Manidipa reminded me: houndstooth.
I have a weakness for black and white houndstooth. While I can wear many black and white prints, somehow the houndstooth of various sizes doesn't look right to me, including tipped in a solid color. The ones that are small and grey out also don't work although I do wear a lot of grey, from pale and frosty to charcoal. Since I always get rid of any houndstooth jackets I get, I've learned to stay away. Oddly, though, I have one longer length very fitted jacket in exploded gigantic hounstooth that does work - but it's black and white and camel, equally.
Vests. And by extension jumper dresses or tops and blouses underneath sleeveless sheaths. I don't have slender upper arms and they are also somewhat muscular. I have been comfortable baring them and going sleeveless for some years now. But when sleeves are sticking out from a vest or jumper, it bothers me, whether the sleeve is knit and close fitting or woven and fuller. This seems to be true whether the vest or jumper dress has normal, extended or cut in shoulders. You can see, I am stubborn. I haven't tried - yet - sleeves that match the body of the vest or the portion of it, if more strongly patterned, nearest the shoulder. Stubborn, again.
Belted. I finally found one linen look shirtdress that looks great on me but in most cases, even though I have a waist, anything belted makes me feel I look like a parcel. This is true for belted jackets or knitwear if they are more fitted. I used to try to take things in, figuring that if they were fitted anyway, I wouldn't get all that stiff blousiness (the other side of the problem). It didn't work. The one shirtdress that works has lots of fabric. Go figure.
