I’ve noticed that sometimes when women want to appear more sophisticated they either add too much to an outfit or not enough. So I wanted to share some ideas about what a harmonious outfit looks like and how to create it. These aren’t difficult tips and practicing them will help you to recognize how they can be translated for your body and style.
Create one point of focus
This is one of those “too much” missteps. Coco Chanel advised that before you step out the door, remove one accessory. Now, this isn’t necessarily a “less is more” rule. After all, Coco, herself, wore gobs of jewelry. But she was always very strategic about how she wore it and always drew attention to her face. When in doubt, keep the attention on your face.
If your accessories or garments have too many distracting details, if the viewer’s eye is bouncing around from your neckline to your belt, to your colorful handbag, and then to your shoes, it all becomes fatiguing. What you want to be a biography becomes a neon sign.
So, unless you’re wearing something in a very bold or colorful print (and even then you can emphasize a part of the body) or there is a lot of interesting detail in the neckline of a garment, your accessories can create the focal point.
Just consider what you want to emphasize. If the neckline is simple, you can wear a more prominent or colorful necklace. If there is a nice 2:3 proportion between the top half of your body and the lower half, you can make your belt a focal point. (That proportion is a reference to the proportions chapter in my book in case you haven’t read it yet.)
If you wear large earrings, don’t also wear a necklace. Now, if your outfit is in a neutral color and has unfussy lines and details you can also jazz it up with a cool pair of colorful slingbacks or sandals. Those can also be in a print like snake, leopard or zebra, as long as it is in harmony with the color of the dress or outfit. And don’t worry about drawing attention to your feet instead of your face. These can just be a pop of color or design that peeks out from your slacks.
Steve Madden zebra sandals $109.95
Dolce Vita “Bianca” slingbacks $119
Vivaia red sandals $139
Project Cloud leather slides on Amazon $50
Banana Republic Factory double strap sandals $62.50 (on sale now for $46.88)
The idea is to appear as though you didn’t think too hard about pulling together the pieces; that they just sort of came together in a really cool way. The Italians have a word for that: sprezzatura. It means “grace without effort”.
Change the Shapes
Sometimes when an outfit looks off it’s because the shapes of the individual pieces don’t complement each other. A great looking combination has rhythm and flow. It isn’t boxy or static and it doesn’t create equal sized large sections or construction detail emphasis.
In order to accomplish this, combine items that have more volume with those with a slimmer fit. (This is also illustrated in that chapter in my book.) That means, for example, keep the items on the upper half of your body slim and fitted, and those on the lower half fuller – and vice versa.
So if you’re wearing a simple T-shirt – one that isn’t oversized – you can wear a skirt or jeans/pants that have more volume. And if you wear a blouse or sweater that has more fullness pair it with something fitted or more straight-line on the bottom. (If you have a lot of Dramatic style or are tall, you might be able to pull off flare hemmed pants with a more voluminous top.)
Another thing that can make an outfit boring is if all the pieces have the same weight or what is called the textile “hand”. Creating variety can also mean varying the textures in an outfit. An example might be to combine a dense or bulkier knit pullover with a smoother fabric, such as twill, gabardine, or denim. Just make sure the textiles make sense with each other. You’re not going to wear a silky LBD with an oversized canvas barn jacket.
Note: Matched summer linen sets are the exception here, and focal point accessories – like a cool straw handbag, sandals or sunglasses – will make it interesting.
J. Crew linen vest $59 Pants $98
GAP white linen set – pants $62, top $49.95
Use color strategically
Any color worn with a mostly neutral outfit will automatically “pop”. And that can be your focal point as well. For those with Lively Bright (spring) coloring – and especially if they have a lot of High Spirited style – this requires more finesse in order for the outfit to not look too busy. The reason someone is categorized as a Lively Bright in the first place is because their innate coloring is, well, lively! They can wear more than three colors at once without looking like a mishmash.
But in general if you want to look cool and sophisticated, just as with accessories, less is more. If you start out with neutral colored pieces you can make your colorful scarf tell your color story. Or you can make the color of your handbag define that. Or you can wear a spectacular necklace or earrings in a vibrant color.
Madewell Silk Bandana scarf $68
Acy’s Gianni Bernini floral scarf $34
Macy’s INC Deima blooms wrap scarf $34
Amazon Aufeel silk neck scarf $15
Straw bags always feel fresh and fun for the warmer months.
Amazon Hocsis synthetic straw tote $19
J. Crew Malta straw handbag $89.50
LOFT Geo straw tote $51.97
Amazon Maijilyn Raffia Tote $18.99
Or you can make your outerwear be the stand-out colorful piece.. This image demonstrates that principle – and actually, the next one too.)
Match Accessory Items
This isn’t your mother’s (or if you’re my age, your own) “matchy-matchy” trope. It’s about wearing the exact same color of two accessory items so that they refer to or echo each other. We register inconsistency in shades of a color because, on a gut level, we look for color harmony. If you’re wearing one color in a belt and a different shade of that color in your shoes there is no conversation: they’re both vying for attention.
The typical items to match would be shoes and a belt. It’s been described lately as a “sandwich” look. You can also match your belt or shoes to a handbag. Matching two neutral colors in your accessories brings a feeling of completion to the entire outfit. Matching three is, well, kind of “matchy-matchy”.
Bruno Magli slides $149
Madewell Triple Keeper belt $78
Quince cognac leather flats $59.90
Quince Italian leather shoulder bag $99.90
Journey suede flat Macy’s $42.99
Banana Republic embossed crossbody bag $140
So, for example, if you were wearing a pair of white, tan, or ivory pants or a skirt, you could add a navy or black belt and navy or black shoes. With lighter colored garments, you could wear almost any color from tan to khaki to navy and black accessories. And although there used to be a “rule” about not wearing black and navy, in fact, black and navy can be beautiful together. Pairing navy pants with navy shoes and then a black belt and bag can make the whole outfit look rich.
And then there are always sunglasses. Depending on where you live they might be a year-round accessory. And they are just cool.
So those are a four simple ways to bring polish to your combinations. I hope they give you the inspiration to take your outfits from boring, utilitarian, or “too much”, to more visually harmonious. And you don’t have to go “minimalist” or strictly Classic to achieve them.
If you haven’t read my book, there are lots of other recommendations that will help you recognize your style and coloring. NOTE: for my overseas readers who just don’t “do” Amazon, Shopping for the Real You will soon be available as a PDF download from my Teachable site.
Stay tuned for a special announcement about that.
Andrea’s books and new video series:
