Fashion Etiquette: Rules on How to Dress.... GbefunConcept
The modern day sartorial etiquette subject is admittedly a hard one
to approach, in fact, we debated this feature for awhile as the word
“fashion”, defined in the Oxford English dictionary as “a popular or the
latest style of clothing, hair, decoration, or behavior”, is very
subjective.
Just to make it clear, we’re not referring to the strict sartorial dress codes such as when to take off your jacket and the materials and cuts acceptable in particular occasions, our view is a tad more liberal, especially coming from the mixing pot of cultures that is cosmopolitan Hong Kong.
We’re sure everyone has come across a fashion magazine section of the “hot or not” scoring of the wardrobe choices of a celebrity, or even gone as far as (accidentally, one would hope) watch an episode of E-Channel’s Fashion Police, and found that they didn’t necessarily agree with the fashion verdict. As we said above, fashion is subjective and open to interpretation – at the end of day, fashion is all about personal expression.
But as of late, we’ve seen a lot of just plain offensive wardrobe choices out and about town, whether it be sloppy; bold to the point of delusional; age-inappropriate; ill-fitting clothing, there are lines, fashion lines in this case, that are not to be crossed. To avoid confronting others’ aesthetic tranquility, we give you our modern day fashion etiquette for men and women.
General rules for the wardrobe:
What is popular won’t always work for you. Following trends is a great thing, we particularly encourage the purchase of seasonal items, after all, we love our fashion at Asia Tatler towers. The problem is that as Lian Fournier, the assistant social editor at Hong Kong Tatler puts it, “Body types range from curvy to thin, so dressing for yourself is best, but often hard, especially when you see someone you admire wearing a certain trend”. You need to understand and accept not everything works on everyone, not even supermodels.
Colour overkill. A different range of colours takes the runway each season, but don’t overdo it. The other day we saw someone in blue shorts, paired with a yellow shirt and green tights and purple heels. Wear a rainbow on your shirt if you must, but don’t wear all the colours of the rainbow.
Over-matching equals sartorial death. Too many colours are bad, but when wearing monotone, there’s a thin line between looking great and taking the prize for worst-dressed. A tip is to liven up the monotone by wearing textures, preferably not ones that scream and fight for attention when worn together. Coming down the stairs of an opening party, we saw a woman in pink and silver metallic heels, pink sequins dress and a pink feathered headband – this is a no-go.
Too much sparkle and shine will catch the attention of others for the wrong reasons. You want to look radiant, not radiate.
Don’t wear your labels front and centre. Are you afraid no one knows your net value? Well, wearing Dolce and Gabbana in sparkles across your chest or wearing a Dior jumpsuit is not the way to broadcast your self worth, or lack thereof.
Dress appropriately for the weather. Uggs (we’re still undecided about them) should not be worn in the summer, just as down vests and fur coats are ridiculous when the sun shines bright and hot. Same can be said about dressing for the cold: if you’re adamant about wearing shorts or a revealing dress in the middle of winter, well you almost deserve to freeze.
Dress appropriately for the occasion. Over or under-dressing is not only disrespectful to your host and guests as it shows a lack of respect for the occasion, it also relays a snobbish message of self-importance on your part. Arne Eggers, the fashion editor of Hong Kong Tatler adds, “There is no excuse for jeans at a ball but it’s equally bad form to overdress at a casual dinner”.
Iron your clothes. Like creased table cloth, there is no room on earth for it. It is a reflection of how much you value yourself, and if it shows that you don’t respect yourself, don’t expect anyone else to respect you.
Roll up your sleeves, don’t scrunch it up. The term “roll up your sleeves” should not be taken literally. Fold them up, it minimizes creasing, too.
Know your size. Whether it be shoes or clothing, choosing something too small leads to pain and shame, while something too big makes you look sloppy and frumpy.
Just to make it clear, we’re not referring to the strict sartorial dress codes such as when to take off your jacket and the materials and cuts acceptable in particular occasions, our view is a tad more liberal, especially coming from the mixing pot of cultures that is cosmopolitan Hong Kong.
We’re sure everyone has come across a fashion magazine section of the “hot or not” scoring of the wardrobe choices of a celebrity, or even gone as far as (accidentally, one would hope) watch an episode of E-Channel’s Fashion Police, and found that they didn’t necessarily agree with the fashion verdict. As we said above, fashion is subjective and open to interpretation – at the end of day, fashion is all about personal expression.
But as of late, we’ve seen a lot of just plain offensive wardrobe choices out and about town, whether it be sloppy; bold to the point of delusional; age-inappropriate; ill-fitting clothing, there are lines, fashion lines in this case, that are not to be crossed. To avoid confronting others’ aesthetic tranquility, we give you our modern day fashion etiquette for men and women.
General rules for the wardrobe:
What is popular won’t always work for you. Following trends is a great thing, we particularly encourage the purchase of seasonal items, after all, we love our fashion at Asia Tatler towers. The problem is that as Lian Fournier, the assistant social editor at Hong Kong Tatler puts it, “Body types range from curvy to thin, so dressing for yourself is best, but often hard, especially when you see someone you admire wearing a certain trend”. You need to understand and accept not everything works on everyone, not even supermodels.
Colour overkill. A different range of colours takes the runway each season, but don’t overdo it. The other day we saw someone in blue shorts, paired with a yellow shirt and green tights and purple heels. Wear a rainbow on your shirt if you must, but don’t wear all the colours of the rainbow.
Over-matching equals sartorial death. Too many colours are bad, but when wearing monotone, there’s a thin line between looking great and taking the prize for worst-dressed. A tip is to liven up the monotone by wearing textures, preferably not ones that scream and fight for attention when worn together. Coming down the stairs of an opening party, we saw a woman in pink and silver metallic heels, pink sequins dress and a pink feathered headband – this is a no-go.
Too much sparkle and shine will catch the attention of others for the wrong reasons. You want to look radiant, not radiate.
Don’t wear your labels front and centre. Are you afraid no one knows your net value? Well, wearing Dolce and Gabbana in sparkles across your chest or wearing a Dior jumpsuit is not the way to broadcast your self worth, or lack thereof.
Dress appropriately for the weather. Uggs (we’re still undecided about them) should not be worn in the summer, just as down vests and fur coats are ridiculous when the sun shines bright and hot. Same can be said about dressing for the cold: if you’re adamant about wearing shorts or a revealing dress in the middle of winter, well you almost deserve to freeze.
Dress appropriately for the occasion. Over or under-dressing is not only disrespectful to your host and guests as it shows a lack of respect for the occasion, it also relays a snobbish message of self-importance on your part. Arne Eggers, the fashion editor of Hong Kong Tatler adds, “There is no excuse for jeans at a ball but it’s equally bad form to overdress at a casual dinner”.
Iron your clothes. Like creased table cloth, there is no room on earth for it. It is a reflection of how much you value yourself, and if it shows that you don’t respect yourself, don’t expect anyone else to respect you.
Roll up your sleeves, don’t scrunch it up. The term “roll up your sleeves” should not be taken literally. Fold them up, it minimizes creasing, too.
Know your size. Whether it be shoes or clothing, choosing something too small leads to pain and shame, while something too big makes you look sloppy and frumpy.
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