In every generation, there has been a period of self-expression. Whether it's through music, writing, or fashion, self-expression is what builds trends, movements, new ideas, and also aesthetics. In fashion, our style is a form of self-expression and a reflection of who we are on the inside. In this article, we will cover what “style” is, what an “aesthetic” is, and the three basic ways you can discover a style that is 100% you.
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Get notified of top trending articles like this one every week! (we won't spam you)What is style?
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The word “style” refers to how the things someone likes reflect their personality. Your sense of style can be shown through anything, from the music you listen to all the way to the very clothes you wear; your style is your personality brought to life. As we grow, both our personality and sense of style change.
So you may be wondering, if my personality and sense of style keep changing, how will I ever find a style that is 100% me? It’s simple: wear what you like. I could go on and on about how certain styles reflect certain personalities and how to dress or style your clothing, but for the sake of this article, we will just focus on how to figure out who you are and reflect that person through what you wear.
Take the Quiz: Which Outfit Material Best Matches Your Style?
Curious about which fabric suits your fashion vibe? Take this quiz to discover which material is the right one for you!
What is an Aesthetic?
Within Gen Z, “aesthetic” has become a buzzword when it comes to choosing what we wear, what we eat, or where we go–we build our lives around aesthetics. So, what exactly is an aesthetic? An aesthetic in the fashion world is simply clothing items that, when together, create a visually appealing look.
Think of an aesthetic as a “theme.” What is the theme of your outfit? What are you trying to visually represent? Are you bringing back trends of the 2000s by following the Y2K aesthetic, or are you conveying the simple feminine prairie life like the Cottage core aesthetic? To help, answer this question for yourself.
What is aesthetically pleasing to you? Do you like contrast (dark + light colors) or more of a monochrome feel (Colors within the same shade, for example, different shades of red)?
Personality
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As I’ve said before, our personality changes and or doesn't consist of one thing. For example, I am an extrovert, but I don't like large crowds. When it comes to our fashion sense, we may find ourselves in the cottage core aesthetic one week and in the dark academic aesthetic the next, or a mixture of both!
The point of finding a style that is 100% you is to ignore the aesthetics that are trending and determine who you are as a person. By doing this, you are becoming introspective and creating an aesthetic that is unique to you! Ask yourself the following questions:
- What is my personality? Shy, Funny, Colorful?
- What aesthetics am I already drawn to? Cottagecore, Dark Academia, Y2k, all of these?
- What do you like to do? Play an instrument, skateboard, sing, write, cook, etc.
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You may have heard of something called Pinterest. It's an app great for organizing and searching for ideas about different topics such as food, crafts, fashion, and more! The app has a lot of what are called “pins,” aka images, that you can save and create your personalized vision board of what you have saved; and the best part is that it’s free! I recommend utilizing Pinterest to the fullest because it will help organize your thoughts on different styles, possible clothes, and other accessories.
Optional Tip: Skin undertone
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Another thing you can consider is your skin's undertone. Your skin undertone isn't your skin color; it's the hue that is under your skin--this can be red, pink, yellow, green, etc. The three categories one can fall in when it comes to determining the undertone of their skin are warm, cool, and neutral.
Warm- People with a warm undertone typically have red, pink, or golden hues and look best in warm colors such as reds, browns, oranges, and dark greens.
Cool- Those with a cool undertone have blue and purple hues and look best in sharper colors such as black, dark blue, pink, and grey.
Neutral- Lastly, if you have a neutral undertone, meaning you have both warm and cool undertones, the colors that compliment you the best are teal, blues, and earthy tones like brown and grey, but you can wear mostly anything.
One way you can determine your skin undertone is to look at your veins.
If they are green, then you most likely have warm undertones.
If they are blue/purple, then you have cool undertones.
If you can't determine, or it looks like you have both blue and green veins, you are neutral.
Remember, you are free to wear whatever color you want, whenever you want, and how often you want. Knowing your skin's undertone just narrows down which colors would compliment you best. More information about this is just a quick Google Search away, and I encourage all readers to learn about it because it helped me find which colors complement my skin tone and elevate my sense of fashion.
Have Confidence
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No matter what style you choose to rock or what tips you take away from this article, the most important thing to have is confidence! Don’t be afraid to try different color combinations, patterns, and designs because you might just create the next big trend! By having confidence and not being afraid to try new things–you are being 100% yourself!
