How do you stand out when your whole wardrobe is full of basics? I hear ya! What you have to remember is that being minimal doesn’t mean dressing as boring at you can. Building a wardrobe on good basics also doesn’t mean never making a statement. In fact, being understated is in itself…a statement. So how do you style a minimal outfit and stand out too?
 

First, let’s be very clear – there are ‘basics’ and there are ‘statement pieces’. Think of basics as your foot soldiers and your statement piece as your hero. One way to make a minimal outfit stand out is to make sure there’s a hero. It doesn’t have to, and shouldn’t, be over the top. It could be something with an interesting cut or standout texture. Case in point. This POL Clothing coat, with its oversized lapels and ‘mossy’ fabric, is definitely eye catching, but it’s still quite understated. In my minimal world, this is decidedly a statement item.

Second, your outfit should be all about your hero. So, while you need your basics to hold the fort, they should never steal the limelight (I’m not sure if I’m going with a war analogy here or a stage show analogy, but you know what I mean!). Therefore, the more standout your statement piece, the more basic the rest of your outfit should be. Because this coat was already a bit of a statement item, I opted for a basic white t-shirt and a pair of casual leather track pants. I also kept my accessories pretty low key (nothing out of the ordinary here) with my PS11 and a pair of brogues.

Finally, while it seems natural to add statement items to jazz up a boring outfit, you’ll look so much more put together if you build your outfit around a statement piece instead. Styling your outfits this way will also give you a starting point when you don’t know what to wear.

‘Moss’ Oversized Coat – Pol Clothing
White T-shirt – COS Stores
Leather track pants – Winston Wolf
Laceless Brogues – RMK Shoes
PS11 Shoulder Bag – Proenza Schouler (or here)