How To Identify Your Personal Style and Apply it To Your Wardrobe
Learning how to identify your personal style is one of the most difficult, yet useful aspects of building a wardrobe that you love. It’s not enough to identify the things that you are comfortable in - though that is a big part - it’s also a matter of selecting items that make you feel like you look good. While you may feel the most comfortable in jeans and a tank top, that may not be an appropriate choice for any occasion that life throws at you.
They key to finding your personal style is in considering both your taste (the things you like, the cuts that make you feel good, the trends you like to follow) and your lifestyle (what your job is, what you spend your time doing, where you live). Your personal style lies in the intersection of these two elements, which is why your personal style is also constantly evolving. When circumstances change, such as getting a new job, having a baby, etc., what you wear is likely to change as well.
Whether you’re just getting started with creating your ideal wardrobe or want to refine your taste due to a recent change, the following 3 steps will help you get an idea of where your personal taste lies and leave you knowing exactly what you need to do to implement it.
STEP # 1: FIND INSPIRATION
Begin by gathering all of your ideas in one central place. Choose the method that will be the easiest for you: a file on your computer, a note on your phone, a Pinterest board. The medium does not matter as long as you can add as many images and notes as you please.
In this central place, collect both inspirational images of what you wish your wardrobe would be, as well as those things that you already own that are working. Don’t worry if it looks like it doesn’t all fit together, being cohesive is not really the point here. Reserve that for when putting together a capsule wardrobe.
If you’re struggling to come up with images that you like, consider the following sources:
Magazines
Influencers whose styles you admire
Pinterest
Celebrities
TV Shows (if you’re, say, a teacher, are there any teachers on TV whose styles may suit you?)
People on the street. I don’t recommend you take their photo unless you get permission, but consider what you like about their outfit and make a note.
Your style icon, if you have one.
In my opinion, this is not a project that should be completed in one afternoon. I recommend you take at least a few weeks to gather the images. How you feel on any given day will affect what you are drawn to; you want to make sure you gather images that suit many situations in your life. For an example of a style board, you can check out mine.
A screenshot of my personal style inspiration board.
STEP #2: ANALYZE THE ELEMENTS OF THE STYLE
Once you have your board, step 2 is to identify the elements that appear over and over again in your images. Consider the following:
Is there a particular color you see a lot? Or a color palette?
What kind of jewelry do you notice? Is it silver or gold? Statement or minimal?
What kind of fits do you notice?
Is there a particular fabric that you see a lot?
What prints do you see? What prints do you not?
What kind of accessories do you see? What style are they?
The more specific you get here, the better. You will use these observations in the following step.
STEP #3: APPLY
Step 3 is to apply the elements that you’ve just identified into your wardrobe. There is a couple of ways you can do this:
a) Consider your signature look:
A signature look, also known as a style uniform or an outfit formula, is the outfit that you wear the most often even when the specific pieces change. It could be, for example, a pair of skinny jeans and a T-shirt, or perhaps a midi dress with high-heeled pumps and oversized sunglasses, which Anna Wintour’s signature look.
Consider what your signature look is and see if there is a way that you can get one of your signature pieces in one of the elements you’ve identified. Perhaps you can get a pair of skinny jeans in a bright color, or a T-shirt in an animal print. Maybe its just a matter of finding a piece in the a fabric that you like.
b) Consider your lifestyle:
What do you spend most of the time doing? The breakdown of your wardrobe should match the breakdown of your time. If you spend 80% taking care of your kids, then 80% of your clothing should be items that you are comfortable wearing to take care of your kids.
Perhaps you noticed a lot of pointy toe stilettos in your vision board. Stilettos may not be practical for chasing a toddler around, but you can swap them out for pointy toe flats in various colors or fun prints.
c) Break down the elements of an outfit you like and adjust them to fit your lifestyle & taste:
Personal style seems intimidating because it feels like we have to create our own from the air. The good news is that even if you copy an outfit from someone else, the way you wear it and the way it sits on your body will change the outfit enough to make it your own. Don’t feel like you have to start from scratch - you can always imitate!
is one of my favorite fashion bloggers
This is a style of hers that I can imitate to make my own, probably with flats and a smaller bag!
Click the image to visit her site!
When you see an outfit that you like, consider the elements that comprise it. There is a good change that you already have some of the items and it is just a matter of finding the ones that you don’t. Get specific here. Maybe all you need is a black belt, or a floral kimono to complete the look.
There is a good chance that after following these steps you will be left with a very specific shopping list of items you need to complete your style. Use this list the next time you go shopping and keep your eyes open for those items - you may not find them right away but it will prevent you from buying things that you don’t need and don’t fit your style.
I hope this method helps you incorporate items of your taste into your lifestyle, no matter what your style is or what you do most of the time. Let me know in the comments what your biggest struggle is with when it comes to incorporating your personal style into your wardrobe - for me is that I like fancier clothes than I really need! If you did put together a vision board and would like to share it, I would love to see it. And as always, thanks for watching!