How To Make Your Outfit Look Expensive
Elevate the wardrobe you have with these editor-approved tips
Want to elevate your existing wardrobe? We have rounded up 12 editor-approved tips for making your outfit look more expensive. From ensuring everything is always pressed to getting it tailored and opting for tonal colours, here’s how to dress the best you can from what you already have.
Make sure everything is freshly pressed
This seems like something your mother would say and we all know that time in the morning is precious, but taking the extra five minutes to steam or press your look will add instant polish to even the most worn out pieces.
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Get it tailored
Taking an extra two days from purchase to have your local tailor nip and tuck your latest great find, versus ripping the tags off and wearing right away, will elevate the final product way beyond its original price tag.
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Add a belt and tuck in for polish
Insouciance is something we’re always pursuing in the style department, but in the case of looking like you know what you’re doing, tuck in any shirttails or a baggy sweater hem and cinch your waist with a chic belt for maximum impact.
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Add gold accessories
There is just something about structural, gilded extras – whether a bag or jewellery, or both – that make you look like you stepped out of the pages of a magazine.
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Dress in tonal colours, like all white or all black
Not only is it incredibly elongating, but a monochrome outfit always looks intentional and put together. (Tip: Just make sure your whites are bright and your blacks match.)
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Keep handbags shiny and clean
Use glass cleaner on patent leather, unscented body lotion on all other leather, re-stuff easily malleable shapes when storing and always, always pack your purses in dust bags when you travel.
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Beauty matters
Polished hair and make-up elevate any look. A sleek blowdry, red lips, flawless skin – these are the ultimate finishing touches.
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Layer up
A tailored jacket is an editor’s secret weapon. It elevates denim, polishes flowy dresses, looks chic thrown over the shoulders and takes slim trousers to the board room.
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Dress up your denim
We absolutely love jeans at BAZAAR. Just make sure you always add heels and keep the silhouettes and washes classic.
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Buy timeless outerwear
Forgo the trends each season and focus on purchasing coats that are forever: classic camel, navy pea, black moto, belted trench, raw denim – every time you reach for a cover-up, you won’t regret it.
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Match your shoes and your bag
When in doubt, keeping your accessories in the same colour palette will ensure your look comes off as intentional, not haphazard.
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Avoid too much print
Prints are the easiest way to make an outfit tired. What you love one season will make you dated the next, so you’d be better off sticking to block colour.
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From Harper’s BAZAAR U.K