Hudgens) innocent girl-next-door look. - Disney Enterprises, …

"We have so many characters and they all have their own distinct personality and style," explains Marx. "None of the characters can trade clothes." Although the designer admits she likes dressing Kelsi (played by Olesya Rulin) and Martha (played by Kaycee Stroh) best, this time around I ask her to focus on the style of a few other "HSM" faves:  

Troy (Zac Efron) "channels a young James Dean/young Elvis look. Zac prefers Diesel jeans. They fit him well, so [his character] wears lots of slim-cut Diesel jeans and James Perse classic t-shirts with Converse high tops or low-top Vans." He also wears several plaid and solid Tank Farm and Varvatos for Converse over-shirts. Even Troy and his teammates' basketball uniforms and warm-ups (manufactured by Champion) have a fashion element to them, and were designed by Marx with fit, flow (dance movement), and light (for the camera) in mind. "I wanted the guys to look sexy in them." Marx believes that after "HSM 3" comes out everyone is going to want their own Wildcat hoodie, which is Manga-inspired (a form of Japanese anime). "At the end of filming every single member on the crew wanted one!"  

Gabriella (Vanessa Anne Hudgens) is "the girl next door. Her look is very accessible [the majority of her flowered frocks are from American Eagle], but as her character grows in the film she becomes more self-aware and begins to take on a bohemian style of dress." To get this look she wears brands such as Free People, Velvet, and Miss Sixty. Gabriella also carries two unique Miele purses in the movie made from recycled t-shirts by a village of women in South Africa.

Sharpay's (Ashley Tisdale) look is "very expensive, fashion forward, and over the top. 60% of her wardrobe I actually designed and had made. We kept away from [Sharpay's signature] bubble gum pink and used fuschia instead, which is a hot color this coming season. Ashley wanted a lot of crystals on her character's clothing, so I added Swarovski crystals to some amazing dresses that were from Miss Sixty." Sharpay also sports clothing by Marc Jacobs, L.A.M.B., Dolce & Gabbana, Juicy Couture, and Betsey Johnson.

Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) rocks a hot pink python mini skirt with matching boots, while Troy kicks back in a pair …

Ryan (Lucas Grabeel) is "a real trendsetter. Obviously, he's heavily influenced by his sister Sharpay" and wears designers such as Moschino, J. Lindenberg, Ben Sherman, Energie, and Ted Baker to name a few. "We took a lot of fun things right off the runway for him this past season like stripes that run down the side of his Paul Smith floral pant legs, pants tucked into police boots ... he's usually seen wearing a Goorin Bros. fedora hat, but for the the prom he dons a bowler, which is a trend that's going off right now in Spain."

Chad's (Corbin Bleu) wardrobe is "kind of jock-based, but has an eco-friendly vibe. He's the first character in a feature film to wear primarily organic and sustainable clothing, all the way down to his sustainable G-Star jeans." Chad's American Apparel organic tees feature custom eco-friendly messages like 'My dog didn't eat my homework, I recycled it' and 'Greenster.' "We launched Nike's new green line of sneakers, so all his sneakers are sustainable. He also wears an amazing pair of sandals -- Maasi Treads -- made by the Maasi tribe in Kenya. The soles are made out of actual tire treads!"

Taylor (Monique Coleman) is "part of the brainiac crew. She's kind of conservative with a feminine edge. She dons lots of little boys' Brooks Brothers ties, but with skirts and matching headbands." Taylor primarily wears sweaters and vests from J.Crew and Banana Republic over Theory and G-Star button down shirts with cute skirts by Marc Jacobs, Piazza Sempione, and Corey Lynn Calter. "I kept her colors really bright, which highlighted her skin tone."

Coming Soon on Crush: "High School Musical 3" Prom Attire

Kelsi (Olesya Rulin) and Ryan (Lucas Grabeel) wear peach to prom. - Disney Enterprises, Inc.