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Style consistency across situations

Aurore

Veteran

I recently realised that when I think of my sartorial style, I actually think of my workwear style. For days of leisure, I either re-use my workwear silhouette and items (and feel akward since it makes me think of work), or wear outdoor gear (and feel awkward if I'm not actually practicing an outdoor activity).
I have absolutely no idea what my casual style would be - and if it would relate in any way to my workwear style.

How about you? Do you think your style differs depending on the situation? Or do you manage to keep style consistency in all occasions?

24 replies

Latest reply was from Aurore

Sisi

Veteran

What a timely post! Just yesterday I was thinking of this. My style does not differ much depending on the situation. I have a smallish wardrobe and therefore I repeat and remix the same things all the time, working days and weekends. This makes things easier from a certain point of view but sometimes I feel there is a hole in my wardrobe. Yesterday I was invited at a friend's birthday and I wished I could put together a funny, unexpected outfit that felt "festive" for the occasion, but I had not the right pieces. I ended up wearing a teal lace tee, a blue jersey jacket, blue cotton pants and white shoes. Comfortable and appropriate, but so predictable ...

Ginger

Veteran

I think my style overall is similar, but the items don't crossover all the time. It varies greatly by season, however. My casual style in winter is mostly leggings + mini dresses + casual boots, whereas work style is tights + knee length dresses + heels, flats, or nice boots. In summer, casual style is (shorts + tee) or (casual knee length dress) + sandals; for work, it's nicer knee length dress + cardigan + open toe heels, flats, or nice sandals.

So the actual items don't cross over all that much, but the silhouettes are pretty consistent. It helps me feel comfortable and appropriate in either situation.

cindysmith

Veteran

I definitely have varying styles for different situations. I most definitely tone it all down when I'm visiting my family, going more minimal or Americana. I go dystopian at work, and minimal in my leisure time. I sometimes get jealous of all you ladies who stay fairly cohesive across all situations because I feel like my closet would be simpler if I could do that.

Aurore

Veteran

Sisi, your outfit for your friend's birthday sounds very nice - but I can definitely relate to your "so predictable" feeling...*Sigh

Thank you Ginger for your detailed answer, your experience with silhouettes and how to adapt them does help understanding how one can manage style consistency!

cindysmith, that's so true - it sometimes feels like being sartorially prepared for all situations requires an infinite closet, and yet some ladies manage to be perfect everytime with a tiny wardrobe.

Anonymous

I think a lot about this, simply because my workwear is similar to what I want to wear on the weekend, but not quite (so kind of the same situation as you).

I go on the assumption that my workwear IS me, and then make a few adjustments to casualize the outfit even more. This has to do with budget mostly. There really aren’t that many weekend situations where I am just walking around town. I am mostly doing activities that require gear or mucking-around clothes.

There are silhouettes and garments I’d like to try, but havent, like maxi dresses and midi dresses, Knit or slouchy day dresses, and long cardigans.

If you want to expand your weekend capsule, I would recommend going and doing a try-on session. Your weekend style might be a little more boho or a little sportier or preppier than your workwear style. It’s fun to figure that out!

Christina F.

Veteran

I'm trying to figure out my casual style, too. For a while, it blurred with my work style. I think it's possible to use some of the same pieces - for me, that includes fashion sneakers and some of my jeans. But I've also picked up some jeans that are a bit more RATE than my usual, and those are helping me tone things down on the weekend. Here is what I wore yesterday. (The find is for the jeans, not the sweater, though I have that too.) I'd definitely wear the sweater and sneakers to work (it's pretty casual), but with darker jeans or a pair of trousers.

I like to be able to re-mix the work wear pieces because really, that's what I need to wear 5 days out of 7. I have less need for items that are strictly casual, though it took me a long time after leaving academia for a more traditional job to start buying accordingly. So while I think these jeans will be a go-to item for me, I don't need to add another, similar pair.

Modern Skinny Crop Jeans in Destructed Light Indigo Wash

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0

Tresco Stripe Sweater

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3

Ecco 'Soft 7' Sneaker

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11

Aurore

Veteran

Thank you for your answer smittie, your experience sounds very pragmatic. I like the idea of considering the workwear style as a basis and then doing a try-on session to find ways of casualizing it!

Thank you very much Christina, your jeans example is great! Casualizing an outfit by changing the bottom sounds like an interesting idea. I will definitely keep that in mind when I'll do the try-on sessions smittie suggested.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

I am VERY consistent. Even when I walk Sam, our Yorkie. Dress code changes, but the essence and signature stays the same.

Helena

Veteran

Aurore, this is an interesting question - I think I'm pretty consistent from one situation to the next. This is why the style monikers and descriptors can be helpful - they are more high-level, and can be applied to a variety of situations.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

I echo Angie. My signature look is similar across different activity capsules, although gear is a bit different of course. (Though honestly, if I could find the items, I'd at least be wearing my signature colours in gear as well!)

Having said that, as Angie also says -- the dress code changes. I'm the opposite to you in the sense that I don't work in an office and my lifestyle is very casual on the whole, yet I prefer a somewhat dressier aesthetic and I also have numerous events where a dressier -- but not "business-like" look is called for.

Some people find the weekends are great times to exhibit their "shadow style." That style they crave but find it difficult to work into their ordinary daily life.

The Cat

Veteran

My style description (Casual Elegant Gamine) is reflected in all areas of my dressing. The dress code changes, but most of my clothes and accessories are re-mixed for various appointments and activities.

Kathie

Veteran

My silhouettes are similar, but the clothes don’t cross-over, with the exception of a few knitwear pieces. For work, I prefer a polished business casual look, anything short of a matching suit. I don’t wear t-shirts or denim at work. Weekends, I’m often hanging out with my kids at a park or soccer fields, so I wear clothes that are practical for that- jeans, fitted t’s, fleece.

Katerina

Veteran

I am also very consistent, just like Angie and Suz. I am lucky because I feel authentic and happy in my work clothes and my weekend style is quite similar - I add sneakers, some knitted sweaters, jeans, but the basis is always blazers, jackets and scarves. I am not one of the people who crave a shadow style (that Suz has mentioned). My style descriptors are dressy dramatic and dramatic fun. These are true throughout all my outfits from dressy to casual.

rachylou

Veteran

I find it hardest to convey my style in office wear, where Quirky Waif Country Punk is not really a thing to be appreciated.

Greyscale

Veteran

My work and non work styles are identical. The one thing I’ve noticed recently is that if I’m not careful, my weekend clothes bore me. I always have a strong foundation of jeans and tee shirts throughout the week. Somehow my current tees and jeans feel more basic than previous years, I think because of the 90s trends that dominate. The denim finishes are more casual, the jeans cuts are straighter, and the tees are boxy without being really dramatic. So recently when I just throw on jeans and a tee and sneakers to go run errands, the effect is a lot less distinctive and feels less “me” than my jeans + tee outfits four years ago. The solution is to be very careful about which jeans and tees I wear together without extra pieces, I suppose.

Cardiff girl

Veteran

I wore a uniform all my working life so the only style I have is my off duty one!I m not entirely sure how consistent I am with it though ,I quite enjoy playing with different looks depending on how I m feeling.

ChrisM

Veteran

Like a few of you, my weekend wear and work wear overlaps a lot. The offices that I work at are usually casual enough that I can take my basics, add some accessories, and head out. I do struggle when I have to dress up, but those occasions don’t come up often.

I panicked before both sons’ weddings and I still wince a bit at the pictures. <<sigh>> completely out of my comfort zone, and it showed.

I don’t change silhouettes between casual and work - that’s important. It keeps it easy to feel like myself.

Mainelady

Veteran

My fabrics of choice and silhouettes are quite similar, but my work wear has more polish and my weekend wear a much more casual vibe. Turtlenecks are crossover pieces, as are some footwear. Most work pieces I would not wear on a weekend. A few weekend pieces make the crossover to work on a dressed down jeans day.

Anonymous

Yup- I join the consistent camp. my wardrobe is always mostly the same clothes except on cleaning day.
while I was not able to wear jeans at work, I can at volunteering and still had lots of opportunities to wear them on weekends with tops and blazers that were worn for work too.
The exceptions were dressier work dresses but I used them for date night with hubby or for parties, showers etc

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

My out of the house clothes are all similar whether at the office or out and about. I do adjust slightly for the situation - office gets more jackets, out and about gets the most comfortable shoes. I always change to house clothes in the house, but these are just highly washable versions of the same basic style.

Brooklyn

Veteran

I am pretty consistent in cooler weather. But I struggle with consistency in warm weather. When I go to work I am in air conditioning, and sitting most of the day, so I can wear a nice dress or skirt, heels (not too high!), jewellery, even a scarf or jacket. But on weekends I spend a lot of time outdoors, and in warm weather sun protection and breathable, washable fabrics are a priority. This leads to a lot of style compromises (from my point of view). My weekend casual summer uniform is shorts (occasionally a skirt), big hat and 100% cotton T-shirt with sleeves and sneakers. It is a very casual look and not as interesting or as polished as I would like. It's something I always feel unhappy about but I haven't figured out how to change it yet!

jussie

Veteran

Hmm well mine are quite similar- but that’s probably because suiting isn’t required at my job. The only real difference is I have some dressy pants for work and I don’t wear my frayed hem or blue jeans.
I’d imagine a high level corporate office job would force a person to have two completely different styles going on.
Aurore maybe you could look at building a very small mix-n-match casual capsule? I’m thinking jeans, cardis, graphic tees....
I agree with what others have said that style moniker and descriptors come in handy to make sense of different settings.

Aurore

Veteran

Torontogirl, and Angie, Suz, the Cat, Katerina, I think you nailed it - thank you very much! Style consistency can be thought of as adapting outfits to different dress codes while keeping in mind one's style moniker and descriptors.
It may also be a matter of balance and/or emphasis between the different facets of the style moniker and the different descriptor. E.g. my moniker is "GI Princess", and maybe the "Princess" part would be more prominent for dressier occasions, while the "GI" part would be more prominent for casual situations. Both could be balanced for in-between situations.
As Rachylou illustrated it, putting such a theory into practice may be hard if situations and descriptors do not really go well together.
And as Cardiff girl made me realise, there's also another axis to be taken into account : style consistency across moods.

Kathie, Brooklyn, good point : weekend activities and weather constraints may definitely impact outfit options and require style compromises.

Greyscale, your observation on foundation cut changes is very interesting.

ChrisM, you illustrated so well the ultimate goal of all those thoughts : feeling at ease and "oneself" (is that even a proper English wording?) in all situations. Definitely not easy to achieve.

Mainelady, efbgen, Shevia, thank you for your very useful experience on overlap (items, fabrics, cuts, ...) between occasion capsules.

Aurore

Veteran

jussie, sorry for the cross-post! Thank you for the mix and match capsule idea - it can even be based on my work outfit foundations as my workplace is very casual (for example, we can wear jeans and sneakers).