BARTON STRUGGLES WITH OC WARDROBE

MISCHA BARTON has a "hard time" wearing designer clothes on TV drama THE OC - as she prefers to dress as a "motorcycle chick" in real-life.

The 19-year-old beauty struggles with her wealthy character MARISSA COOPER's "preppier" wardrobe and often finds herself discarding a number of outrageous designs.

Barton says, "I have a really hard time with a lot of it (wardrobe), because she's preppier than me. Sometimes on the show we try out new things that people really aren't ready for - that even we aren't ready for.

"She's such a Southern California girl, so her look is laid-back and colourful."

In contrast Barton's personal taste involves "wearing vintage rock T-shirts and boots."

She adds, "I don't think Marissa would like to look like a motorcycle chick. I buy a lot of vintage, but Marissa would only do vintage in a high-end, classic way. Everything she wears is really expensive and understated."