How I Levelled Up My Style (And How You Can Too)

So this is how I got my style going from clapped to smash. Okay. I wish I was at the level of a smash, but seriously, when I look back at some of my old outfits, man, it's tough. It's a tough watch. So in this video, I'm going to be breaking down exactly how I leveled up my style going into proportions and fit, color combinations, where to shop and many other lessons I've learned along the way. I'm also going to show you how I use some of these principles and put it into practice and give you some complete outfits that you guys can take inspiration from. So let's get straight into it. So the first thing I'm going to talk about is going to be the fit and proportions, because that's the most important thing. And what you have to realize is that there isn't one silhouette that everybody has to wear. Otherwise I'm just going to be wearing the same thing, but that's not the case, right? You know, we've got the slim fits, we've got the oversize, we've got the brick and muscle fit. And then we have now people wearing pants below their boxers, like diapers. So as you can see, it's not a one size fits all. So you have to understand what type of silhouette you want to rock. That's the first thing we have to establish because before I used to look at clothing just as individual pieces. So if I saw a nice jacket or a nice polo or a nice pair of pants, I just bought it the single piece itself and thought it would work with any outfit. And that wasn't the case because you have to take into consideration what the complete look is. So here's an example. I've got an oversized polo and you know, you're going to see those tall dudes wear it, the K-pop idols wearing it. But when I wear it on my physique and on my outfits, it kind of just all falls apart. I kind of look like just Jabba the Hutt. You know, there's no real shape. And that's because I didn't take into consideration of the overall silhouette. I've got big traps. It's not complimentary towards my physique. And with the wide cut trouser, everything just sort of gets, you know, bundled up as one. And then I go on the flip end, right? If I get a slim fit top, you know, hell yeah, dude, you know, sun's out, guns out. It looks great. But then with the wrong trousers, once again, I don't look bigger. I look even smaller. Like I have no legs, but I think, I think I do. So the silhouette that I wanted was obviously something that is complimentary towards me. Something that makes me look wider, bigger, more jacked, more charming and handsome. But in all seriousness, it means that through experimentation, I realized I needed a slim up top and a wide bottom, right? Both of these elements have to be working in conjunction. You can't just have one or the other. Otherwise we're gonna have the same issues we had earlier. And in fact, I think this silhouette is probably going to be the most versatile that most people are able to pull off. It doesn't mean that you have to rock it, but it just means that you most likely will look, you know, above average in it. And that's exactly what is the silhouette that my brand is going to be revolving around because I think it is the best looking silhouette in general. So take that into consideration, guys, whenever you're considering the fit and proportion, don't think about just singular pieces. Think about the overall look, and then you're going to be able to buy more deliberately and more consciously. Okay. So the next thing we're going to talk about is the color combinations. After you mastered a fit and silhouette, you now have to think about what colors to wear, because that's going to be the thing that can make you stand out from the rest. And it all goes back to the same story. You have to think about the overall picture when it comes to colors. And this is something that I did not do very well at the start. You see, I like very bold and vibrant colors. I like red, burgundy, white. Um, so I was just thinking about the singular piece itself, but never really thought about how to match it together with one another. And this led to me buying a lot of stuff that was not very versatile and you could only fit it with one specific look. So let me give you an example, right? I've always wanted a white sports jacket and I want it to look like Scarface, Godfather, or like Kingpin. Um, but you know, it's just been collecting dust ever since, because I mean, what do you really even match it with? Right. I've got the full set of the suit, but it's very difficult to match with any other color besides itself. And that's an example where you should be thinking about how many different combinations you can make with a certain item in order for it to be valuable and useful. Now, not everything has to have a lot of different versatility and use cases, right? But if you're just starting out, it's definitely more important to create a wider base rather than buying very specific pieces that only work in one style of outfit, right? I think that's very, very key for you. And that's exactly why everybody goes towards these neutral colors like Navy, black, beige, gray, dark Brown, because they are relatively versatile in order to make yourself stand out. You're going to have to eventually, or I hope you do, make the jump in wearing more interesting and vibrant colors. Now it doesn't mean you just, you know, pick every single color from the rainbow and match it together. You're going to look like a freaking clown, right? But in order to look like, you know, Oh, this guy's smash worthy. You're going to have to pick vibrant colors. And that's the step I took in the past three years where I started wearing more vibrant colors like burgundy, orange, and more green or like Royal green. Um, it doesn't mean I just wear these colors. I still match it with, you know, my other colors that I usually wear like the Brown and Navy, but I just have extra tools now in my wardrobe. And you might be wondering how do we make that transition? Right. And I would say the easiest way is always to pick a light colored bottom or like a neutral color bottom, like beige or white to compliment it. Right. We already have a lot of contrast with a sharp color top, you know, in terms of like a burgundy or orange. So go for something that, you know, brings balance to the outfit. And that's why I always wear my white linen trousers, or I'll be wearing my white jeans that I'll be releasing from my collection soon. But if you're just starting off, you might be wondering, well, what color combos should I wear? I'm just going to go over three very simple ones. Now the first one is going to be all black. Um, all black is actually surprisingly not easy to pull off because you might end up looking like a waiter. Uh, if you don't get the right composition of the outfit and what that means is you should go for things that have texture to create contrast because it's all black. It might just completely look camouflage, right? So go for interesting material compositions, like linen to give it a bit of wrinkling and a bit of contrast or, you know, denim as well. Serious sucker is a great option on top of that, but make sure you're not just getting something that's incredibly uniform, even within black, you can still play around with the textures and colors. So the next color combination is going to be dark brown and black. And I think this is probably my favorite color combination because it's extremely complimentary towards all skin tones. It's much more elevated and dark brown is a really good color. Uh, when you go for a lighter brown, like mid brown or even like a tan, it's going to be much more difficult to pull off. So dark brown is a lot more versatile if you're just starting off. So definitely go for that. And yeah, you really can't go wrong guys. This is, this is, you know, outfit 101. And the third one, if you want to look a little bit more summery, a little bit more fresh is going to be sort of a mid blue or a Navy combined with white. If you want to look a little bit more summery or a little bit more vibrant and young, I definitely think wearing white bottoms is an easy way to make yourself stand out from the crowd. Moving on to the last topic. And it's about where to shop. Now this answer can be varying depending on whether you're freaking rolling it in like Jordan Belfort and Wolf of Wall Street, or if you're just a uni kid, right? But one rule applies no matter what, whether you're at the start, whether you're at the middle, or whether what you think is the end of your fashion journey, you should still be buying stuff deliberately, slowly, and consciously. Don't just buy everything all at once because you're super excited. And the reason for that is because your style is going to change, right? What you think is good now might change over time. I mean, that's the whole point why trends exist, but it also gives you time to reflect and see what it looks like because when you're testing stuff out in the dressing room, it's not actually what it might look like outside, right? When you're actually day to day, you realize it's not as versatile. So be careful when it comes to that, but let's go through a few suggestions based on your budget of where you should be shopping. Now I'm just going to be talking about in-person stores that you can visit. Obviously there are smaller, more independent brands that just do e-commerce, but assuming that you want to try things out in person, let's just go through that. So when we're starting off at the bottom of the budget range, we have the classic go-tos that everybody knows. We have Uniqlo, we have Muji, then we have Zara and H&M. And I think Zara and H&M probably go a bit more adventurous with the designs. Whereas obviously Uniqlo and Muji focus more on elevated basics at their price point. So depending on what you're trying to explore, now these four brands will probably cover up a lot of what you need at a lower budget. And into the next year, we've got brands like Koss, Xisuma Duty and A&F. Now Koss in particular has received a lot of attention over the past year and a bit for their slim fit ribbed t-shirts and their slim fit panties, right? But they also do other stuff like outerwear. They've got the wool pleated trousers, cotton chinos that a lot of people are starting to get into as well. And then the tier above that is when things get a little bit more fun. If you're into menswear, you've got brands like Ralph Lauren, Buck Mason, Todd Snyder, Su Supply, Taylor Stitch, Poppercloth, Spearmcay, 316. You know, these brands are working with more reputable mills. They have better workmanship. They can invest more into the product itself. And you as a result of consumer be able to try on different cuts and different silhouettes. So this is when things get a lot more fun. Now after you've taken on all these principles, you are one of the style gods. Well, almost. I think the last thing you should do is find a good local tailor, because unless you are the average medium consumer that brands are working to fit around, ready to wear is not going to fit perfectly. So a local tailor is going to be able to help you elevate your fit, whether it's taking in the inseam or the chest or the waist, there's definitely something that could be elevated. Anyway, if you want to see a part two, drop a like, drop a comment, and I'll see you guys next time.