Being experimental with your looks is the fastest way to learn how to put together the outfits that best match your unique body type and colour tones. Making the occasional fashion mistake is part of the learning process, but there are a few core things you should avoid from the start. Make sure you follow these guidelines on what not to wear, and you can experiment freely with confidence.
One easy mistake to make is thinking that sizing is universal. You’d think that the same fitting sizes would be consistent across brands and types of clothing, but this simply is not the case. One brand’s larger size might suit you perfectly, while another would have you in a medium or even small sized garment. Don’t pay too much attention to the numbers or letters – always check what it looks like once on your body and base your decisions on that.
Another mistake is to believe in fashion myths despite them being disproved by fashion trends. Mixed prints are thought to be way too busy, but can actually elevate your look. Mixing gold and silver jewelry is believed to be most unstylish, but whole accessory trends have been based around mixed metals like gold and silver. These are just two of many fashion ‘mistakes’ that are actually useful style tips – so always test something out on yourself and trust your own taste.
The old adage that you should always take one thing off before leaving the house is another common misconception, and a quick glance at some top designers, models, and fashion blogs show that sometimes more can actually be good, and less is sometimes not enough. Just ask yourself, for each accessory, whether or not it makes a positive impact on your look. If it does, keep it on.
Finally, one of the biggest mistakes we all make when it comes to our favourite pieces of clothing is to not have them tailored and fitted to our unique bodies. While we can’t all afford bespoke clothing, having an existing off-the-rack piece tailored to you is significantly cheaper and well worth your while. Mass produced clothing has to fit a wide range of shapes in every size, and so the same piece can look great or terrible on two different people who are the same height and weight, but who have different shapes. If you really want to make the most of clothing on a budget, learning some basic sewing skills that allow you to tailor your clothes for yourself is easier than you may think.
Sometimes, though, it really is just the clothes and the way they are combined that looks bad, no matter who is modelling it. The outfit in the image above is an excellent example of more combinations and styles to avoid.
Love always,
Zaynah
Shop: www.zaynah.co.za
Instagram: @zaynah_official