Heads, shoulders, knees or toes?

Most of us will accessorize an outfit in some shape or form. Whether it’s through hats, headbands, scarfs, jewellery, bags, belts or shoes, we all like to make an effort to add an extra something to our outfits. So I pose the question, are you ‘heads, shoulders, knees or toes?’ (or all for that matter)! For those of you in deep confusion, I shall enlighten you.

Heads being accessories like; hats (but if so what type – Beanie? Sunhat? Bowler hat? Baseball cap? Beret? – this list is quite frankly endless!), Earrings, Geeky glasses (permanent/non-permanent placement), Headbands, Headscarfs, Bold earrings (Danglers? Studs?), Piercings (Nose,Eyebrow –anywhere nowadays!). etc.

Or are you Shoulders? – is your idea of accessorizing through scarves, statement necklaces, shoulder bags (rucksacks or standard shoulder?)

Knees…Well, admittedly we can’t really accessorize our knees but it goes with the rhyme so I’m keeping it. (Knee length socks close enough?)

Or finally are you Toes? We all have to accessorize toes, unless bare feet is your idea of comfortable ‘footwear’, but how do you accessorize them? – Killer heels, Flats (high top trainers? Pumps? Ugg boots (please say no to that one-their time to shine is gone!), Wedges, Ankle boots, ‘Knee’boots (found another way to accessorize the knees!)

In a little while I will post a poll to grasp a general idea of how the majority of us like to accessorize, (but for now I’ll continue on.)

We have the freedom to accessorize our outfits in any way we want but do we over accessorize? It’s a possibility that some of us get so carried away with the luxury of accessorizing that we go into overdrive. Today a common way of accessorizing is through piercings and it seems that for many of us it becomes an addiction. For example, point to anywhere on your face and I guarantee that it’s possible to pierce it. I’m not saying that your average girl-next-door is walking around with her face plastered in piercings but the point I’m trying to raise is that many of us can over accessorize with our earrings and studs. High on-trend are multiple piercings, which is fine and it can be elegant but when people are accessorizing with other accessories in addition to the range of studs it can get too fussy.

No one wants to detract from their outfit, an accessory should complement your outfit not clash with it!

 But piercings are not the only area where an accessory disaster can occur! It can be as simple as choosing the wrong pair of stilettos to pair with your party dress or adding a statement necklace to an already courageous outfit. You may reach the opinion therefore that accessorizing is one of the hardest parts of creating your look in the morning, but it doesn’t have to be that way!

Top tips on how to accessories right

  Step 1 – Choose your outfit, pair together your outfit from top to toe.

  Step 2 – Examine your accessories before making judgment on whether it will deserve a spot on your outfit!

So, you’ve paired your outfit together but there’s only one problem, that new brightly coloured beanie hat that you have just been dying to wear doesn’t go with your chosen outfit. WARNING – DO NOT, (dying to wear it or not) just ‘chuck’ it on your head and hope that no one will notice. It will distort your outfit, make it look messy and unloved. Instead you have two options.

Option number 1 – Start your outfit planning again, tailor it around the ‘brightly coloured beanie hat’ so that you can wear it proudly, not awkwardly.

Or

Option number 2 – Get over it and move on. To the point I know, but save yourself the misery, add an accessory that does do your outfit justice. You can always wear the beanie another day.

Of course, I’m not saying that we all have beanie hats that we are dying to wear, this was just an example. Just take caution that you’re not just accessorizing for the sake of wearing something.

  Step 3 (and finally) – Make judgment and gather opinions! You’ve chosen your accessories and suitably selected the right ones for your outfit but are they right? Here are some areas where you might be going wrong:

a)      Colour clash – not pretty. Unless it’s a statement or intentional and works for your outfit, don’t try it.

b)      Area overload – it’s quite possible that you’ve accessorized excessively in one area and left other areas completely bare. The overall effect? Unbalanced. The simple solution to this is to either balance out your accessories by adding some in a few extra places or simplify your look!

c)      An uncalled for statement – Sometimes accessories just aren’t needed, if you’re outfit is bold and striking it doesn’t need the help of an accessory to make a statement. Accessorizing here will ruin your look.

If you’ve checked the above but are still unconfident that you have successfully accessorized, why not gather some opinions? Ask your Mum, bestfriend or sister, even if you don’t class these people as ‘fashion forward’ they will still have an opinion (your choice on whether you decide to listen!) Or alternately take a picture of your look and send it to some mates and ask them what they think!

Here are some inspirational looks:

Tyra lets her outfit do the talking at Fashion week – Sept 2012

With the addition of a few statement rings and a simplistic clutch,

Tyra has her accessories sorted – Simplistic yet effective!

The Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, defiantly knows

how to accessorize. Dressed in a floor length outfit, top to toe in

floral lace, adding an extravagant statement accessory would destroy the outfit!

Kate plays it cool with adding a touch of colour with her small, red clutch.

Kendall Jenner adds a statement necklace to add an extra dimension to her pure,

white dress – guess what? It works!

Nicola Roberts adds eye-catching hoop earrings, rings and simple watch and

bag to compliment her outfit. Loving the look Nic!

Accessorizing shouldn’t be a rushed and rash decision, they should be chosen with care. They will either destroy or emphasize your style! And finally, whatever your style of accessorizing, take care that you’re not going overboard!