“Everyone should be inspired by someone but know to have their own thing” – Naomi Campbell

I have talked over and over in many of my blogs about personal style and how we all have different styles. But this week I want to give you an in-depth discussion as to what personal style really is and how you can go about creating and harnessing your own. Because personal style is really that – personal, it’s what distinguishes you from the rest and it’s the first thing people notice when they meet you for the first time. An important thing to note, which I will discuss further below, is that personal style is not static and can’t be static as it needs to evolve over time because you evolve over time.

Mix ‘n Match
First of all personal style cannot be a sum of just one thing, your personal style can be a mixture of many styles put together, but there are those style icons, which you lean towards more than others that help you to form your very own style. If you follow celebrities or even your neighbour whom you think is really stylish and you would like to look like them, try for as much as possible to focus more on the type of clothes they wear rather than the person and see if given the chance whether or not you would try the outfit on yourself. Because sometimes when you focus too much on the person, you don’t really see the clothes. We all come in different shapes and sizes and how it fits the next person is not exactly how it will fit or look on you.

Look Book
One of the things that I would advise you to do when searching for a personal style is to take pictures of the styles that you love and put them in a book or store them on your phone. Use them as a guideline for when you go shopping and sooner rather than later you will see that you will start to develop a style trend. Keep encouraging yourself. Ever walk out of the house or look in the mirror and say, “Yes, I look good”? This is the time when you should take out your phone and snap a picture to add to your inspirational look book, because there are days when you feel discouraged and you can look at those pictures of yourself and know that you can do it.

Signature piece
After you have created a look book for yourself, make something a signature piece. This is an item or an outfit that defines who you are. This is what people remember every time they think of you. I love patterns and scarfs, I try for as much as possible to leave the house with something that has a type of pattern or a scarf. These are my signature pieces. For Audrey Hepburn cropped pants and ballet flats where her signature pieces. I love Thandiswa Mazwai and whenever I think of her I think of a pair of Converse, beads and an outfit made of shweshwe/ African print. When someone thinks of you, what signature piece will they remember you by?

Odd Pieces
In your closet you have outfits that you wear on a regular basis and these are pieces that you feel comfortable in. I am talking t-shirts, jeans, jerseys that you buy all the time because they just work for your on and off days. But every once in a while you come across items in your closet that just don’t work with many things you have and they just stand out. These odd pieces, as we’ll call them, are the ones that can help you to form a new style preference when you feel ready to embrace or try something new. So my advice is seek these odd items out and put them on the side, and don’t say you don’t have them because we all do. It might be a dress that you think “I can never wear that” because it’s a certain colour you don’t like at the moment or a pattern that you think looks odd. But these items, whether it’s a dress or a pair of pants or a top, can help to spark a future style trend that you might grow to love.

Strength and beauty
There are many times you will be complimented on certain assets that you possess and that can be your skin tone, your body shape, your long legs or even your breast size. This is when you capitalise on what God gave you and use it to your advantage. If you are truly struggling with finding a personal style, use these strengths when you buy clothes. Buy items that accentuate the best features of your body and if by now you don’t know what they are ask your friends and family members. This will really help you create a style without you even realising it.

Once you have capitalised on your strength, don’t forget to also focus on bringing out the other parts that people don’t compliment you on. Personal style is not just about clothes, it’s also about beauty and so far we have dealt with clothes but when it comes to fashion we don’t stop there. Your hair and make-up form part of your personal style. Whether you’re going for boho chic or 1950s glam, your hair and make –up round out the look and make all the difference.

Be yourself
Remember personal style is all about showing the world who you are, I began this blog with one of my favourite quotes by one of my style icons, Naomi Campbell, and what she says really encompasses everything that I have shared with you. Learn from others and be inspired by what they have to offer, but remember to be yourself and trust your instincts. Wear what makes you feel like the best version of yourself and stop worrying about what other people think because the only person who needs to feel happy and proud is you.

If this blog has inspired you, please comment below and let me know what you think as I love to hear from you. Also send me your suggestions of what you would like me to write about. And stay Trendi.

Written by Phoebe Sibomana

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