Pattern School

One of my favorite things to do is work with print! By adding print into your wardrobe you can create a dynamic, smart, and stylish outfit. Today I’ll be talking with you about how to mix print. In my line of work I constantly see my clients afraid of print.

“Do I have to match a specific solid with the print?”

“I can’t pull off a printed bottom?”

“Will this look too busy?"

These are things I hear everyday!

Now let’s keep our minds open, and get the creative juices flowing!

Bold / Less Bold

Whenever I want to mix prints together I go by the rule “mix BOLD with LESS BOLD.” An example might be a small dot with a bold stripe. In my first image I paired snow leopard pants with a polka dot blouse. While both prints are bold the spacing in the dots makes that print POP, thus rendering the the pants less bold. If you are feeling adventurous try mixing two bold prints together.

Accessories

When mixing two prints that have nothing in common, something has to tie the outfit together. That’s where accessories come into play. In my second image I paired a pink dot blouse with a gold brocade skirt. These prints really have nothing in common. Therefore, I used gold accessories to tie in the gold of the skirt, and pink shoes to add additional pink. By adding the accessories, everything ties together.

Pattern and Solids

This probably sounds a bit more familiar, but let’s get a little adventurous. The obvious choice is to find a solid piece that matches a color from within your pattern piece. While that does make for a beautiful outfit, you may also try a solid that is unrelated. In my third image I took a window panel sweater and mixed it with cobalt blue pants. While both colors are very bright, each makes the other pop. I decided to add a touch of red by pairing the outfit with a red and blue necklace.

The most important rule you need to remember is “have fun with fashion!” Rules in the fashion industry are constantly changing to allow more creative ideas to emerge.

Be creative! Have fun!