I’m always on the lookout for tops in new styling. I fit on all sorts of new-to-me styles that tickle my fancy, and thoroughly enjoy the process. But here’s the thing: I’m actually quite unadventurous with my tops. 

In recent years I haven’t found a new style that I like more than my three staples: a button-down shirt, a tailored turtleneck, or a crew/slash neck pullover in a roomy fit with a banded bottom. Whenever I fit on a top in one of these three styles, the planets align. My emotional response changes from like to love, and I go from feeling good in my outfit to feeling fabulous in my outfit. It has to do with the way these styles work with my long neck, short hair, and dainty shoulder line.

Granted, I like variety in these three types of tops. I wear button-down shirts in tailored and roomy fits across all colours, patterns and fabrications. Silk, linen, cotton, lace, rayon, polyester, dots, stripes, florals, geometric patterns — it’s all good. But the collar must pop, and the sleeves must scrunch unless they are French cuffs or a tuxedo shirt collar. I like tailored turtlenecks in an assortment of knitted gauges, patterns and colours. And I’ll wear crew/slash neck sweaters in a variety of weights, fabrics, stitch interests, fits, lengths and sleeve styles. So I’ve actually been able to build enough variety with a wardrobe based predominantly on three styles of top. 

Although I stick to updated modern classics in the tops department, this doesn’t mean that I’m not evolving other aspects of my wardrobe all the time. My hair, trouser silhouettes, jeans silhouettes, jacket style, bag style, shoe style, skirt style, and colour palettes are the places that I am more creative. So while one part of my wardrobe is relatively constant, my style as a whole always feels refreshed.

This brings me to my point: If a component of your style continues to make you feel fab, there is no need to change it for the sake of change alone. Work it! And evolve your style in other areas.

Sometimes when my clients fear that they aren’t being adventurous with a particular area of their wardrobe, I remind them how set in my ways I am when it comes to tops. Of course, I am all for trying new things and challenging comfort zones, because that’s how we evolve and improve our style. But in the same breath I will also reassure you that when something about your style isn’t broken and feels fabulous, it doesn’t need fixing.