The Guide to Clothing Styles
There is a great variety of clothing styles. And even those who say that they don’t follow fashion trends get dressed in a certain style, like a normcore or sporty style. Others are always searching for their own unique style because even Coco Chanel used to say, “Fashion fades, only style remains.”
5-Minute Crafts prepared a guide to different fashion styles, thanks to which, you’ll be able to distinguish one clothing style from another.
Classic style
Classic style characteristics can be seen in the following.
- Strict cuts, neutral colors, minimum details, simplicity, and structured fabrics
- Excellent tailoring
- Timeless models that can be worn for years
- Classic clothing items: a blazer, perfect-fit trousers, a sheath dress, a trench coat, a white blouse or white shirt — for men: suits, polished shoes, a combination of a T-shirt and a suit
- Jewelry complementing a classic outfit: pearls or diamond studs
Sporty style
Sporty style clothing includes items for active leisure, traveling, and walking with children. If your clothes are mainly designed in a sporty style, then you have the following.
- A variety of jackets, including denim and leather, vests, bombers, and down models
- Sweaters, sweatshirts, and hoodies
- Ball caps, trucker hats, baker boy caps, and beanies
- Jeans, joggers, cargo pants, leggings, chinos, shorts, and any other pants that don’t restrain your movements
- Accessories: rivets, sports watches, fitness watches, aviator sunglasses, comfortable bags, such as a backpack
- Comfortable footwear: sneakers, moccasins, slip-ons, and various boots
Romantic style
Romantic style characteristics can consist of the following.
Grunge
This style originated in the 1980s. Grunge musicians used to get dressed in this style. The main elements of this style of clothing are as follows.
- Layering and oversized silhouettes
- A casual, nonchalant attitude
- Flannel shirts
- Ripped jeans
- Cropped tops and T-shirts with cool slogans
- Army boots
- Fishnet stockings
- Slouchy sweaters
- Torn and messy clothes
Gothic style
The most obvious feature of the gothic style is the presence of black in everything from clothing to makeup.
- Accessories: metal chains, heavy shoe buckles, spiked armlets, wristbands, fingerless or net gloves, body piercings, and tattoos, studs as an embellishment on clothing, and black metal jewelry, including rings and chokers
- Makeup: bright, expressive, includes dark eyeshadow and black eyeliner, black, burgundy, purple or dark red lipstick, and black polish on the nails
- Symbols like skulls, bats, crosses, and so on as prints on fabric or metal accessories
- Lace, velvet, mesh, and net fabrics on clothing, as well as wine red and purple hues (in addition to black)
- Primarily mini skirts and long skirts in women’s clothing, and fishnet tights with short skirts
- Main elements of men’s clothing: combat boots, platform boots, bondage pants, and leather jackets
Boho-chic
Boho-chic is a style based on various bohemian and hippie influences. This style stands for a free, almost nomadic way of life, along with adventure, carelessness, individualism, and bright creativity. This style includes the following characteristics.
- Natural materials: cotton, linen, silk, leather, suede, and fur
- Earthy natural colors like beige, brown, earthy red, white, ochre, orange, and dark green
- Design elements like tassels and fringes found on shoes, skirts, bags, jackets, shawls, and tops; earrings with feathers, bracelets with coins, shell chokers, and jewelry worn in many layers
- Long maxi skirts and maxi dresses
- The layering of clothing and accessories, free-flowing silhouettes, light blouses and dresses, loose clothing paired with ripped jeans
- Beaded sandals, clogs shoes, roman sandals, ankle boots, and cowboy boots
- For men: patterned shorts, jeans, and shirts, rolled-up sleeves, a few open buttons, accessories made from natural materials, bracelets made of wooden beads, along with hats, scarves, necklaces, and unbuttoned vests
Preppy
The term “preppy” comes from the word preparatory. The word refers to the youth subculture of students in private schools, universities, and college preparatory schools attended by American kids in the Northeast. The preppy style is inspired by the clothing and uniforms traditionally worn by students at these schools and ivy league universities. Distinctive features of preppy are as follows.
- For men: button-down Oxford shirts, tweed jackets, chinos, and loafers, in addition to crew neck sweaters, polo shirts, straight trousers, and varsity sweatshirts
- For women: flat-soled shoes (loafers, brogues, mules), pants or skirts, clean-cut dresses without any fancy necklines or sleeves, plain blouses, button-down shirts, crew neck sweaters, cardigans, and jackets
Nautical style
The nautical style of clothing can be recognized by the elements related to the sea and ships, such as a vest, stripes, sailor collars, bell-bottomed trousers, blue blazers with brass buttons, and straw hats.
- The main colors of the nautical style are dark blue, white, and red. Also, an outfit may include light brown shades, mainly in accessories that resemble nautical ropes.
- Shoes should be comfortable and made from natural materials with good grip. These are shoes that are easy to put on and take off, and they give the nautical style a casual touch. These can be sandals or espadrilles for women and deck shoes for men.
Cowboy style
This style is inspired by the clothing worn in the Wild West in the nineteenth century. The distinctive features of the cowboy style are as follows.
- Denim clothing, plaid shirts, suede jackets (sometimes fringed), jackets made from denim or corduroy — for women: skirts (both short and floor-length), as well as shorts, like in the Ralph Lauren collection
- Dusty brown or snake leather cowboy boots
- Accessories: embossed leather belts with buckles, scarves, and hats, and beaded jewelry for women
Normcore
Normcore is all about simple and practical clothes suitable for both men and women. People who choose this style don’t want to be different from others — they deliberately choose casual and functional clothing. Normcore is a kind of reaction to the oversaturation of fashion and rapidly changing fashion trends. This style is characterized by clothing items like the following.
- Jeans or chinos
- T-shirts, hoodies, polos, and shirts with short sleeves
- Sports trousers
- Sneakers
Military style
Characteristic features of military-style clothing can be seen in the following.
- Colors: shades of green, brown, and khaki
- Outerwear: a signature parka, pea, or officer coat
- Military-style dresses with tight-fitting silhouettes, about knee-length, round necklines or collars
- Trousers with camouflage or khaki prints, sometimes with patch pockets
- Embellishments: various stripes, metal buttons, shoulder straps, and various pockets