How To Dress and look Stylish – MarkMeets Fashion

Here are some tips on what you should be wearing, how to wear it and be on trend

Don’t Think Too Hard, Choose Comfort, Originals Are Often Still The Best, Try Twice and Make Friends With Colour top our best style tips readers shared.

As someone who principally loves fashion for its self-expression, for its ability to speak for its wearer and tell the world how that person is feeling, I am always reluctant to tell anyone how to dress or enforce any rules. As far as I am concerned, wearing what you feel like – and what makes you feel like you – is the only fundamental.

STYLE TIPS

However, there are a few tips, tricks and hacks that I have learnt over the years. From that necklace that elevates basics to the benefits of regular clear-outs and changing room mantras (‘thou shalt not impulse buy’), they help me when buying something or putting together an outfit in the morning, whether I am working from home or getting ready to reemerge into a brighter new world post lockdown.

1) Keep It Simple
Learn from the best – from Sade to Coco Chanel. As Mademoiselle Chanel once said: ‘Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off.’ A ‘base’ of core items helps.

Everyone will have their own version of what that entails but a white shirt, a good cashmere sweater (try COS) and a well-cut trench make good investments. I wear these time and time again.

2) Fit Is Everything
You know that woman who always looks pulled-together? You’ll notice her clothes always fit her properly. By contrast, clothes that don’t fit – a wonky hemline, a too-tight polo-neck – can impact on a first impression.

Taking the time to pay attention to fit is a surefire way to add polish. Make sure:

The seam of a shirt hits your shoulder
A skirt zips up neatly
A shoe meets the back of your heel

3) Find A Graphic T-Shirt That Expresses How You Feel
Graphic T-shirts are perhaps the epitome of a sartorial statement – whether you’re communicating your music taste (a Beychella T-shirt) or recent boxsets (a ‘La’ T-shirt by Philip Normal).

Go for organic cotton if possible to keep things sustainable, and longer-lasting. If you’re a novice at this kind of dressing, don’t think graphic T-shirts have to be combined with a plaid shirt and sneakers. The likes of Kendall Jenner and Emily Ratajkowski elevate theirs with high waisted trousers and ankle boots.

4) Accessories Can Be A Game Changer
A pair of statement earrings, a skinny new belt for your not-so-skinny jeans or a necklace worn with an LBD, this is the lazy girl hack to change up much-loved items.

This is another tip where ‘keep it simple’ works – pile on the accessories and you’ll look too busy. Zoe Kravitz is a good reference here – her use of a ‘wow’ earring is masterstroke in a style that is otherwise lowkey.

5) Take The Time To Try Jeans
‘Every jean should count – they all have to be “the one”.’ Ideally, you want a well-edited ‘wardrobe’ of jeans that work for different moods and occasions – a high-waisted pair for a night out, boyfriends for a lazy Sunday etc.

Japanese denim is still the connoisseur’s choice and can be found at brands ranging from APC to Uniqlo. Too much stretch should be avoided if you want your jeans to last. Think differently about your purchase too – vintage is a great option, and Ganni x Levis new capsule allows you to rent your denim.

6) Study Your Favourite Women
You might show a hairdresser a picture someone with your ideal cut. Apply the same logic to your outfit. Whoever your style icon is, follow fan accounts and keep a folder of favourites for easy inspiration. This works even better if you organise in categories – what to wear for work, weekends and evenings out.

7) Be Organised
I do a clear-out every season and try to think less about if I like an item, and more about if it actually fits in my wardrobe and lifestyle. If the answer is ‘no’, I sell it or give it away. My clothes are hung on a rail, and organised in categories (skirts, shirts, etc) but I know others who prefer to organise based on categories (‘work’, ‘evening’ etc).

Find a system that works for you, whatever allows you to think quickly when finding what to wear. It’s hard at first but this will ensure getting dressed is simplified – and therefore much more fun. The Netflix show The Home Edit is a good organising resource – its founders Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin’s Instagram is full of ideas.

8) Dismiss Trends At Your Peril
Staying open to style trends is how you keep it modern. Try a trend to know if it works for you – with shops open again, this could be as straightforward as taking a bunch of styles into the changing room. If you feel like yourself when you put something on, it’s one to invest in.

Don’t forget to shop your own wardrobe – trends are nothing if not cyclical. Those high-waisted jeans you wore with heels five years ago look brand new when you switch to trainers, for example. It’s also worth watching a trend and seeing if it has ‘legs’ – as in goes beyond a season. Recent examples include the midi-dress or – of course – tracksuit bottoms. Buying into these is a savvy way of looking current while sidestepping fashion victim territory.

9) Wear What Feels Right
Imposter syndrome is no fun in your wardrobe. If you put on, say, a pair of cycling shorts and constantly pull them down, or don’t want to stand out too much in highlighter pink, don’t do it. Wear what you feel good in. That way, you’ll look good too.

Saying that, there is no harm experimenting. I sometimes will trial new looks when seeing close friends – I did this with mismatched earrings recently, for example. If they pass the test in this environment, your confidence will grow, and they will become part of your wardrobe rotation.

10) Don’t Be Afraid Of Multiples
‘Collects things in multiples’ including white shirts. This is the sign of a style pro, because it signposts that they have discovered the building blocks of their personal style. If you like something, having different versions of it makes getting dressed a breeze.

Every woman will be different here, but investing in multiples of the classics – jeans, T-shirts, shirts – is a no-brainer. Think of it as variations on your always-effortless uniform, an edited wardrobe of the pieces on hand whatever the occasion – the cocktail jeans, the 9am meeting shirt, etc.