How to Wear Accessories

“It is the unseen, unforgettable, ultimate accessory of fashion that heralds your arrival and prolongs your departure.”  --- Coco Chanel
 

No one understood style better than Coco. Accessories are only as chic as the woman who wears them; a pair of heels and a strand of pearls do not good fashion make. It is confidence, conveyed by one’s individual sense of taste. It is why the same suit, worn brilliantly by one woman, can undo another woman’s look entirely. The phenomenon of “Who wore it better?” began in the fashion magazines and has spread to the internet like wildfire. Cruel comparisons between like dressed celebrities are all the rage; and the winner isn’t necessarily the woman with the smaller waistline, it’s the one who knows how to use the little details to bring out her best features.  If clothing is the bread of the fashion world then accessories would be the butter.

The ideal example of one item which can be adapted to any suit any woman is the Little Black Dress. The LBD, first made famous by Coco Chanel, is an essential item for a woman’s wardrobe. It defies restriction of body shape, length or neckline. Audrey Hepburn, in her star-making turn as Holly Golightly wore her LBD with oversized sunglasses, and an enormous strand of pearls. Grace Kelly looked chic in her LBD, adorned with a chiffon scarf. Curves alone worked for Marilyn Monroe, who cemented her femme fatale status in a black silk cocktail dress.

Coco Chanel Accessories

and the

Little Black Dress

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Accessories can make or break an outfit, and where many women fail in their stylish endeavors is that they misunderstand the purpose of the accessory.

Fashion is about sending a message. Are you confident? Timid? Bold? The women who are considered the most stylishly garbed are not the ones who chose their accessories according to the latest fads; they are the ones who know what suits them best, and ignore the rest. Cameron Diaz, the California blonde created her signature look at the beginning of her career and has not veered off track. The accessories she is often photographed in are subtle, with a single statement piece to accent her look. A chunky white Lucite bracelet to offset a sleeveless white dress, or a bejeweled clip to draw attention to her silvery blonde locks; Diaz knows what her best features are and dresses accordingly.  She evokes confidence, tranquility and a sunny disposition towards life. The particulars of her style may change but the theme stays the same.

And that is the secret of choosing the right accessories; they allow a woman a way to express herself, to imbue her personality into whatever she is wearing