Dress-code blues

So you're out shopping for the start of school. Your son just has to have a T-shirt with a clever but risque saying, while your daughter is smitten with a revealing spaghetti-strap top. And there you are, caught in the crossfire between youthful fashion and school dress codes.

My colleague Cristina Bolling is working on a back-to-school story on that very subject. She's seeking parents, teachers, students and administrators to weigh in on fashion flash points: Which forbidden items create the most conflict? What would adults like to see banned? Have students found creative work-arounds that let them sport trendy stuff without getting busted, such as wearing leggings under too-short skirts?

She didn't mention it, but I suspect a few of you have thoughts about how teachers dress, or ought to dress, as well.

There are a couple of ways to weigh in: Post here, and we'll all enjoy the conversation. Or e-mail Cristina at cbolling@charlotteobserver.com; I'm sure she's especially eager to hear from people willing to be quoted in her story.