Your hairstyle and clothes

[Tsukiko]

Forgive me if there's already a thread on this topic, I am sure I've seen one before.
I am about to update some stuff for the season ahead and started thinking about what I like versus what I think works for me personally.

I love oxford shirts, wool or velvet blazers or huge chunky jumpers.
I also love the drapey multilayered look of Japanese styles and baggy barrel trousers, and the type of styles from the Monty Don thread.
BUT!!!! I really don't seem to suit them, aaaagh! I always look best in very simple clothes that aren't too structured but not baggy or wide either. A smart long sleeve tee with decent slim jeans and a long wool coat look great on me. As does a simple black dress. The simpler the better really.

I then realised that it's my hair most of all, far more than my bodytype, which is what a lot of women put most attention on I suppose. But my hair is longish, wavy and blonde, a bit romantic looking I suppose, and anything patterned, boxy, chunky or structured makes my head look out of place
Pretty, flouncy dresses don't work well either as they seem to swallow me whole.

Anyone else noticed this? Does your hair type/style dominate your look? I often think that if i had very straight tidy hair i might get away with more structure, but I don't know. It's interesting to think about! I have heard people discuss clothing and hair length but not so much texture.

I definitely wouldn't suit the lagenlook, I'd look like a right old hippy whereas some women would look elfin and beautiful

I have naturally very curly hair and freckles, both things I feel totally overwhelm anything I wear, and the former making me looking unpolished. As such, the curls have been straightened into submission, but I love my freckles and as I don't wear foundation or any other kind of base covering/concealer, really shine through. I rarely wear pattern because I don't like many and some date really quickly, and again, feel with my freckles, and now glasses, there's too much 'going on' if I do.

@Mirabai

It seems we have more in common*! I too longed to wear a crisp white shirt although my point of reference is more Chanel in Deauville than Annie Hall. Prada, particularly what Mrs Prada wears is a huge inspiration for me. And I love the wear 40s and other film noir heroines were dressed. I have however worked out how to wear wide(r) legged trouser - high waisted, slightly cropped and always with something fitted on top.

We are also the same height, build and busty, I could have written the following too:

"...but my face does - there’s something about my face that does not suit band t-shirts, slogans, rugby shirts, fleeces, sports gear, scandi minimalism - I tend to look like I’m going to the dentist.'

*Given your taste in shoes and what you have written in this thread, you really remind me of a super-chic woman I used to know. (She's based in London and once had a beautiful boutique in Marylebone).

I have wavy/curly hair, thick (although not as thick as it used to be) and fairly course in texture. I've not tried to straighten it since I was 18. Fighting it just feels like a huge waste of my time and I won't do it. I wear it short-ish, partly because when I've tried to grow it longer it seems to drag my face down with it, but also because it's more work to maintain when it's longer and I can't be bothered.

And yet with clothes, I'll happily spend hours thinking and tweaking to get the look I want. I don't worry too much any more about whether something suits my body shape but I'm very fussy about achieving the look I want.

So for me getting dressed, and thinking about getting dressed is an endless source of enjoyment, while looking after my hair is a bit of a chore, to be completed as quickly and painlessly as possible.

So I think this thread is really interesting. I've started looking into kibbe's theory (BEWARE: bit of an internet rabbit hole and lots of kids information out there!) - if I were to distil it down, I'd say:

• it's a dressmaking theory that says everyone has one or two dominant physical features to their body and these are the features that need to be "accommodated" for when choosing clothes. Imagine a dressmaker altering a bog standard dress to make it look perfect for an individual - some would add length, others need bust darts etc etc. Obviously we aren't getting our clothes made for us, so with the amount of off the rack clothes available, it can be beneficial to choose styles that already suit the dominant characteristics of our bodies.

• I don't think any "astheatic" of clothing e.g preppy, goth, athleisure is off limits to anyone however if a particular style of clothing is very strongly associated with it, like wide leg trousers, body con or flowy maxi dresses for example, it's harder if that's not your dominant characteristics to adapt to fit your particular body type. Can be done, but requires a bit more thought.

I don't think any "astheatic" of clothing e.g preppy, goth, athleisure is off limits to anyone however if a particular style of clothing is very strongly associated with it, like wide leg trousers, body con or flowy maxi dresses for example, it's harder if that's not your dominant characteristics to adapt to fit your particular body type. Can be done, but requires a bit more thought.

I agree with a lot of that but particularly the first bit (before the 'however').

I think there's a lot more to finding your style than your physical body shape, and that many if not most looks can be adapted if you're drawn to it strongly enough. I will also admit to feeling impatient sometimes with all the 'I'd love to wear xxx but I can't' that I see on this board.

So maybe, if I read up on Kibbe theory, I'd find a home there? I did try once but to be honest, I could only understand about one word in three!

Flo ages ago someone posted a link in a thread to a magazine article called Style Essences. You can Google it and it should come up. I think it's based on the Kibbe thing, but it's easy to understand and they use photos to give examples.

I found it helpful because it was so obvious which one I was and I could see how I could get away with some elements of clothes on the style essences either side of mine and why other things just don't work.

I've got clothes that work as an outft, fit me well, right colours for my skin tone, but somehow look all wrong on me. I could see it's because they stray too far from my style essence and that's why it ends up looking like I'm wearing somebody else's clothes. I'm decluttering all those now and whenever I shop now I stick to clothes that fit my style essence. It doesn't limit me to one aesthetic and everything I buy looks great.

Thanks IndianSummer78, I'll look that up.
I think what I tried to use was some kind of self-diagnosis Kibbe tool but we didn't hit it off and I gave up!

I will also admit to feeling impatient sometimes with all the 'I'd love to wear xxx but I can't' that I see on this board.

I've found this a lot recently too. It makes me sad because I think a lot of it comes from negative body image, or school -playground type fear of ridicule. But just frustrating, yes.

I think this is similar (never actually looked into Kibbe) but I found it easy to understand the descriptions and the pics with the commentary of why it does/doesn't work and what style essence the person in the pic is. I Google it myself just now and it's The Concept Wardrobe, there's a few articles about it starting with an introduction to the concept and ending up with a detailed article on your particular style essence. If it says you can't read any more because you've had your quota just clear the cookies on your device and you can start again.

I wish I could wear large dark clothes, boxy Japanese styles. Very androgynous and low key.

But I have big hair and curves so I wear midi dresses.

Thanks again IndianSummer - I was so bamboozled by what I read about Kibbe that I ran away and never went back, but what you've described sounds more straightforward.

thedevil Yeah I used to be a huge believer in dressing for your shape and I still think it's useful to understand your body type, e.g. I refer to it when I try something on and it doesn't look the way I expected. But I think it was a tool that became a creed. It stopped being fun for me and I also realised it was making me hyper self-critical, which was when I fell out with it big time.

I think wilder hair suits simple colours and unfussy tops, so a slim fit scoop neck would be lovely with tumbling waves or curls. The only thing that I think can make is look too 'busy' is complicated patterns, but then we are all so different and many people do pull this off amazingly.

I have a preference for unfussy clothes though so i could be biased.

My hair can look less healthy straightened so I don't feel it makes me look neater.

I pulled this picture from another thread (on MN i think!) but I adore this hair! I think 'untidy' hair can look incredibly chic when it wants to