I made a small list of prints you should definitely hunt for the next time you go shopping.

You won’t find all patterns in stores, some of them are rare. But if you do, and if that particular fashion item suits you, go ahead and buy it. Don’t be afraid of wearing patterns and don’t make the mistake of thinking that some of those prints “make you look old”. That’s simply not true.

If you want to look fresh and, possibly, younger, add some color and accessories into your outfit. Or, add a second print. Your choice.

So here’s the essential list of prints, in alphabetical order.

Argyle

Baja stripes

Burberry (a type of tartan)

Camouflage

Checks (tattersall, plaid, pincheck, mini-check, graph check etc.)

Fair Isle

Fishbone (Herringbone)

Floral

Geometric

Gingham (a type of plaid)

Glen check

Houndstooth

Native

Paisley (a type of floral)

photo: sodaheaad.com

Pinstripe

Polka dots

photo: wholesale-fabric-discount-store.com

Stripes

Tartan (a type of plaid)

The next step? Well, if you’re already thinking how to wear more than one pattern at a time, let me direct you to a previous article where I posted some excellent photos I found on the Internet from an old book that show how to match multiple patterns.

The post Essential Clothing Patterns You Should Try appeared first on Be Stylish!.

You can find the original thread on AskRandyAboutClothes.com but, since the photos are really old (1935), I decided I could share them here (and leave a nice link to the original poster’s thread).

Left is BAD, right is GOOD:

Can you guess why the first combo is bad?

the patterns are very similar, especially in dimension. They give the feeling that the outfit is too crowded. The eye just gets lost by looking at this outfit.

Left is BAD, right is GOOD:

Both are GOOD:

Both are GOOD:

OK, now to the pattern wheels. These will give you some great ideas on how to combine a suit, shirt and a tie (or a bow tie).

Each wheel has 18 different combinations. 18 times 4 equals 72 different suit, shirt and tie combination in total – wow!

Here’s how to “read” the pictures:

– the innermost circle represents the suit pattern
– the middle rung show a few shirt pattern ideas that work well with the previous suit pattern and color
– the outermost rung shows all the tie patterns that work with that particular suit and shirt pattern

In other words, if you draw an imaginary radius over that semi-circle, you will always get a suit shirt and tie combination that will work like a charm.

The first picture shows what works well with a hounds-tooth patterned suit:

This one is for a navy pinstripe suit:

Can you figure out if you ever worn any of the combinations listed above?

The post Pattern Matching Made Easy appeared first on Be Stylish!.

When it comes to choosing the right patterns for you outfits, there are plenty of options available. You’ve got horizontal and vertical stripes, checks, micro-checks, glen check, floral prints (such as paisley) and geometric. Aren’t we forgetting one that’s important?

Let’s talk about the fishbone pattern.

The fishbone (a.k.a. the herringbone pattern) looks something like this:

It kind of looks boring, doesn’t it? Wait until you see it on some real outfits.

Fashion Items That Come in This Pattern

They aren’t many but you only need one or two, anyway, in your wardrobe.

Take a look at this sports jacket (from Dries Van Noten):

And how about this coat?

The herringbone coat can look great if you make sure it fits your body perfectly. Still, you nee to try to make the outfit stand out a little more with… you know… colors and patterns.

And, if you don’t want this pattern to be the center of attention, go for a tie:

If you’re looking for something less obvious, go for a herringbone tie. The Style Blogger himself will show us how we can pull this off:

photo: TheStyleBlogger.com

Notice how Dan Trepanier is actually wearing two patterns in the outfit above> fishbone and checks. Another thing I want you to notice (and this is really important) is the colors he’s using: grey (on the tie), navy blue (on the vest and pants) and brown (on the sports coat, the shirt and the bag). Grey plus dark or navy blue plus brown is a great color combination that you can use in any outfit. There are a lot more color combinations, which I highly encourage you to master (it’s really not that hard!).

Now let’s see how the same fishbone tie can be worn with a suit. Dan is showcasing this and, even though the outfit is “black-and-white”, the overall look is fantastic! Take a look:

photo: TheStyleBlogger.com

Looking for something more advanced?

Let’s take a look at this amazing herringbone suit from Lookbook.nu. This gentleman likes patterns a lot as he’s wearing FOUR of them!

If you’re afraid to stand out this much, all you have to do in order to make the outfit look more “normal” is to drop the patterns. Go for a solid colored shirt, a uni tie or a uni pocket square. Keep the fishbone suit, though.

Question: ever thought of trying fishbone on fishbone? Take a look and tell me what you think.

This last photo shows pretty well that one of the best colors you can pair with herringbone patterned clothes is light blue. You may be wondering: what other colors work well?

Let’s take it logically. Fishbone patterned clothes have greys on them, right? Greys are all neutral colors. This means you can match them with pretty much any color.

So, if you were to replace that shirt with one in another color, what would that color be? Among others, purple, yellow and pink are all good options, as long as you stick to lighter shades. That way the color won’t be too powerful and it will make good contrast with the rest of the outfit which is dark grey.

Bottom line: if you have a fishbone vest or jacket, you’re lucky. It’s probably one of the most versatile items of clothing in your closet because you can pair it with pretty much any shirt.

The post The Fishbone Pattern Can Make Anyone Look Classy appeared first on Be Stylish!.

Ever heard of microchecks? I bet you didn’t so I’m willing to make a bet with you:

I bet that, by the end of this article, you’ll decide to incorporate them in your outfit.

OK, let me make my case, your honor.:)

Just what are microchecks?

I know the name sounds funny and all. Microckecks are a pattern, just like checks,stripes and polka dots. They’re just smaller checks.

I’ll get to some really cool pictures in just a moment but first, let me tell you how patterns can make you stylish.

Patters are, by definition, the repetition of something. In our case, they repeat the stitches of a certain color over the entire surface of the clothing item.

Some common men’s patterns are:
– Checks (on formal and casual shirts). I actually see a guy a few feet from me right now wearing such a shirt.
– Stripes (on t-shirts, polo shirts, dress shirts)
– Pinstripes (on suits)
– Herringbone (on some suits and some sports jackets)

… and the list goes on and on.

The thing is, these patterns are way too common.Microckecks are less used by men and I think it’s for one reason only:

the don’t know how to match them.

The secret to making microchecks work in any situation

OK, by now you realized that microchecks are just small colored squares on background color. Green squares on a white shirt, blue squares on grey pants or blue squares on a white shirt, like the guy sitting in front of me has.

The secret is…

… to REPEAT the color of your checks somewhere in your outfit.

Since I work with a lot of guys on other style websites, I come across a lot of cool outfits. The winner of the last contest I organized (and he looked G-R-E-A-T was wearing a green microchecked shirt (white shirt, green checks)an green socks. he was repeating the color.

Needless to say the amazing effect he created by doing this.

Take a look at this GQ photo. Ever since I saw it, I remained deeply impressed with micro-checks.

photo: GQ.com

Microchecks aren’t found only on shirts. You can find them on scarves, chino pants, vests and even ties:

photo: pronto.com

One last thing…

Remember never to wear two patterns of the same size in one outfit. If you’re going to wear microchecks with another check, make sure you use regular checks for the second clothing items.

Just as well, if you’re wearing two types of stripes, make they are of different widths.

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