@studiousmedic asked: Mary!!! You have a lovely put together wardrobe, do you have any tips on putting together a nice wardrobe and dressing like a grown up/not looking like a teenage boy forced into the sunlight by his concerned mother?
hello !! This has taken me an age to reply to, but Iāve thought about it loads and I really just love talking about clothes! Also I just wanna preface this with saying that you absolutely donāt have to completely change your style to ādress like a grown upā - itās all about just implementing a few things thatāll make the outfits you already have and wear into the outfits you wanna / feel like you should wear
Iām a big believer in keeping the basis of your outfit the same, but making small changes. No, not that āAdd a sCARF !!!ā pintrest bullshit (low key i love pintrest but it needs to stop with this shit). Say your go to outfit is a band tee, jeans, and vans. Aināt nothing wrong with that, thatās a solid outfit. However, if youāre feeling like you wanna step up the āadult, professional and put togetherā factor, here is what I would do:
- Exchange band tee for either a plain tshirt or even a patterned blouse with a tshirt shape. Iām personally not a fan of patterned tshirts, or tshirts with stuff on them. Although if you wanna go for a more subtle graphic tee, go for it! I also think tshirt shaped blouses are amazing, because theyāve still got that kind of casual vibe that comes with a tshirt, but just stepped up a notch thanks to the fabric
- Iād personally wear a darker wash jean, just because I think that has a tendency to look more āadultā. Black jeans are also a go-to for me, although I am not a fan of rips or distressing, and I prefer a true black to a washed black
- Exchange the vans for something like a pair of boots, a ballet flat, loafers, brogues, you name it. If youāre into a heel, I think that looks amazing 98% of the time, but I get u, we have places to walk, they hurt, they have a tendency to make us fall over, so feel free to never go near a heel ever
Also, you can continue this mindset into outfits with more pieces as well. Usually go for something like a kanken backpack? (me too, i love them) To step it up, maybe try a plain black leather one instead. Wanna take your bottoms a step further than a dark wash jean? Get a pair of comfortable trousers in a nice fabric that makes you feel great about the way they make your body look. Hoodie feeling a bit dressed down compared to what you wanna go for? Try a nice knitted jumper, a cardigan, or even a soft blazer.
So thatās my main philosophy. If I look at my outfit and feel like itās not quite as put together or dressed up as I would like, I try to think āWhat is one item that I could switch up to get it to the vibe I want?ā.
However, another thing I think makes a great difference (as in the pictures above), is colour. I am very Scandinavian. I like my neutrals and my solid colours, and I feel like you have a lot better of a chance to look āput togetherā or āadultā or āmore expensiveā, depending on what youāre going for, if you pay a lot of attention to colour and pattern. Of course, this is even more āpersonal preferenceā than what Iāve talked about so far. Personally, I like neutrals (black, white, grey, navy, camel, and blush pink (which for me is nude because lol my skin tone)), as well as jewel tones. Thatās what I vibe with. As for patterns, I love a good dark-base-floral, and Iām slowly opening up to other patters (although usually only in neutrals).
A lot of the time my entire outfit will be a combination of solid neutrals. But if I wanna go for a print or a colour, I usually make sure that that piece is the only non-solid-neutral one. Thatās because Iām not a huge fan of busy outfits, and I usually think that the busier your outfit is, the more difficult it is to make it seem āput togetherā and āadultā. This also goes for things like ripped / distressed jeans, accessories etc. I wear my belt if necessary, a scarf if Iām cold, and the same watch, couple of rings, and dainty hoop earrings every day.
I will say it again though, you donāt have to give up your personal style. You really love your band tees? Amazing, keep wearing them! Still want to make your outfit more āadultā? Maybe pair them with a pair of trousers, boots, possibly a blazer. (little anecdote: i have a white blouse with bright pink flamingos on that i for some reason adore. one of my favourite outfits iāve worn it in was pairing it with my black suit (quite modern trousers, but trousers and blazer all the same) and white trainers. a great balance of oooooo fun print, but super traditional suit/shirt combo, casual-ed down by the trainers) There is definitely a way to work āyour styleā which for me is more about āoh my god i love this piece and want to wear it all the timeā into the whole āadult, professional, put togetherā thing.
Idek man this is so long and itās before 10 am on a bank holiday. Am I even making sense? Who knows. But thatās my two (thousand) cents and I hope maybe it was helpful ?? Maybe ???
(also ily beb and you look fab in all your pictures and not like a teenage boy i promise)