Loved this article by Sal of Already Pretty about the difference between a Rut and a Signature Style and it led me to thinking about how we get into ruts with our style, how we stop thinking more broadly about what would make us look great but still fits with our signature style.
One of the problems many women find is that they know they’re in a style rut, but they don’t know how to get out of it (which is why many come to see me professionally). Many have gone shopping and bought something completely different, in an effort to jump out of that rut, but they get it home and never wear it because it doesn’t feel like ‘them’. What they have done, is bought something that suits someone else, it’s not part of their personality style, which is why they don’t wear it or feel good in it.
When I’m shopping with my clients on a personal shopping trip, I will ask many questions about who they are, their clothing values (such as whether they are driven by economic, sensory, or aesthetic reasons when clothes shopping, just to name a few of the values) and find out how they want to be perceived. This helps me find the clothes that suit who they are and how they want to express themselves. The more I can understand who they are, the better I can choose clothes that I know will suit their personality. The clothes that when they put them on they feel like the best version of themselves, not like they’re trying to be someone else.
I love it when the feedback I get from a client is “I never would have picked this up but I love it!” This tells me that I’ve understood their personality and values, and I’m on their style superhighway, and I have taken them out of their style rut.
One of the ways you can start to figure out what the other lanes are on your style superhighway, is to sit down with pen and paper and write down a list of your favorite garments/accessories. Then for each:
- Describe what you love about it – is it the shape, colour, fabric, fit, feel, pattern, comfort, versatility etc. of it?
- Describe how it makes you feel when you’re wearing it – feminine, sexy, smart, professional, elegant, edgy, current, modern, vibrant etc.
- Describe how it makes you look when you’re wearing it – what is the message it sends the world?
These questions will help you narrow down what it is you love about your favorite (if rut) clothes, so you can then expand on those qualities and find other pieces that will move you onto your style highway.
You will find after you’ve written down a bunch of favourites that some words get repeated over and over. That’s great – it’s telling you that that particular quality is really important to you and you need to make sure that anything new you buy has those qualities. But then it may also point out something that you’d never realised or thought about before, and you can take those words and see if you can apply them to other garments that are outside your rut. If they fit with the elements you love, you’re safely onto a winner. But if they say something that isn’t you, put it back.
Keep these words with you. Write them on a card and put it in your wallet. Write them on your mirror with a whiteboard marker, so that you can run them by anything you put on. When your clothes don’t match your style statement, then you will definitely feel inauthentic and not at your best.
This is just one exercise you can do to help discover your signature style. There are more exercises in my 7 Steps to Style system which also helps you understand how best to dress your body as well as putting together a wardrobe that works for you.