This is a loaded question, as taste, is very personal. One person’s beautiful is someone else’s ugly. That said, there are some overarching design principles that have been shown to aid in more people finding an outfit or garment aesthetically pleasing, and that’s what we’ll be looking at here. Did you know that something that…
What to Look for When Choosing a Print to Make You Appear Slimmer One of the aspects of choosing prints that I’ve often heard people say is that they can’t wear prints as they’re under the misconception that all prints make you look larger, and if they don’t want to draw attention to a body…
Choosing prints and patterns is something that is deeply personal (as I discussed here in how to choose prints for your personality) and also something that you can think about with regards to flattering your physicality. There are psychological reasons you like certain prints and hate others, but you’ll also find that some prints just…
One of the most important and integral parts of choosing prints and patterns is to make sure that the print is one you love. Prints, more than any other aspect of style and clothing choices, are based on personality. Body shape and figure flattery are important elements of the style puzzle, but if you don’t…
Have you ever thought about print placement when you’re choosing a garment with a print or pattern? What do I mean by this? Well when you look at the garment, where does the print draw your eye? What stands out and grabs attention? Is the placement of the print flattering you or drawing attention to…
Ideally, choosing prints and patterns that are within your ideal colour contrast level is the best solution to looking in harmony with your outfit. But should you choose to go outside of those levels, how to pull off the look so you wear the pattern rather than the pattern wearing you? We all have favourite…
There are two sorts of contrast – value contrast (how light and dark the colours you put together should be in your outfit – watch the video on that here) and colour contrast – how similar or different the colours that you’re putting together in your outfit need to be. How about your colour contrast?…
How do you select prints and patterns that work well with your personal value contrast? If you’re new to the subject of value contrast, it’s worth reading these posts first, so you can discover your value contrast and see how it’s important when putting outfits together. Value is the technical colour word that means how…
What is the easiest and best way to choose prints and patterns? Match them to your colour palette! If you’ve had a personal colour analysis you should have a colour palette, a fabulous tool that will assist you in finding the colours in both solid fabrics as well as patterned ones. When you think about…
If you learn how to mix prints and patterns in an outfit like a pro, you’ll expand your selection of possible ways of putting your existing clothes together and get way more bang for your fashion buck. Are there any fashion rules regarding mixing prints and patterns in your outfits? Mixing prints in fashion is…
Do you wear jewellery with your printed and patterned garments? You may not need to (check out my tips on knowing whether this applies to you here), but you may still like to add a little something extra, that icing that draws attention up to your face. It can be a little trickier to decide…
In interior decorating, there is a concept of the 60/30/10 rule – that is percentages of different colours to use in a decorating scheme. 60% + 30% + 10 % proportion formula is considered to be a timeless decorating rule that can be used to mix different colours in a balanced way in a room.…
The 2019 Oscars have just happened and I was saddened at the choice of many of the frocks, I mean when you’ve got the money and the stylists and the access to amazing designers – why, why, why were there so many misses on the red carpet this year? Way too many of them resembled…
Sheer garments are lovely and light and can add a feminine or elegant element to your outfit. Assuming you’re not a Hollywood Starlet (or catwalk model) looking to get your picture in the news, the question often is, what to wear under them? How do you choose the right underlayer for your sheer garments? There…
I have found at 52 I no longer like the way prints look on me. Printed tops were once a significant part of my wardrobe, but as my hair and colouring have cooled they now overwhelm me. Can you explore the types of style changes one may need to make? What are the changed I…
As I’ve discussed before here, understanding how your personality impacts on your clothing and style choices (and how it’s way more important than body shape in so many ways), The personality dressing style that is used the most these days (with the casualisation of the work dress code) and with most of us also having…
Dear Imogen, I am a big fan of your contrast series. I had never known about this concept before, and often kept myself wondering why some particular outfit felt off to me – but couldn’t quite put my finger on it. It all really boiled down to contrast levels! I am amazed that so few…
One question that popped up for me (and is something I’m asked about) when I wrote about the expected fashion lifespan of your wardrobe staples here, is how long can you expect a garment to really last – as far as it still looking good and wearing well – how long will your clothes really…
When you’re thinking about how to flatter your body and enhance it in a way that makes you happy, there are a few ‘tricks of the trade’ that make it easier to decide what to wear (and what to avoid when you’re shopping so you don’t keep making expensive mistakes). How does the magician create…
Dresses and skirts are great alternatives to jeans and shorts (and athleisure wear) for in relaxed environments, yet so many women worry that they will be overdressed if they choose to wear these as dresses and skirts are often associated more with more formal attire. What to Look for When Choosing Dresses and Skirts for…
When deciding what to wear, one element of fabric choice is the texture. Choosing a texture relates to your own level of texture – smooth hair and skin – smooth fabric. Textured hair and/or skin – textured fabrics (see more about that here). When your skin and hair is smooth in texture, you will look…
