*This article may have affiliate links, which means we may receive commissions if you choose to purchase through links we provide (at no extra cost to you). For more details, please read our privacy policy/affiliate disclosure. Thank you for supporting the work we put into this blog!
- Why?
The way you dress and groom makes a stateยญment about who you areโa stateยญment to the world and a stateยญment to yourยญself. It would be best if you were conยญtent and conยญfiยญdent with the way you present yourยญself to the world and hapยญpy that your look helps define you as a perยญson. Ultiยญmateยญly, it would help if you were satยญisยญfied that your wardrobe was right for you. As you set out on this jourยญney, rememยญber one thing: Be authenยญtic!- Size & Body Type
Dress for your body type, not for someยญone elseโs type or someยญone elseโs ideยญalยญized type. Your wardrobe has to work for you and must be approยญpriยญate for your wants and needs.
Conยญfiยญdence can make anyยญone look good in anyยญthing, so ignore the size tag on a piece of clothยญing and stop tryยญing to squeeze into clothes that are too small, just because you wish you were that size. Search for style items that comยญpleยญment your size and body shape, and be conยญfiยญdent in your skin!
Rememยญber that cerยญtain fashยญion items will betยญter suit cerยญtain body types, so conยญsidยญer varยญiยญous clothes, shoes and accesยญsories when putting togethยญer an ensemble.
- Be Inspired
Do your research. Scroll through social media and the interยญnet to find peoยญple whose look and style you admire. Turn these peoยญple into your style icons. You might like the simยญple, minยญiยญmalยญist look of one celebriยญty, you might admire the vivaยญcious, eclecยญtic and colourยญful attire of anothยญer, and you might find anothยญer celebriยญty or media perยญsonยญalยญiยญty who always makes fanยญtasยญtic groomยญing choicยญes. Folยญlow one, or comยญbine a numยญber of these looks, and make a note of what you like about each. Makยญing a list or a catยญaยญlogue of your iconโs fashยญion choicยญes will help you disยญcovยญer the core eleยญments of a great wardrobe. Make a โmood boardโ with images of your figยญures. Once youโve decidยญed upon why you like an iconโs style, you can narยญrow down your parยญticยญuยญlar likes and motiยญvaยญtions, which then become the founยญdaยญtion for your style. โThis is what I like, this is why I like it, and this will inform how I build my wardrobe in the future.โ- Closet Clearance
Do I need this? How long since I wore it? Do I like it? These are the quesยญtions you need to ask the next time you stand in your closยญet. Clearยญing out your wardrobe can help you offload items you no longer like or wear for whatยญevยญer reaยญson and can also help you clear your mind and sharpยญen your true indiยญvidยญual style.
Go through your wardrobe with conยญvicยญtion, and creยญate piles such as keep, donate and sell. If you can truยญly say that you like and wear a piece of clothยญing, keep it. If it hasnโt seen the light of day for a long time or reflects a difยญferยญent phase in your life to which you will nevยญer return, donate it.
Finalยญly, youโre likeยญly to find some qualยญiยญty items that you donโt want to take with you on the next phase of your fashยญion jourยญney, and these can be sold. Sellยญing some of your unworn items gives you someยญthing else โ monยญey to buy more clothes and items which define who you are!
Clearยญing out the closยญet can be catharยญtic and perยญhaps even fun. If you can find a friend to help you with the process, you can look back on the clothes which took you on crazy advenยญtures or disยญasยญtrous dates. You might even find yourยญself asking,
โDid I wear this?โ
One tip for this step: Be ruthยญless!
- Savvy Shopping
A simยญple rule for shopยญping. Once you have comยญpletยญed the closยญet cleanout, only fill the hole in your wardrobe. Yes, only buy what you need. This can be a chalยญlenge. Letโs face it; we all love and sucยญcumb to impulse buyยญing. Howยญevยญer, if you want to save monยญey and have enough to update your wardrobe in the future, then folยญlow this advice and only buy what you need to comยญplete your wardrobe. Purยญchase clothยญing via disยญcount stores, many of which offer qualยญiยญty garยญments. Make a list of what you need, and stick to this list, whether you are shopยญping in-store or online. After findยญing your inspiยญraยญtion and comยญpletยญing the โmood boardโ which defines your style, you can make this list. Learn to mix and match and get the most out of the clothes you already have, and conยญsidยญer your footwear when makยญing these decisions.- Basic Instincts
Trust your instincts. You are creยญatยญing a style that defines you. Decide upon what you like and who you want to be, and abide by that. No one knows you betยญter than yourยญself, and even though you must dress in speยญcifยญic ways for cerยญtain conยญtexts, rememยญber that this jourยญney is dedยญiยญcatยญed to expressยญing who you are as a person. Of course, one must dress for the cliยญmate and the parยญticยญuยญlar conยญtext in which you live. Assemยญbling outยญfits for the difยญferยญent seaยญsons can be fun, espeยญcialยญly if youโre able to stretch one piece of clothยญing or accesยญsoยญry across all four seasons. Where you live also has a great influยญence on your lifestyle โ do you live near the beach or the mounยญtains, are you surยญroundยญed by nightlife or peace and quiยญet? These facยญtors will influยญence how you dress.- Accessorise
A bold neckยญlace can turn jeans and a white tโshirt into a stateยญment. Layยญered, delยญiยญcate jewยญelยญry offers a more femยญiยญnine aesยญthetยญic, and edgy ankle booties, a bright clutch or pearls can sharpยญen any outfit.
The conยญcluยญsion is that accesยญsories can add anothยญer dimenยญsion to any outยญfit and transยญform it from casuยญal, to chic, to forยญmal, to smart or to any look you are aimยญing to creยญate. Conยญsidยญer your favourite colours and designs, look again at the clothes in your wardrobe, then search for accesยญsories that can mainยญtain your style.
- A friend In Need
Donโt be afraid to ask for help. True friends know you well. They know your perยญsonยญalยญiยญty and your ambiยญtions, and they know what looks good on you. They should also be able to tell you what doesnโt look good on you, so seek and heed their advice. Betยญter still, seek help and advice from proยญfesยญsionยญals. Enlist the help of a perยญsonยญal stylยญist. Yes, it will cost monยญey iniยญtialยญly but will set you on the path to strong fashยญion choicยญes in the future. Anothยญer advanยญtage of a stylยญist is that they can help find garยญments that are on-trend and right for you. Anothยญer worthยญwhile stop is to visยญit a taiยญlor so that the clothes you wear fit you perยญfectยญly. Someยญthing you may have noticed is how celebriยญties, includยญing your style icons, look great in ANYTHING. Why, because their clothes fit them perยญfectยญly. You could enjoy the same advantage.
- Signature
Do you have a sigยญnaยญture garยญment? One pair of jeans, a scarf, jackยญet or shirt that you are conยญtent to wear on any occaยญsion, in which you feel comยญfortยญable and happy. Maybe you preยญfer Vโneck shirts or fadยญed jeans. Perยญhaps you have masยญtered layยญerยญing to look good or can enlivยญen any outยญfit with nothยญing more than a scarf. Any of these times could be conยญsidยญered a sigยญnaยญture garยญment, and knowยญing what your sigยญnaยญture garยญment is can help you find your speยญcifยญic style. Conยญsidยญer this garยญment and start to build your wardrobe around it.
