It's All About the Fit: 5 Reveals to Know When it Doesn't

A Fitting Choice

Closet Content Analysis: Underwear, Shoulder Seams and Waistline

 NO THANKS  - MAKE IT NICE

I've written about "fit" before but it seems to be a recurring theme when writing a clothing blog.

Most people associate comfort with oversized clothing yet when it comes to style, comfort and look, it is all about the fit. If t-shirts should not be tight, then they should be loose, but how loose? Fitted loose. Fitted loose? What in the world is fitted loose? 

Here's my definition of fitted loose: shoulder seams sit on the shoulders, and sleeves and body are wide enough to allow for breathing space but not baggy. You should not have the sensation of fabric clinging to your skin. Yet, t-shirts should not drape unless of course the design is such that it is made to do so. They also should not be so tight as to see every roll or every muscle, as the case may be. Although I can understand why, if you had abdominal muscles that were that pronounced, you would want to wear a tight t-shirt.

Make it NICE

It seems rather simplistic to have to explain when clothing is too tight or too baggy or just misplaced, but just in case, you want a quick check list, change your clothing into something that fits  . . . 

Photo Source: Office Glam

NO THANKS: 1. if underwear or the lack thereof is producing lumps and bumps that shouldn't be there; or perhaps I could say, over-emphasizing what in fact is there. It seems to be a worldwide problem as articulated by Aclyne Njiraini from Kenya in the post, Undercover Operation on her blog, Office Glam. Clothing should fall or lay smoothly on the body even if your underwear doesn't. Mind you, good fitting underwear is the best starting point. By the way, the front can be as revealing as the rear.

2. if shoulder seams are laying halfway down your arm. It's too big and therefore it's sloppy. Shoulder seams should be where your shoulders are. A raglan sleeve is different but even that sleeve has a fit to it. Of course, you can sleep in your boyfriend's t-shirt but don't venture out in it. 

3. if you have forgotten where your waist is - a waist is a waist irrespective of its girth. Healthfully for women it should not be more than 31 inches or 80 cm around and for men 37 inches or 94 cm is the guideline. When fitting pants or skirts, do not rise too much above it or go too far below it. Low rise jeans have had their day and anyone who wears their trousers midway down their buttocks, near to their chests or under their bellies are all in need of "waistband re-analysis".

4. if you are tugging some piece of clothing down, up or across. Obviously that item is too short, too plunging or too something. If you are tugging at it when looking in the mirror, then you will unconsciously be tugging at it when you are out. Adjusting your clothing from sitting to standing is acceptable but adjusting because of self-consciousness is not.

5. if the buttons on your shirt are straining and puckering the cloth across your chest from the pull. Physics is at work here and the shirt is just too tight. There is nothing to advise but find another shirt that fits, meaning the buttons lay flat and there are no extra puckers or ripples.

Don't get hung up on numbers (sizes), just wear what fits well.

Even the most inexpensive outfit will look good if the fit is perfect and the most expensive designer clothing will look shabby if it doesn't fit. 

Focus on fit for the next while and you will discover a sophistication you might not have thought you had in addition to just feeling comfortable in your clothes (as well as your skin).

The Economics of Dressing Well: 5 Rules to Consider when Shopping

How many designer handbags does someone need?

How many pairs of shoes will you wear in the next 3 years?

How many bracelets, pairs of earrings, dresses, blue jeans, t-shirts . . .you fill in the blank . . . will be enough?

When it comes to creating a useful wardrobe most of us take a down-to-earth attitude. It really does not matter what your price point entry happens to be. There are those who will spend $10,000.00 on a new spring wardrobe and those who will spend less than $200.00 to round out what they might already own. To be well dressed requires detailed planning, culling and replacing with thought. You do not have to spend a huge amount, you just have to spend wisely.

5 Shopping Rules for Dressing Well:

Cobalt Smythe "Duchess" blazer
Photo Source: ShopSmythe

1. Select new clothing that will have a long shelf life. Imagine yourself wearing your chosen item in 5 years. Will you be able to do it? The last piece of clothing I purchased was a Smythe blazer in cobalt. I like shades of blue, I love blazers and Smythe is a great brand. Will I be wearing it in five years? As long as I don't gain 20 pounds I believe I will.

2. Judiciously splurge! Smart choices are not the cheapest choices. A "Duchess" Smythe blazer will cost you $600.00 (Cdn) at full price retail. If you wear it three times a month for the next 5 years, it will have cost you $3.33 per wear. When you first buy it, you will be wearing it more often and the older it gets, the less you will wear it so three times a month is an estimated average over five years. 

3. Watch for sales and be prepared to buy the classics. I bought my "Duchess" Smythe blazer on sale and with taxes it cost me $320.00. Essentially my cost per wear just went down to about $1.76 per wear at 3 times a month for the next 5 years. A designer dress that seems to be a "steal" for $200.00 is not a bargain if you only wear it once over the next five years.

"Flirt" Lancel Handbag purchased June, 2011
Photo by JoyD.

4. Set limits. Be a wardrobe strategist and set limits on your buying. You know what you can afford. Spend the most you can afford on the best in that price range. When I am in Europe, I have a 250 Euro limit on handbags. The last time I paid full price for a designer Lancel bag was when I bought my Lancel flirt and that was in 2011. Over the past six years that bag has cost me 16.60 Euro per month. Now I have two more Lancel bags that I intersperse with the "flirt" but they both were purchased at the Lancel outlet store in Romans-sur-Isere, France on sale to lessen even the original discounted price, The cost per wear index is considerably better now that I have set a limit to how much I spend and I am still carrying Lancel bags.

Blue Lancel Handbag purchased Summer 2016.
Photo by JoyD.

5. Know your style and what role an item of clothing will play in your lifestyle. Knowing your style is the key to smart clothing economics. If you have a clear sense of what works for you and you know that you will wear an item often, you will make savvy clothing investments.

And remember what Vivienne Westwood said, "Buy less, choose well."

Best Dressed Lists - No Thanks

For the most part, best dressed lists do not mean much to me. Who makes those "best dressed" lists? It doesn't seem to have anything to do with being well-dressed but rather who you are and where you go and where you are seen.

Recently I perused Calgary's Avenue magazine featuring their best dressed choices. The clothing and accessories ranged from a blouse from Urban Outfitters, a dress bought from a consignment online store, the-upside.ca, shoes purchased at Aldo and Chanel, items from Holt Renfrew and the Bay to earrings bought at the Women in Need Society Thrift Store. The NICE in this list was the variety and range of clothing. High-end designers were visible but not on everyone illustrated. The ages ranged from 20/30 somethings to 50+somethings. There were four men and seven women, and one couple which actually made it the 11 Best Dressed in Calgary for 2017. Although I appreciated the variety and neutrality of clothing bought at Urban Outfitters and the Bay, I didn't see the "best" in this list. If this is the "best", the eccentric meets "the best" criteria as well as the mediocre. I do commend those who mix the likes of H&M and designer choices in one ensemble.

Harper's Bazaar has a weekly best dressed list. Weekly? This weekly best dressed list again smacks of mediocrity and only focuses on celebrities that need the media attention. I suppose Harper's plays the role but really identifying people who they claim to be best dressed when they are simply dressed has lessened my opinion this endeavour. With that, the weekly Harper's best dressed list has gotten old for me. Like I said, it's a dressed list but not necessarily a "best" dressed list. It is just like any other posting of what a particular celebrity is wearing in a particular week.

The judgement required to value someone as best dressed is so subjective it can not be worth anything to anyone. It may have some entertainment value but in my opinion that is all. Perhaps, if there was a rationale by the adjudicator of what and why he or she considered the clothing the best or why the person who is wearing the clothing should be so designated. 

My mother's words come back to haunt me - If you are going to be critical, be prepared to provide a better "widget", idea or plan of action.

OK mom, I now have no other choice but to start working on this blog's 2017 Best Dressed List or perhaps a Well Dressed List. Yes that's it, A Well Dressed List.

Best dressed lists - still a NO THANKS - but now maybe a Well-Dressed List can replace the "best".

Marketing Clothing Sales Alternatives

NO THANKS: If I know that a company is Multi-level marketing, I seldom buy. Prices have to be inflated to compensate for the tiered payout system in place. Recently a friend was invited to a CAbi home sales party and she asked my opinion. Just knowing that it is MLM was enough for me to say, NO THANKS. She went online to do some research and came to the conclusion that perhaps when the company was first started by Carol Anderson, the quality was there but now the company has been sold and the new management is milking the old model with new cutbacks, which essentially means the quality is jeopardized. How many Tupperware purchases have been made just so that you don't offend the hostess? Whenever one feels coerced there is a problem and that can be the greatest reason not to go to a "party".

NOTE-WORTHY: Online buying can be likened to the "olden days" of catalogue buying. Two important differences are choice and speed of response. In Canada, the old Eaton's and Simpon's Sears companies offered catalogue shopping as a convenience in much the same way as online shopping offers that type of convenience now. Catalogues are still produced albeit more as promotional "lookbooks" to help make purchase choices. Both methods are plagued with difficulties in "return policies" and no matter how "easy" the ability to return is, a return is still a pain.

Online buying is perfect if you know your product, your size and your style preferences. How do you know all those things? Probably by having purchased the brand before. You know the sizing peculiarities, you love the style and you're satisfied with the quality of the product. The other way, of course, is by visiting a storefront and doing your shopping there and your buying online. This seems very unfair to the storefront which had to put money on the line for stock, rent and sales associates to cater to your whims. 

Radius dress by Judith and Charles.
Photo Source: Judith and Charles

The best case scenario is when you buy from the designer online store after you have seen it at the storefront. Joelle Aidan did that after she visited the Judith and Charles store in Calgary and then found a great dress for sale at their online store. Click here to see the sales section for some classic pieces that will be in your closet for a good while.

NICE: Storefront shopping requires the most effort on the parts of both the vendor and the buyer. Yet it can be the most rewarding for the consumer. Brian, the ballet flats guy known on this blog, has developed satisfying relationships with sales associates at Tory Burch; and Joelle Aidan is recognized by several at Holt Renfrew in Calgary. They both have purchased online but always return to the storefront. 

The Blazer: Winter to Spring Transition

Spring allows you to get the last bit of wear out of winter pieces when you match them up with last year's summer wear or splurge on a new trend.

Although cardigans are supposed to be a 2017 spring trend, I still prefer blazers.

A lightweight fine-weave wool blazer that you wore in winter can continue through the spring worn with walking shorts, jeans, a pencil skirt or a sheath dress, depending on your needs.

A blazer will:

bump up casual to business casual with whatever you choose to wear to work 

keep you warm in the evening over a lightweight dress. That look can take you through summer evenings as well.  

add an element of sophistication to jeans and a t-shirt

A cardigan just doesn't do it in the same way.

The Smythe Duchess Blazer. Photo Source: KateMiddletonStyle

When it comes to blazers, Smythe is the way to go. A friend in Calgary  introduced them to me and both of us find the tailoring impeccable. The brand is definitely an investment purchase. And, just to let you know, if you buy yourself a Smythe Les Vestes blazer now, you will be wearing it for as long as Kate Middleton has worn hers, probably longer. 

Middleton has been wearing Smythe blazers for the past six years at least. She has worn both the navy and green one-button blazer in 2011 in Canada, and the navy in 2012 in London and 2014 in Glasgow. If Middleton can do that, so can you.

Buy it in a basic colour such as black, cobalt, chambray, navy, army or camel and it will never go out of style. They renamed the one button blazer, the "duchess blazer" after Middleton wore the Toronto brand during her trip to Canada in 2011. 

NICE for Smythe, Middleton and anyone who owns one!