When in doubt, choose black…

THE mirror at the end of our hallway is a great buddy of mine. I never leave the house without consulting with her first although on tough days, she doesn’t always give me the affirmation I need. You must be thinking I’m crazy personifying a mirror right? I’m even chuckling at myself right now. But well, it is quite helpful. A lot of the times you visualise certain pieces together but they don’t make any sense until you actually try them on. Even when you do try them on, you’ll probably think you’re all that and a bag of chips until you actually stand in front of a mirror and realise you look crappy.

It can be a lot. Figuring out to wear can be a real roller coaster ride if like me; you’re serious about personal branding and care about how you look. On days when I can’t make up my mind about what to wear from just standing in front of the mirror, I take a mirror selfie.Yes, weird, I know but it helps to take a picture and see how I appear to others. Just the other day I was having difficulties deciding what to pair my new black and beige skirt with. I had worn a black blazer and wasn’t sure whether to wear beige or black heels. The beige shoes matched the beige on the skirt perfectly.

They also did wonders for my legs, if I may say so myself. On the other hand, the black shoes looked rather too chilled for the feisty skirt but they worked well with the black blazer. I really wasn’t sure which pair to go with so I wore one shoe from each pair to make a more accurate comparison and take a mirror selfie. At this point, you’re pretty sure I’m out of my wits, rights? So here I was looking at the mirror selfie and wondering which shoe looked the hottest. The clock was ticking and I was running late but I also didn’t want to leave the house looking crappy so I picked the black shoes.

Black is always a safe option, always. It pretty much matches with everything even on days you don’t really want to look safe. You really have got to be out of your mind to mess up any black fashion piece! Black nuetralises any over the top combinations. It will break outfits that are too colourful and help tie everything together nicely. If you don’t already own a black blazer, top, pants and shoes – you need to get to stepping and hook yourself up! Black is also a great colour to wear on its own; all black everything is elegant. I think it’s super classy although my mother always insists I need something to break the black lest I look like a grieving widow.

There are a couple of things to remember if you’re going to go for the black on black look though. Vary the fabrics and textures. Nothing looks dowdier than an all-black outfit that is all cotton. On the fabric note, make sure the fabric selection is season appropriate. A black wool dress will look fabulous in winter but out of place during summer. Silk and linen make it easier to pull off the all-black look during the warmer months.

 
When putting together an all-black ensemble, fit becomes even more important. Take advantage of the fact that black is slimming and have the clothes more fitted and flattering, rather than shapeless and drab. Accessories are a thing for me if I’m going to do black on black. Black is such a graceful colour which allows your accessories to pop and your face to glow. It’s always a good idea to add interest with accessories. Bold, colorful jewellery becomes the statement piece of your outfit. For me, coloured stiletto heels are the go-to shoe with any all black outfit.

It’s also key to make your outfit more dressy or casual with the simple change of lipstick colour. A little black dress can go from day with a light pink lip stain to night with a bold, deep red lip seamlessly. Once you invest in good blacks, you’ll realise you won’t have to spend much whenever you have an important event to attend. Just play around with your accessories and you’re good to go.  

Get some vava voom from a choker

 

I HAD a good laugh the other day when a friend sent me a message that read, “Dear Pattern & Style blogger. I’m a 28-year-old lady and my question is; am I too old for a choker? Is it so 2000 and late?” I thought this was quite hilarious of her! I’ve been noticing with interest how the choker has been trending of late but just thought this was probably not for me. For some reason, it just seemed gothic. I remember watching lots of movies in which girls in black chokers wore black clothes, black lipstick, black nail polish – pretty much black everything! I actually thought it quite creepy; I won’t get into whether or not this could have spiritual connotations.

Besides the weird feelings I have towards chokers, I’m generally not into neck pieces; a choker would probably make me feel like I’m choking. Get the pun? Also, chokers somehow felt like something a teenager would enjoy more until I saw a 40-year-old in a gold choker paired with a black number. She looked quite sleek and I thought to myself this is something that could definitely work. Anyway, my friend was asking an important question. Are chokers particularly age specific? No, I don’t think so. I think it just depends on who you are, what you like and how you’re wearing the choker. While I probably think it wouldn’t work well for me, the next girl could get a chic look from it.

I’ve seen some chokers that are really pretty on some people; it’s definitely something to try on if you’re experimental. Chokers are a huge trend right now, but definitely not one that we have ever seen before. If we go back to the 90’s, we can see many celebrities rocking the choker style but people have turned things up a notch this time around. There’re different types of chokers that could be styled either alone or in a combination with other necklaces. If you’re looking for an everyday choker, you can go with the minimalistic choker look because it’s very delicate, yet it can give your outfit a twist of elegance and uniqueness.

The minimalist choker is simple and can easily be styled with different kinds of clothes. Simply throw on a plain top with jeans and add a dainty choker to complete your look. If you’re sentimental, you could go with the choker with a charm that means something to you. Maybe a pendant you got as a gift or a motif that’s particularly dear to you like a heart or a butterfly. You could also go with a dressier choker combining the usual simple choker with a dainty golden necklace attached to it. This is the all-in-one look that will definitely make a statement to your otherwise simple style.

If most of your outfits are basic, you can add this “has-it-all” choker, which could be a combination of a golden chain with a shiny pendant and a velvety soft string that will perfectly wrap around your neck. A mixture of long necklaces and a choker is great for a sophisticated look. The mixing of different types of necklaces could be seen a lot among “fashionistas” but if you simply use your imagination and create yourself a unique combination of your long necklaces and one of your chokers, you could get a winning number! For example, take one or two of your favourite long necklaces and see if they go well with a choker.

If you have one of those basic black chokers, then you’ll definitely be able to design a distinctive look. Also get some inspiration from photos online and see how to mix up your long necklace with a choker. A layered necklace also goes well with a choker.This is an easier version because you don’t have to choose among a couple of necklaces that you have and waste time on wondering which one would be suitable for your choker. You can simply buy a layered necklace and match it with your choker to create dimension to your outfit and give it a personal touch.