So, you finally pulled the trigger and bought that cool jacket. It fits nicely, you look pretty cool, but you don’t feel comfortable wearing it. You put on a couple of other pieces, you try switching your pants, but it still isn’t really you.
Sadly, millions of college students lack a defined personal style, suffering from symptoms of impulse clothing purchases, quality trade-offs and misplaced or missing confidence. There’s a pretty easy cure, and lucky for us, it’s pretty much free and all of it is right here in this article. Without further ado, let’s get stylish.
The first thing you’ll want to do is take all of the stuff in your closet and lay it out — mentally or physically, whatever helps you visualize your collection. Keep that visual in your head as you pick out two or three of your favorite outfits, or if you don’t have favorite outfits, look at four to six of your favorite pieces and put them aside. Don’t worry, this isn’t a capsule wardrobe; you can create personal style without a total revamp.
Now that you’ve picked out your favorites, think really hard about why you like these pieces, looking beyond the scope of practicality: What makes it so cool? Why do you wear these pieces so often? What do you like the most about it? Consider factors such as your silhouette, texture, materials, colors — whatever keeps you coming back to those garments.
Congratulations, you’ve found some of your preferred style traits! Now that you’re armed with this knowledge, let’s go back to the pile of clothes you left behind and pick out something that maybe doesn’t hit your mark: What is it missing? Do you feel comfortable wearing it? Why isn’t this garment one you’d call your favorite?
Keep this list of undesirable traits in the same place you’ve got that list of defining traits, and refer to it whenever you have to buy new clothes as a surefire way to find clothes you like without doing all that much shopping. Unfortunately, now comes the tough part: experimentation.
No, we’re not Frankensteining clothes to make some sort of super garment — although that would be pretty cool — we’re working with what we’ve got. Start taking those less-than-awesome pieces and combine them with those five-star garments to figure out what works and what doesn’t. Don’t be afraid to get weird or wear something in a way you usually wouldn’t have, be willing to surprise yourself with what you put on. Sometimes our best outfits come from pieces we wouldn’t be caught dead in.
The last step, which is considered to be the most important step in this list, is to stop giving a damn what your classmates think about what you’re wearing: otherwise, all of this is for nothing. This isn’t high school anymore; nobody is gonna give you grief about how you wore black with blue, or how wearing a sweater vest makes you look like a geek. We’re all so concerned with our own shortcomings that we’re very quick to miss the appearance of others, no matter how strange.
What makes personal style so special as a concept is in the name: It’s a personal choice. There’s never a wrong answer so long as you’re wearing something you enjoy, and anyone who says otherwise is trying to put you down or sell you clothes. Once you develop a solid style, however, you’ll notice that none of your haters are better dressed than you.
