5 x things to do if you’re bored with how you look - even though you’re a stylish guy
The clients who come to me for my personal shopping and personal styling services are usually pretty stylish men, they just need to have some new ideas, and fresh input on their wardrobes.
They think they could look better (lots of clients say this when they contact me) or are bored with how they’re dressing, but don’t quite know how and where to start.
It usually means they’re sticking to “safe” items whether that’s in colour or style. Or they don’t think of their outfit as a whole, or only have the most basic of accessories. Sometimes they have the odd random piece in their wardrobe when they’ve tried to branch out, but they don’t know how to put it together with the other items they have.
My goal is to inject some life into their wardrobes and how they look, so they look put together, express their personalities, and look more interesting than the average man.
Here are some of the things I recommend you try if you’re bored with your wardrobe. And if you need someone to do it for you, then of course, get in touch - I’d love to help!
1. Think about how you style it
I remember awhile ago having a client who came out of the fitting room in jeans and a shirt…..he was a young guy, so I felt he needed to look more modern, and less classic. I untucked the shirt, and did up the top button, then turned up the jeans. Just those 3 small tweaks made a massive difference, and suddenly he looked much cooler.
So I challenge you to experiment with how you wear your clothes - will you have a turn up put on your flannel trousers to make them look more interesting, or roll the hem of your jeans up? Maybe do up the top two buttons of your jacket and leave the rest open, or leave more buttons than normal undone on your shirt?
Perhaps you could tie your scarf in a different style (watch this video) or knot the belt in an alternative way on your trench coat……..see this blog post.
Even leaving a sliver of white t-shirt showing at the neck and hem (see above middle) when you wear a sweater over it, somehow manages to make it look more layered, interesting and styled. I’ve had a couple of clients who loved this when I did it for them during a wardrobe edit.
Left: Pinterest Middle: Carlos Castillo on Pinterest / Instagram Right: Pinterest
2. Add some contrast
During some of my more recent wardrobe edits, I’ve been enjoying styling my clients light coloured jeans into outfits. That contrast seems to make everything more interesting, than if we’d just put it with regular blue denim.
And before you ask - yes, you can wear light colours in winter too - just look for ecru or cream rather than bright white which does look too summery. If you find them in cord, then that also adds to the wintery feel.
If you’re not a fan of cream/white then maybe try out a pale grey instead. And if you’re dead set against light coloured trousers, then just apply the same contrast to tops - add the white t-shirt discussed above, or opt for an ecru chore jacket or chunky cardigan….particularly good with a chambray shirt and khaki trousers.
Left: Pinterest Middle: Simon Crompton on Pinterest / Permanent Style Right: Pinterest
3. Experiment with mixing casual and formal
Now everything’s gone more casual you might find you’re not wearing your tailored stuff much anymore.
That means it’s time to start experimenting with mixing it up……could you perhaps put your tailored trousers with a chambray shirt and chunky cardigan like the guy has done in the middle image above? Or maybe you could wear them with some leather trainers, and a crew neck jumper layered over a white t-shirt?
And if your formal shoes haven’t had much of an airing recently, and you’re bored with wearing trainers, then why not try styling them with jeans and a field jacket like the image above left? Notice he’s got a shirt on though, which helps balance out the outfit…..if it was a t-shirt and the only part of the look was the smarter shoes, it probably wouldn’t work.
Another thing that’s been successful when I’ve done it in clients’ wardrobes, is to think of your blazer more like outerwear. Experiment with putting it over knits and casual trousers, rather than with a shirt and formal trousers, which is too dressy for a lot of guys these days.
Or whilst it’s still summery, put your formal trousers with a knitted t-shirt or polo shirt, which are a level up from a regular tee or polo, so sit well with smarter bottom halves.
Left: Pinterest Middle: Pinterest Right: Manish Puri on Pinterest / Instagram
4. Wear some colour
I know I’m always going on about adding more colour to your outfits, and don’t get me wrong I love neutrals just as much as the next person (and am often found dressed head to toe in navy, whilst lecturing someone on wearing more colour!) but it really is the quickest way to inject some excitement into your outfits, and stop you from getting bored.
A guy I worked with recently went from hiding (by his own admission) in all black outfits, to buying this bright Folk sweatshirt and many other colourful things. And guess what? He’s getting noticed, and getting compliments. I love it when I hear that!
Next time you go clothes shopping, when you pick up your default black, navy or grey, before heading off to the fitting room, have a look to see what other colours the item comes in and grab that to try too. You never know you might surprise yourself!
Read more about putting colours together in an outfit here, and if you really don’t have a clue what colours suit you then book in for a Style Review (if you’re in Central London we can do it in person).
Left: Pinterest Middle: Pinterest Right: Jason Jules on Pinterest / Instagram
5. Update your accessories
Two people could be wearing exactly the same thing but with different accessories, and it’ll show a completely different style personality. (In fact, I think this might be a good topic for a future blog post!).
For example, a pale blue Oxford cotton button down, and beige chinos could be worn with dark brown suede lace ups and a braided belt and look quite classic.
But put that outfit with chunky brown loafers and a belt with western detailing and it looks much more fashion forward.
Accessories can help update an outfit, add some colour…..see yellow socks above (Uniqlo have loads of great colour socks), or bring 2 colours in the outfit together.
As well as making your outfit look polished and put together, or creating an interesting point of difference.
Have a look at the accessories you have…….is it just one plain black and one brown belt, neutral coloured socks and a backpack that’s seen better days? Time for an upgrade! Look how much of a difference they made to the outfits I put together here.
Left: Pinterest Middle: Pinterest Right: Pinterest
Are you still at a loss as to where to start?
Worried about getting it wrong and looking silly?
Need a fresh pair of eyes on your wardrobe?
Then book in a session with me and we can go through it all together. Click the button below to get started…..
“Sarah was a delight to work with, and provided so much value and expertise from beginning to end.
She was thorough in her assessments and creative in finding solutions to the issues I brought up.
The experience of working with her left me with some great additions to my wardrobe and absolute clarity on how to wear them.
I couldn’t recommend her more highly.”
Did you like this post? You’ll probably like these ones too:
A guide for men on how to put colours together in an outfit
7 x tips on how to dress as a middle aged man……so you feel modern, without looking like you’re trying too hard