Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a style guide that told you what to wear, when to wear it, how to wear it, and basically exactly how to improve your style to look chic and fashionable everyday without really trying?
It’s often hard to know what is appropriate for the occasion, and how to look chic and fashionable everyday when you step out of the door to face the day, or attend a specific event.
Which is where this post comes to your rescue.
But guess what?
Dressing appropriately for the occasion, and learning to dress to look chic and fashionable is all about YOU. That’s right, You!
There is no secret. Personal style is up to you – it’s not something to copy. Sure you can take ideas and adapt them, but what looks stylish on one person may make you look like a scarecrow!
Here are some simple tips to help improve your style so you look great every day.
By following these simple guidelines, you’ll be able to create outfits that flatter your figure and make you feel confident and beautiful.
So get ready to take your style up a notch!
Table of Contents
What is Style Anyway?
- Style is the way in which you present yourself to the world.
- It’s a reflection of your personality, your attitude, your sense of self.
- It’s what you wear, how you wear it and how it makes you feel.
- It’s not about how much you spend on clothes.
- It’s not about buying fast fashion, fast or often!
Everyday Fashion Tips to Help YOU find your personal Style
Because style is so personal, I don’t think it’s right to be too prescriptive.
However, one of the most important aspects of style and fashion is to know what clothes will look good on you and which won’t.
When it comes to this, there are a few things that you need to ask yourself:
- What color suits you best?
- What type of clothes do you already have in your wardrobe?
- What basics do you need to top up your wardrobe?
- What type of clothes suit your figure?
- What clothes are suitable for your lifestyle?
- What trends should you follow, and which ones should you ignore?
These questions can be answered by thinking about your personality, your age, and your lifestyle habits.
How to Improve your Style
Many women of a certain age get to a stage in life when they ask themselves, “What can I do to improve my style?”
Some people have an innate sense of style, while others need to learn how to look stylish with the clothes they have in their wardrobe.
If you are one of those people who want to improve their style, there are a few things you can do in order to change-up the way you dress.
- Read fashion magazines and blogs. They will give you an idea of what’s trending and what’s coming up next season.
- Sit in a cafe and watch the passing parade as you have a cup of coffee! Notice what are other women wearing. What do you like and what don’t you like. Pay attention to the way they put clothes together.
- Watch TV shows or movies that portray characters who dress stylishly. Think Sex in the City or Nina Proudman in Offspring. This way, you’ll be replicating how top stylists are dressing the stars, and will be able to create an outfit that looks fashionable and deliberate.
How to Dress Simple But Stylish
The first thing to think about is to make sure that you have a working capsule wardrobe.
Once you have all the basics covered you can start layering, or adding show pony pieces that identify your own unique style.
- Simple and stylish is always chic.
- Choose block colours, or stripes, and keep the lines simple.
- Think navy and white stripes for French chic.
- Try bell-bottom trousers or navy pants, and add a beret for an individual effect.
- Do Boho styles suit you?
- A linen shift dress in a neutral colour worn with pretty pumps screams good taste.
- Soft silk blouses in pale pastel colours teamed with well tailored trousers are a show stopper.
- Crisp white shirts and the best blue jeans you can buy will never go out of fashion.
- Choose leather if you’re buying a handbag – chocolate brown or mink colours will go with most outfits.
- Black and white with a string of pearls is always stylish and suits nearly everybody.
Improve Your Style by Practicing These Everyday Fashion Tips
Improving Your Style Doesn’t Have to be Difficult!
In the last few decades, fashion has become a huge industry, with new trends and styles coming out each season.
These days there will always be styles or trends to suit you in the shops, and some garments just never go out of style.
You can be stylish but still comfortable in what you wear, by dressing for your body type and sticking to a budget.
In order to look stylish every day, you should focus on the key elements – which are your clothes, but absolutely don’t forget about accessories and makeup!
And I promise you that the more effort you put into looking good every day, the better it will be for your self-esteem, which is vital as we get older.
How to Look Stylish Everyday
Find a style that you feel comfortable with and stick to it.
If maxi dresses suit you, then have a few in your wardrobe and rotate them. If you feel more comfortable in tailored trousers and smart collared blouses, then do buy the same styles in different colours, and mix and match.
What you feel comfortable in is ultimately what you are going to pick out first from your wardrobe. So keep it simple – keep it classy and then accentuate with fashion accessories.
How to Look Stylish at Home
Many people resort to track suits and active wear or even their PJ’s and dressing gowns to wear around the home!
I really understand the need to be comfortable at home, and also the need to be adaptable.
For me personally I need to wear clothes that make me instantly ready to take the dog for a walk, or visit a neighbour, or watch a movie on the couch.
I don’t want to be changing clothes three times a day for different reasons.
To look stylish at home, my advice is to keep some classy loungewear in your wardrobe, especially Athflow – check out my post about Athflow and learn all about what it is and why it’s a great solution for home-wear garments.
Experiment with Colours.
Colour plays a huge role in transforming your look from sloppy to chic or from chic to sloppy, which is why it’s important for to understand how clothes work and what colours complement each other best. This way, you can make the right fashion choices every time you need a new outfit.
But don’t be afraid of colour. It makes the world so much more … well … colourful! And vibrant. I have some really loud, vivaciously coloured dresses in my wardrobe which for special occasions look wonderful.
Do go and get ‘colour-coded’ and find out the colours which will really bring your skin tone alive, otherwise experiment, experiment, experiment. Find out what colours make you look and feel great.
Not everyone can wear bright cerise pink, or sunshine yellow. Some people look fabulous in muted colours, others don’t. My friend loves tawny greens, golds and burnt siennas and they really suit her colouring – but not so much mine.
Understand How Clothes Work For You
Style is ageless, and women over 50 have plenty of style options to choose from. While the days of dressing like a teenager may be behind you, there are still plenty of ways to look chic and stylish. Take some time to understand how your clothes work for you.
For instance, here are a few things to consider …
- Do Jersey dresses suit your body type or do they just cling to every lump and bump?
- Can you wear a kaftan dress without looking swamped?
- Does a midi wrap dress hug you in all the right places and flatter your waistline?
- Can you confidently wear tailored pants without leaving the bottom of your shirt out to cover your tum and bum?
- Do jeans really work for you? If they do, then buy the style you love in three colours!
- What about leggings? Here’s how to wear leggings and tops to go with them.
Here are 10 Style Tips for Women over 50.
- Opt for classic styles instead of hipster trendy items.
- Choose flattering colors and classy patterns (think Liberty or Laura Ashley patterns).
- Wear clothes that fit well and flatter your figure.
- Embrace your curves – wear dresses and skirts that show them off, but which don’t hug every lump or bump.
- Stick to natural fabrics like cotton, wool, and silk instead of synthetic materials.
- Experiment with accessories – they can add personality to any outfit!
- Experiment with how you wear things – maybe tuck-in shirts if you normally wear them out, or how about draping a cardigan or a pashmina over your shoulders to make an outfit look different.
- To be stylish you don’t have to spend a lot of money. You can create your own unique style by using what you already have at home and adding trendy accessories.
- Invest in some good quality basics like a good pair of jeans, a few simple t-shirts, or a new blazer that will go with everything else in your closet.
- When shopping for clothes you need to pay attention to fit. Don’t just go by the brand’s sizing. A size 8, 10 or 12 in one brand may not be the same as another. So take a good look: Are the shoulders too wide, does the garment fit properly on your waist, what about the arm length? Really consider all the aspects of a garment.
Find Your Balance
Your goal is to find clothes that are comfortable and high quality without breaking the bank.
Why high quality? Because they will wash and wear well, and per use over the years they can represent a good return on investment.
While you want to be able to wear your capsule clothes for a long time, and make them worth the investment, you also want to look good and feel confident in the clothes you buy. So don’t buy either dowdy expensive items, or high fashion garments you’ll only wear once in a blue moon, just because you feel you should.
It’s a Wrap (or should that be Pashmina?)
Every person has their own unique style. The goal of this blog post is to help everyone find their own personal style without spending a fortune.
What tips do you have to share?
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Thanks Jo for the fabulous fashion tips. I have been trying to find a dress just lately but have no luck finding something I like and that fits ok. I might check out a wrap dress. I used to wear lots of wrap skirts when I was younger. Thanks Jo. Wishing you and yours a safe and happy Christmas and 2022, and enjoy your new grandy. Such a delightful state of being. hugs xx
Thank you 🙂 I think you’d suit a wrap dress Jill. They are very flattering. Happy New Year to you too 🙂 xx