One of the tricks in styling is how one uses accessories to personalise an outfit or to establish a certain look. Is it better to wear matching accessories, ergo, the need to buy in sets? I think not. How exactly will you know that you are doing it (accessorising) the right way?
I’ll try to list down the common mistakes or misconceptions about using accessories to help clear things out.
• Matching accessories aren’t always the safe way to go.
If you will notice, the accessories I’m wearing (seen in the photo) don’t match. It’s a bit risky, I know but the thing is, it’s not that bad, right? I merely kept in mind that the theme of my accessories for the night was black (and gold, actually), so, it’s not the stone or precious metal that matters but the colour. Taking this route gives the look a not-so-calculated style, if you know what I mean.
• Bought it as a set, wear it as a set.
The safest way to go about accessorising is wearing items that match. However, like I said, it’s better to create some sort of personality in your style than going for the safe look. Mix and match with a certain theme is something I’d recommend.
• Accessories should match the colour of your dress.
One of the things I see on people, which, sometimes, effectuates a cringe from me is everything matches. I have to put my foot down and be firm on this one — please, please, please! — no extreme colour matching, please! As an example, I chose black accessories since I was wearing my Janilyn faux-snake skin stilleto pumps in green and black. The green matches my dress and the black, my accessories. It’s a neat way of pulling together the entire look, know what I mean?
Great Tip: You don’t have to wear earrings, bracelets, necklaces, watches, and rings all in one go. I recommend that you choose and highlight maximum of two, i.e. earrings + bracelets, necklace + earrings, bracelets + rings, etc. If you choose any of these combos, you can still add one more but make sure they’re subdued.
Photo by Chris Haravata using my 400D.
