Pins, Patches, And The Unexpected Flare Up Of Flair Fashion

For the duration of the nineties, we wore a good selection of pins and patches with near enough any outfit. We’re talking waistcoats weighed down with badges, and denim jackets with so many patches the blue barely showed through. Even our hats and handbags would usually come complete with so many embroidered patches.

This fashion, once known as flair, was all the rage. If you didn’t have a decent collection, you weren’t worth the clothes you were wearing. But, along with bright colors and sportswear, flair went out with the nineties. When the noughties arrived, we were all about stripping back. Aside from the outdated waistcoats of diner staff, pins and patches went in drawers, never spoken of again. Until now…

Pinterest’s 2017 trends revealed that searches on ‘flair’ were up a whopping 800%. That’s a pretty large increase, and it’s a sure sign that flair fashion is making a comeback. Pinterest isn’t the only signifier of this, either. One look at Instagram reveals that we can’t get enough of these outfit additions right now.

The reasons for this sudden flare-up vary. For the most part, it seems that artisan sellers are behind the influx. Sites like Etsy are swamped with both pins and patches. Craft markets and the creative community have also embraced making things like these. In an age where we’re more willing than ever to support local creatives, it’s no wonder this fashion is spiraling.

The only trouble is, it can be tricky to make flair work for you if you weren’t a nineties child. If you were born past the turn of the 2000s, you might be wondering what on earth all this flair madness is about. Or, more to the point, how you can make it work for you. Fear not, because we’re here will the answers.

Shop wisely

For one, you need to know where you should shop for these. As with any fashion, it’s essential you buy from the best to ensure lasting quality and appearance. Anyone and their mother are jumping on this trend right now. Even corner shops display all manner of pins at the moment. But, investing in cheap options is a false economy. For one, they’ll break in no time at all. You may also find that they simply don’t look the part. Instead, you should look out for handcrafted and high-quality options. As already stated, Etsy is a fantastic option for this as it allows creatives to sell their wares. If you search long enough, you may even come across sellers like Patches4less, who will enable you to customize your patches. This would allow you to get flair exactly right, and you should read more if it interests you. The main thing to remember is that you shouldn’t settle on any old pin you can find. Far from being a small feature, your pins and patches should become the primary focus of your outfits. And, the only way to ensure that is to be careful from where you buy.

Consider where you display them

Once you have your top notch pins and patches, you need to think about where you display them. Tote bags have become a prime choice, and that makes total sense. How better to add a flair of fashion to an otherwise functional accessory? If you want to go all out, you may even benefit from returning to popular methods of old. Denim jackets have been back in style for a while now. Including pins and patches could ensure a retro outfit to die for. If you fancy something a little more subtle, collar pins are also pretty popular right now. These are fantastic because they incorporate this fashion without your having to go all out. This could also bring the benefit of helping you make the most of just one or two particular choices. Even displaying a few patches on your plain t-shirts could customize your clothing. What’s more, this is a pretty affordable way to take yourself to the heights of fashion.

Coordinate with your outfit

To take full advantage of your flair fashion choices, consider more than where you put your pins and patches from StickerYou. You should also aim to coordinate with the rest of your outfit. This may not have been such a priority in the nineties, but new flair means bringing everything together. A fantastic way to do this could be to match your pins to your jewelry, or the other way around. You could also change the colors you adorn with to match whatever your outfit is for that day. Get this right, and pins and patches could be the things which bring every outfit you choose together. Forget having to match your shoes with your t-shirt; just use a pin to bring the two together.

An option for every occasion
It’s also well worth investing in different flair options for every occasion. This could mean having pins for day and night. Or, it could mean investing in seasonal options you could change through the year. It could even mean having a professional and playful patch selection. Either way, changing for every occasion makes your fashion statements more personal. It can also provide an interesting opening to conversations if you’re meeting new people. Wearing educational pins to class, for instance, is a fantastic way to start chatting with fellow students. Wearing charity pins on a night out is sure to make everyone warm to you before you even start talking. Equally, wearing Christmas-specific flair when the time comes can be a whole load of fun. Political pins are also a fantastic way to bring old outfits into current affairs. Talk about a new-old way to keep up with the fashions.

Getting flair right isn’t all that difficult. The whole point of a fashion like this is to have fun. While these pointers are useful, they’re by no means a fool-proof guide. There are no hard and fast rules. So, play around, get creative, and flaunt your flair.

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Inside A Spooky (Or perhaps average) Dinner With The Hadids

To mark the end of the New York collections, director Bardia Zeinali and fashion editor Jorden Bickham invited the Hadid Family, Yolanda, Gigi, Bella, and Anwar to enjoy a small dinner wearing some of the chicest looks from the week. Then the spooky stuff happened.

Directed by Bardia Zeinali Fashion Editor: Jorden Bickham

You can find more details on the looks at Vogue

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Finding Confidence With Your Most Intimate Wardrobe

By: NYC Personal Stylist, Cassandra Sethi. Founder, Next Level Wardrobe

After working many years in the fashion industry, most recently as a Senior Buyer for Equinox, I decided to start my own business called Next Level Wardrobe. NLW is a NYC Personal Shopping service for ambitious men and women who want to look their best, no matter what situation they are walking into.

One thing that I love about my job is that I get to work one on one with my clients. I take the time to get to really know them as a person -- their lifestyle, likes, dislikes, insecurities, goals and everything in between. Most importantly, I support my clients along an image, style and confidence transformation, one that is mostly focused on exterior appearance but actually it’s about the interior transformation that they make.

@theshineproject

It’s amazing what a new pair of jeans in a cool colorway or a beautiful, elegant dress can do for a person. But there is one thing that comes even before updating your wardrobe that is essential to make that interior/exterior transformation.

So what is it? Your undergarments.

Think of your undergarments as the foundation of your wardrobe, you start with those and then put on the clothing that others see. Many people forget the importance of having the right underwear or bra that is your right size, in a comfortable fabric and that you can’t feel when you have on.

For women bras are often forgotten about, but it is important to make sure that you have the right style of bra for the type of garment that you are wearing. You will want to make sure that you are comfortable in it and it is your right size. Imagine that you put on a new dress or pair of pants and then realize have the wrong undergarment on -- one that is too long or short or maybe it’s itchy -- not only will you be uncomfortable but everyone around you will know that you are uneasy. This is something that you can control very easily.

One bra that I recommend is the 8-in-1 Evolution Bra from Knix. This bra has many cool features for the women with busy lifestyles. Some features that I like include:

• It’s reversible, many bras are not this so you actually get 2 for 1.
• It has moveable straps so you can wear crossed or straight.
• It is made of comfortable performance fabric that is moisture wicking, quick dry, and anti odor.

Best of all this bra is low maintenance as it is machine washable. Knix also offers a great range of sizes and you have the option to add padding if you would like.

So as the seasons change and you start to think about your fall clothing-- don’t forget about your undergarments! They are the foundation of your look.

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Housewear: A New Category of Clothing to Invest In

We generally tend to split our clothing into two broad categories: daywear and nightwear. Daywear, of course, consists of plenty of subcategories, as it’s anything that we wear outside of the home. Nightwear tends to be the items of clothing we sleep in, whether that be nightdresses or pyjama top and bottom sets. You can also style your nightwear for daytime use if you plan to stay at home for the day. However, we are seeing the rise in a whole new category of clothing: house wear. This bridges the gap between items you’d wear out and the items you’d sleep in. House wear provides you with comfortable but presentable clothes that are perfect for lounging about the house in! Here are a few elements that you might like to incorporate into your wardrobe.

House Shoes

The majority of us will have had a pair of slippers at some point or another during our lives. After all, we don’t particularly want to wear our shoes around the house, but we don’t really want to walk around with bare feet either. Wearing shoes in the house can result in our flooring (and carpets in particular) building excessive levels of dirt relatively quickly. As clean as your shoes may appear, anything that comes directly into contact with the floor outdoors is likely to pick up all sorts of dirt and dust. This will simply transfer to your floors if you wear the same footwear around the house. But on the other hand, you want to remain comfortable, keep your feet warm, and avoid picking up bacterial or fungal infections from having our bare feet come into contact with the floor. Slippers, of course, would seem like the logical option to go for. But they have problems in and of themselves. They tend to be made of flimsy material and, consequently, you have to replace them time and time again. But there is an answer to all of your problems in the form of house shoes. House shoes are a hybrid between slippers and shoes. They have the comfort of slippers but a tough rubber base that gives them better grip and increased longevity. If this sounds good to you, you can browse a selection of felted shoes here!

Leggings

Leggings are the ultimate source of comfort. They are covering, flattering, but generally made of soft stretch materials that hug your body without inhibiting movement. The best part of leggings is that if you happen to have a movie marathon and eat a whole load of snacks, the waistband will comfortably accommodate you. Everyone should invest in a few pairs, so that even if your favorite pair is in the wash, you have another pair to fall back on. If you have a subtle aesthetic, you can opt for plain, block colors. But if you prefer your clothing bold and bright, there are a whole array of different stand-out prints and patterns on the market too.

These are just a couple of popular house wear items that you should seriously consider investing in. Not only will they help you to feel comfortable around the house, but you won’t find yourself rushing to get changed if you have an unexpected visitor, as they are equally aesthetically pleasing as they are cozy!

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How to Make Your Fashion Statement More Personal

By Peter Minkoff

What you choose to wear often represents something more than just some random clothes you put on in order to cover yourself. Your style is your identity – it lets you express your personality and show the world how you want to be perceived. That is why fashion trends should never be blindly followed, as your personal traits don’t change as fast as trends do. However, with such a large variety of clothing options, it can sometimes be easy to feel overwhelmed and lose yourself in the process. So, here are some tips that will help you find your personal style more easily:

Get to Know Who You Are

In order to truly express yourself through your fashion choices, you first have to get in touch with yourself. It is essential to understand who you are, what you love, and what fits you the best, so that you can dress in accordance with your personality. Recognize your strengths, flaws, values, and interests, and then own them. Once you acknowledge all of them, the only thing left to do is to remain true to yourself. Only then can you finally show the world freely who you are.

Consider a Capsule Wardrobe

One of the first things to try, when finding a personal style, is creating a capsule wardrobe. It is one of the best and simplest ways of developing your style. By stripping your closet of unnecessary, unworn clothes, you are left with the pieces you truly love and which perfectly express who you are. From that point on, building a more personalized wardrobe is extremely easy, as you have more insight into the personality your clothes convey.

The Magic of the Perfect Dress

The concept of the little black dress is so well-known it hardly needs any explaining. It is a widely recognized item of clothing that is irreplaceable when it comes to style and functionality. The ‘LBD’ can be styled for any occasion, whether it be a sharp work outfit, a sophisticated look for dinner, a flirty and glamorous look for a night out, or completely dressed down, everyday look. Having a well-tailored dress in your closet will help you achieve any look with minimal effort. And choosing the right cut and shape of the dress can really help you express your individual style.

Upgrade Basic Looks with Statement Accessories

There’s nothing simpler than putting on a few eye-catching accessories to brighten up a basic outfit and give it a personal touch. Big statement jewellery and bright printed handbags are the easiest way to spice up your look and make it more interesting. But accessories can also mean scarves, belts, or even the type of sunglasses you choose to wear – anything that gives your look a bit of colour and flare. These little details make the most impact on an outfit and convey your personality and style in a unique way.

Dare to Experiment

Why not experiment with adding some alternative items to your everyday wardrobe? How about making a customer t-shirt yourself using DTG printing? Your outfit will look more chic and modern with a graphic t-shirt. You can also add a steampunk clothing item to an evening look. You can easily achieve a chic Victorian vibe without looking like you’re wearing a costume. Anything goes if you are bold and daring enough.

Let Your Lifestyle Guide You

Unfortunately, even fashion has some boundaries we shouldn’t cross. You won’t have the same freedom to wear whatever you want if, for example, you are a fashion blogger, or if you work in a bank. Your style should match your field of work and your lifestyle, but you should always be able to put a hint of your personality in your outfit. If you aren’t able to fully express your creativity through clothes, then you need to find more subtle ways of showing individuality, like through colors, patterns, cuts, or even daring accessories.

Be Confident

No matter where you go or what you decide to wear, the ultimate key to making a fashion statement is being confident in yourself and in your look. Wear what you love, don’t let anyone else define you and push boundaries with your authentic style.

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