New clothes are delightful but after a week there’s the come down: wardrobe overflow, everything creased. Still nothing quite clicking.
A few simple interventions can punch way above the space they take up and minimise those nothing-to-wear moments. Some take up no space at all.
The base
Lisa wears: Organic cotton gathered t-shirt, £69, Baukjen; Organic cotton jeans, £140, Rise & Fall; Leather shoes, £175, Sezane
Tip one: The statement colour combination
Lisa wears: Leather shoes, £175, Flattered; Gold plated earrings, £44.99, Pilgrim
New-to-you colour combinations that get you wearing separates you’ve never considered putting together. Navy with chocolate. Olive with burgundy. Camel with grey. Silt (these Rise & Fall trousers) with scarlet (these Flattered shoes).
Tip two: The brooch cluster
Lisa wears: Gold plated brooches, £275 each, Chylak; Gold plated charm pin brooch, £45, Astrid & Miyu; Gold vermeil earrings, £159, Monica Vinader
Wearing your evening piece at 11am. You may not be a sequins-at-breakfast person. Nor am I. But it’s always worth making an inventory of the “precious” items we’ve accumulated and thinking of ways to wear them in a new context.
Many of us own lovely items that never see the light of day, either because we bought them for a life we no longer lead (or never did), or because we’re saving them for best. I’d argue we shouldn’t be saving anything for best. Memo to self, even when buying for a special occasion, think about versatility. As well as a value-for-money consideration, this is how you build a useful, fully functional core of clothes.
This isn’t “day to night dressing”, more a question of a single item that lifts the ordinary whatever time of day. A gorgeous pair of crystal earrings takes a white shirt and culottes from unremarkable to stylish. Classic pearl necklaces with t-shirts and white cropped denim? Very youthful. Ditto a cocktail bag at lunch. If one brooch looks mimsy, cluster them. An opera coat over jeans is another combo that makes the coat oddly useful.
Tip three: The cross-body scarf
Lisa wears: Leather bag, £450 and cotton and silk scarf, £50, Me+Em; Sunglasses, £89, Whistles
Updating the way you wear favourite accessories makes a big difference. Tying a patterned smallish silk scarf to the strap of your cross-body bag makes the plainest clothes look more interesting.
Tip four: Collars and cuffs
Treat collars, cuffs and necklines like the A-listers they are. Flip collars up, roll or fold cuffs depending how crisp and formal an effect you’re aiming for (you can use covered hair elastics to keep the arms of your jackets in place). Revealing more wrist doesn’t just look modern, it showcases the slenderest part of your arms. Use a neckline for a pop of toning or contrasting colour and ensure its line harmonises with whatever you’re layering on top. Try on various collar shapes and see which enhance your neck and jawline most. For some it’s a classic button down; for others a V neck or a grandad shirt.
Try these: Buttoned collar shirt, £89.95, Massimo Dutti; Cotton top, £35, Ninety Percent; Linen shirt, £87, & Other Stories
Tip five: Pendant necklaces
Zhuzh up a plain dress or shirt with a pendant necklace. If you’re wearing a jacket this can look less bulky and cluttered than wearing a big statement necklace round your collarbone.
Try these: Pink resin and gold necklace, £265, Completedworks; Necklace, £40, Hush; Smokey quartz pendant, £385, By Pariah
Tip six: The scarf belt
Lisa wears: Cotton and silk scarf, £50, Me+Em; Sunglasses, £89, Whistles
Choose your belt according to what you want to achieve. For an instant “trend” update, wrap a scarf belt. For longer-looking legs, match your belt to trousers. For more waist definition or to break up a column of colour, contrast it. Unless you’re long in the torso, a slim belt will always do more for you than a wide one.
Tip seven: Play around with scale
Avoid tight with tight, or volume on top and below. Introduce big sunglasses, a smaller bag (do you really need that oversized one?); a short boxy jacket with wide trousers; change buttons and do them up higher or lower than usual.
Try these: Acetate sunglasses, £99, Bloobloom; Blouson jacket, £189, Arket; Pleated cotton trousers, £75, Cos
Tip eight: A draped cardi
Don’t just shove on a jacket or cardi as a finisher. Sure it adds structure and can create two useful vertical lines to lengthen and narrow the body. But draping it over the shoulders, à la Jackie Kennedy, might be more elegant as well as compatible with warmer weather.
Try these: Lambswool cardigan, £385, & Daughter; Cotton cardigan, £65, Jigsaw