Take a little time at the end of the day to analyse your outfit, so that you can better understand your personal style identity, know what outfits work for you and what don’t, and also make small tweaks to improve your outfit for next time.
I also recommend taking photos of your outfit each day – they don’t have to be great quality as they are just for you, but just taking a quick “selfie” really helps you get clarity on what works for you and what doesn’t.
Let’s go through the list of questions to ask:
How to analyse your outfit
1 Do you feel the outfit sends the message you want and communicates your personal style ?
First impressions count, and it takes just seven seconds for someone to form an opinion about you. In that time, you will be judged on your confidence, likeability, perceived level of intelligence, self-esteem, trustworthiness amongst a host of other factors; and 55% of that judgment is based on your appearance.
Does the outfit you are wearing express who you are as a person and convey the image you want it to?
2 How do you feel?
Do you immediately feel vibrant and confident? Does it make you sparkle, and would you be happy to meet an ex-boyfriend/ ex-boss wearing this outfit?
Or does it make you feel self-conscious and that you would rather hide behind a pillar?
3 Does it fit you?
Does it fit perfectly? Or is is too big/ too small? Do you need to make an alteration? Would taking a garment to the tailor and having it adjusted to fit you elevate your look?
4 Does it flatter you?
By now, you all know that dressing for your body type is a big game-changer, so does this outfit flatter you and highlight your assets?
If not, why not? Does it make an area of your body look out of proportion? Can you make a small tweak to change that? For example, if you think that an outfit draws attention to your stomach and you’re not happy with that try adding a statement necklace to draw the eye up to your face.
5 Do you like the fabric?
Is the fabric comfortable? Does it hang well? Does it flatter you when you move or does it cling to your lumps and bumps? In general, quality fabrics such as silk and cotton and natural fabrics such as wool and cashmere will feel more luxurious next to your skin and will be more flattering.
6 Does it make you feel physically comfortable?
Were you too hot? too cold? If you love the outfit, consider tweaking it to add layers for next time so it is easier to regulate how warm or cold you are.
7 Does the colour make you come alive?
Wearing the right colours will enhance your natural colouring, make your skin glow, help you to look younger, camouflage redness and blemishes, make your eyes appear larger and brighter and make your face shape look more defined
Conversely, the ‘wrong’ colours will drain colour away from your face and make your complexion look dull, grey or pasty, make you look tired and perhaps older, emphasise facial lines and blemishes and make your face look fuller and eye colour duller and most importantly will make your clothes look like they are wearing you!
What does this outfit do to you? Which colours make you look alive and which drain you?
8 Is it appropriate for the situation/ event?
Some outfits are appropriate for certain situations but not for others! It seems obvious, but whilst wearing shorts and a tee to the beach is perfectly acceptable, it is not appropriate for a business meeting or a job interview.
9 Do the combinations work?
It’s not just about what you wear, but how you wear it and combination is the key here.
This is a bit more complicated, so I am going to keep it short; but basically do the colours work all together? How about the prints and fabrics?
10 Finally, would you want to wear this outfit again?
So I can hear you saying, “But, why isn’t this the first question – because if the answer is “No”, then the other questions are irrelevant”.
However, it is still a worthwhile exercise to ask the other questions as the “Why not?” can give you lots of tips so that you don’t make the same mistake again, and can teach you a lot about what you like and what you don’t like, which is a great starting point to discover your style personality type.
And if the answer is “Yes”, take a photo and create a “mood board” to help you identify your style type and also to remember which outfits work for you!
I hope you enjoyed this post about why and how to analyse your outfit. You might also enjoy this post on 5 common style mistakes and how to avoid them.
This is such a great post! I agree on all points!
Life is a Shoe
Thank you! Glad you like the post x
These are great questions to ask when getting dressed! I totally agree that analyzing your look is important!
Thank you Sunday! So glad you agree 🙂
Very good questions 🙂
Thanks Kinga 🙂 Glad you think so x
These are great questions to ask. I like how you guide us through questions and show us how to logically analyse our outfit. Finding the best style for ourselves personally often involves some thought, doesn’t it. These are very valid questions to ask when putting an outfit together. I also like you tip about snapping a photo, even if it is just a quick selfie. Photographs can be more true than mirrors.
I’m so glad you like the questions Ivana, and yes, a photograph gives you a different perspective to a mirror and sometimes you notice something that you had overlooked before x
Oh, all your questions make so much sense! I definitely must bookmark your post – in the hope to avoid outfit mistakes in future 🙂 Thanks a lot for sharing!
xx from Bavaria/Germany, Rena
I’m so glad you thought the questions made a lot of sense! It’s so easy to do, and yet we often don’t think to ask the questions that will help us determine our signature style x
Oh all theses questions are so useful. I always feel more confident when I have the right outfit.
Thanks for sharing.
xx
Margot
Glad you found the questions useful Margot x
These are great tips! I think identifying your style and what makes you feel comfortable and yourself is so important 🙂 xx
mia // https://beautiful-inspiring-creative-life.com/
Thanks Mia! I totally agree – it’s so important to determine your style and what makes you feel good xo
this is such an interesting post Julia! thank you for sharing! it’s a great reminder of how our outfit should make us really feel!
So glad you liked the post x
Last one is probably the first thing that comes up on my mind when I am about to buy new clothes. I follow the trend, but I also prefer versatility, that’s why we need to be wise when choosing clothes. Anyway, thank you so much for the explanation, it’s very insightful ! Nice to know you too 🙂
xoxo,
|CHELSHEAFLO|
http://www.chelsheaflo.com
So glad you found the post helpful, Chelshea. 🙂 I think versatility is definitely an important factor to take into account xoxo
Great post! I agree, instead of saying you won’t wear an outfit again, figure out why and what you can do to change it! Such a good idea to take a picture and then go through the questions. It gives you a different perspective than just looking in the mirror.
Jill – Doused in Pink
So glad you liked the post, Jill. It’s amazing how you get a different perspective when you take a photo! x
Great tips and I also agree with taking pictures as I already do that. Have a fab week Julia.
xoxo
Lovely
http://www.mynameislovely.com
Yes, it’s amazing how different something can look when you take a picture! xoxo
I couldn’t agree more especially with taking a photo. SOmetimes the camera sees things we don’t and it’s easier to analyze.
XOOX
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
Definitely Jodie! I’m sometimes quite surprised when I see a photo and my outfit doesn’t look like I thought it did! x
These are for sure great questions to ask yourself when it comes to putting together an outfit!
Glad you think so Rach x
These are all great tips but the one about taking a photo of yourself what are wearing each day is smart. Being a blogger and having photoshoots and making videos and see myself in photos on video there were so many articles of clothing I thought looked good on me which did not. It was eye opening for sure.
Allie of
http://www.allienyc.com
Yes, It was an eye opener for me too! You think that something looks great on you and then when you see yourself in the photos you realise that something wasn’t quite right! Sometimes, it can take just a small adjustment, like adding a belt, but it’s better to be forewarned!
These are good tips! And I think comfort in an outfit is so important – I have had some very pretty outfits that were just not practical for whatever I was doing that day and it doesn’t put me in a good mood, haha!
Hope you are having a lovely weekend 🙂
Thank you Mica! I’m glad you liked the tips! 🙂
Love this post so much! All of these are so important to keep in mind when choosing truly any outfit for any occasion!
Make Life Marvelous
Thanks Ashley! I’m so glad you liked the post x
Thank you so much for sharing all of these questions for analyse outfit. From now I will ask all of them every time when I combine pieces and make outfit.
New Post – https://www.exclusivebeautydiary.com/2020/08/atelier-des-ors-choeur-des-anges.html
So glad you found it helpful 🙂
Julia
It is such a fabulous post and makes sense on analysing not just the market, trend and style but it applies to our outfit as well. People must take time and make efforts to look aesthetically pleasing and just taking a selfie each day with an outfit can be a true game-changer for most of them who rely on the lens. I take selfies before stepping out for an important meeting but I must make this as a habit for everday I mean whats wrong in looking presentable and confident every day. Thanks for a fabulous post and for some important helpful tips.
I’m so glad you liked the post, Hasin! And, I think a quick selfie can help give you confidence about your outfit!
“Look good, Feel good, Live your best life” – that’s great! You’re such a fashion expert!
Oh, thank you! I appreciate that 🙂
I totally agree with this post! Thank you so much for the wonderful post!
Thank you Elizabeth ! Glad you liked the post 🙂
All of this tips are spot on hun!
xoxo
Lovely
http://www.mynameislovely.com
Glad you agree, Lovely xoxo
I love all these questions to ask when getting dressed. I totally agree that taking a pic of your look will help you answer all of them quickly. Great post Julia!
https://www.kathrineeldridge.com
Thanks so much Kathrine! I’m so glad you liked the post 🙂
Oh wow those questions are amzing! Especially the fabric is really important for me, to feel comfortable in it 🙂
have a great day,
Tiziana
http://www.tizianaolbrich.de
Thank you Tiziana! I agree the feel of the fabric is so important x