Fashion is a funny old thing. Each season we’re fed trends that dominated the runways and lists of “wardrobe must-haves”. But we’re also told that true personal style is individual, trendless and doesn’t follow the crowds. Then there are certain things we’re told we shouldn’t wear or style formulas that we should follow. Exhausting, isn’t it?
As someone who’s worked in fashion for years (and consumed countless articles, videos and images for even longer), there are a few style ‘rules’ that I’ve seen crop up again and again. These are guidelines that we’re told to follow in order to be considered “stylish” and each time I see them, they leave me baffled because quite frankly, they’re a load of crap. Here are the 7 style rules I ignore - and why.
1. Don’t mix black with navy
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This is a ‘style tip’ that gets repeated a lot and it’s always stumped me. Black: chic. Navy: chic. Black and navy: double chic! With this style rule, the idea is that the two colours are both too dark to go together and don’t provide enough contrast to one another, leaving an outfit falling flat.
But choose quality pieces and this won’t be the case. As I type, I’m wearing an oversized navy guernsey from Le Tricoteur over a pair of black tapered-leg jeans. It’s simple but it works. The thick textured wool and long, oversized fit of the jumper prevents it from appearing ‘flat’ and when I pop out later, I’ll put a pair of colourful trainers on to give it an extra lift. Another favourite look of mine is a pair of black straight-leg trousers, a black cashmere jumper and a long, tailored navy coat - either with black ankle boots or trainers. It’s simple, it’s sleek and that blend of black and navy is always a bit unexpected.
If you’re a bit unsure about mixing the two, I recommend adding a white or cream layer into the mix - a bit like the image above. I’ve put a white T-shirt underneath the navy jumper so that it acts as a contrast to the black and breaks up the two dark colours.
2. Only buy pieces in your size
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I’ve been shopping with friends when they’ve spotted something they love, rifled through the rack… and given up because “they don’t have my size”. I’ll always encourage them to try it on in the next size or two up, or even down, anyway. Because any human who’s taken items to a fitting room is aware that you can be one size in one store… and about three sizes larger in another.
I say try a few sizes on and see what fit works for you and what you like best. You may find that you don’t particularly like the fit of ‘your size’ - with jumpers and shirts, for example, I tend to buy a couple of sizes up for a looser or oversized fit. Trousers are trickier because of the waistband and leg length but remember you can always get something tailored if you spot a pair you love in the men’s section (if you’re a woman), an end-of-season sale, or in a vintage shop.
3. Don’t wear oversized clothing if you’re petite
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Speaking of sizing, there’s a school of thought that says petite people can’t wear oversized clothing because it’ll swamp them, it’s unflattering, or it’ll make the wearer appear shorter than they are.
I call bullshit on this one. I’m 5ft 4” (in fashion terms, I’m petite) and I live in oversized clothing. It’s a huge part of my style and some of my most oversized pieces are the items of clothing I feel best in. Look at Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen too - they’re the queens of oversized fits and they’re barely taller than 5ft. Like anything with style and clothing, as long as you feel good and confident in it, you’ll look good - whether it’s traditionally considered ‘flattering’ or not.
4. Don’t mix green with yellow
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This is another colour combination I’ve seen pop up as a no-go and like the ‘no black and navy’ rule above, it’s left me feeling perplexed. While black and navy are said to appear too ‘flat’, naysayers argue green and yellow are too ‘bright’. Bloody hell, give us a break.
I’m not a huge wearer of bright colours (I’ve written more about that here), preferring neutral tones over bold shades, but one colour combo that will always catch my eye is green and yellow. In fact, one of my favourite pairs of trainers is a pair of New Balance 237s which are a wonderful combination of green, yellow and orange. They lift every outfit I wear and never fail to put a smile on my face when I wear them.
Would I wear an outfit purely of green and yellow pieces? Probably not, because that’s not me. Would I hesitate to incorporate both colours into an outfit because someone told me they don’t go together? Absolutely not.
5. You need to have certain pieces in your capsule wardrobe
I spoke about this in another post a few weeks ago, but I don’t subscribe to the notion that a capsule wardrobe requires a one-size-fits-all approach. I’ve heard advice from stylists that every capsule wardrobe needs a leather jacket, for example, or a blazer and a pair of heels. But if you don’t ever wear those pieces, you don’t feel particularly great in them, or you’re not inspired to create multiple looks with them, do they really form part of your capsule wardrobe? I’d say no.
Instead, I recommend building your own version of a capsule wardrobe with the pieces that you wear the most. To do this, think about the outfits that you wear regularly and you feel good in. Are there any commonalities in terms of what kinds of pieces you wear? Maybe there’s not a week that goes by where you don’t wear ankle boots. Or a pair of tailored wide-leg trousers is your ride or die. To see that in action, I broke down my capsule wardrobe in this post.
6. Only buy from the women’s department… if you’re a woman
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… Or only from the men’s department if you’re a man. This may not be a style ‘rule’ that gets bandied about, rather than a social norm that we’ve become accustomed to. Whenever I go into a shop (physical or virtual) that sells men’s and women’s clothing, I spend an almost equal amount of time in both departments.
Yes, I’m generally interested in style so even if I don’t buy something, I like to see what’s out there across both men’s and women’s fashion. But I also love men’s jumpers, T-shirts and shirts and have more than a few in my wardrobe. They give an oversized fit, which I love incorporating into my outfits (see rule #3) and you’ll quite often find different colour ranges or prints.
Take the jumper I’m wearing in the above image, for example. It’s a small men’s merino crewneck in dark green from Asket, giving just the right amount of room to layer pieces underneath without swamping me. The ‘women’s’ collection of merino crewnecks has much more fitted styles - which is great if that’s your thing, but it’s not mine. It also doesn’t do the jumper in this colour, which means I would have missed out on that lovely, rich dark green if I hadn’t clicked on ‘Men’ in the nav bar.
7. You can’t wear that if you’re over a certain age
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Remember when Kylie Minogue wore a pair of gold hotpants for her music video for Spinning Around at the age of 32 and the media went into meltdown? Those shorts, apparently bought for 50p from a market stall in London, are now so iconic that they’re housed in a museum in Melbourne. But at the time, the fact that she was over 30 and wearing hotpants was considered nothing short of shocking.
Women in particular are constantly being told what’s ‘appropriate’ or how we should dress, according to our age. When it comes to fashion (and the media in general), we’re served images and messaging that youth is ‘in’ and if you’re over 40… forget it. Style influencer and fellow Substacker Anna Cascarina from
talks a lot about how rife ageism is in fashion and is a strong advocate for personal style at any and every age.I have to agree. If you like it, wear it, no matter if you think you ‘should’ or ‘shouldn’t’. Signed, a 33-year-old with a big love for short shorts.
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Next week: A new monthly shopping edit full of new and second-hand finds.
Any items marked with * have been kindly gifted by brands. All thoughts, picks and reviews are my own.
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Outfit #4 is on point.