Guest Blogger: Identify your style - 4 steps

As we live among the phenomena of our time, we cannot be completely immune to changes in trends and fashion flows. But we can do our part to slow the flow of clothes towards and from us. The best and most fundamental way to do this is to know your own style.

Sustainability is not the only aspect that makes it worth learning to know your own style. Style is tied to your personality, who you are, what you like and what is important to you. Knowing your own style helps you to take steps towards a life that looks and feels like you, which is a source of great joy and a starting point for a rewarding everyday life. Knowing your own style is also good for your wallet.

Your own style already exists. You already dress for it every day. You choose every day what you wear. Sometimes you find you're not comfortable in the outfit of the day, while at your best you feel both comfy and strong at the same time. What happens in those moments, and how you actually dress, is a reflection of your own style.

1 Defining your own style

>> Create a mood board for your style

>> Write a description of your style

The method I use to guide the definition of your own style takes its inspiration from a fashion designer's toolbox. Everyone can be the fashion designer of their life!

We start from the inspiration of dressing by narrowing down the photo feed and creating a style mood board on Pinterest (about 10 photos), which will form the visual guidelines of your style. You can start building your mood board by asking yourself: what kind of outfits do I love? Or how does the style icon I admire dress?

Next, write a verbal description of your style (3 adjectives) based on the mood and elements of the mood board. The mood board and your style description form the definition of your style.

TIP // It might be helpful to build different mood boards based on the season of the year.

2 Going through your wardrobe

>> Go through the clothes you own 

>> Define what are the cornerstones of your style

The gear for your style is in your wardrobe. I'd argue that you already own a lot of lovely clothes in your style! More than you could possibly imagine.

Take your style definition and go through your clothes. Even the ones that are in seasonal storage. Make sure you have enough time and don't forget to put on some good music.

Separate the clothes in your wardrobe that best fits your style definition. The ones you feel are most essential to building an outfit that reflects your style. These clothes are the cornerstones of your style and key pieces of clothing.

TIP // At this point, you may feel tempted to do a full wardrobe clearance. I recommend slowing down, and discarding clothes mindfully. Clothes that don't fit and those you never see yourself wearing again have, of course, valid reasons to move on.

3 The uniforms of your style

>> Build the uniforms

>> Place the uniforms in a visible place and start using them

A personal style uniform is a trusted outfit and a cornerstone of everyday attire. It's a mindset that helps you make the most of your own clothes and frees you from outfit crises. At its simplest, uniform thinking boils down to the phrase: If your style were one outfit, what would it look like?

The clothes you took out of your wardrobe in the previous step form the main building blocks of your uniforms. Create finished uniforms (1-5 pieces) of your own style and complete them with basic clothes and accessories. Challenge yourself and add a statement piece of clothing to your uniforms if you wish.

TIP // If you encounter different situations and dressing needs in your everyday life, you can put together separate uniforms for work and leisure, for example.

Once you've done enough spins with the uniforms on you in front of the mirror and found them to your liking, place them in a visible place in your wardrobe and see how your everyday outfit choices change. Other clothes can be rearranged or you can try putting some of them in seasonal storage.

4  A long-term personal style

>> Create a shopping list for future purchases

>> Update your uniforms when its time for the new season

As I said at the beginning, one of the purposes of style is to reduce shopping for new clothes. You can do this by recalling your own definition of style every time you feel the urge for something new. You can also build new uniforms at the dawn of each new season. This is wardrobe shopping at its best!

A great way to fine-tune your style is to create a shopping list of the needs and wants you've noticed in your wardrobe as you build your uniforms. A shopping list makes your wardrobe dreams concrete and makes it easier to develop your style over the long term.

Once you have a clear sense of your own style, it's easier to pick out the trends that work for you. No garment that makes you feel uncomfortable and makes dressing more difficult deserves to be in your wardrobe!

Get to know the guest writer - Elsa Hietanen

The founder of Tyylipuhetta Media, Elsa Hietanen is a dynamic visionary and a brand designer with a degree in apparel design. Elsa is currently writing her Pro Graduate thesis on minimalist wardrobe and balancing her everyday life with her Master's studies and her entrepreneurship in media and branding. 

Elsa's interests are a sweet mix of high-quality design and flea markets, art, forest trails, and ordinary simple life. A topic that Elsa could give a one-hour lecture on at this sitting in the routines of everyday life, including Monday pages, content production sessions, and pizza nights.

Did you find something in the inspiration photos that suits your style?

The images are showing the selection of these brands:

Image 1 - a serene scandi style: Residus, 1 People, Archetype, Terhi Pölkki, Globe Hope

Image 2 - for the color lover: Mamakoru, Brava Fabrics, Aarrelabel, Kaiko, Essen

Image 3 - for the black lover: Terhi Pölkki, Archetype, Residus, Globe Hope, 1 People

Image 4 - for a lovely bohemian style: MUD Jeans, Kaiko, Scarlett Poppies, Brava Fabrics

Click here to see our full range of sustainable clothes for women.