Creative Ways to Repeat Outfits and Style your Clothing Pieces All Year Round!
Lizzie Mcguire, you should be an outfit repeater!
Does anyone else remember when Kate Sanders said, “Lizzie Mcguire, you ARE an outfit repeater,” when Lizzie was caught re-wearing the same outfit (her powder-blue peasant dress) from the spring dance and her middle school graduation? Well, the Name Bubbles team does, and I think many of us have felt for years that outfit repeating is a social faux-paux. But to the Kates of the world and those afraid of repeating outfits, it’s great to know that rewearing outfits and repeating clothes are both most certainly acceptable (and, in fact, encouraged!).
Today we’re going to be discussing how to maximize your wardrobe and find creative ways to re-wear your clothes all year round! Dresses and tank tops don’t have to be reserved just for summer with the tips we’re about to share. Keep reading to figure out how you and your household can be stylish outfit repeaters and create different outfit formulas that work for you and your personal style.
Back to the Basics
One of the fundamental keys to having a re-wearable and versatile wardrobe is owning all the basics. Many people like to look at basic items as investment pieces just because of the sheer amount of times they’ll be worn throughout a lifetime. Think about it – how many times have you worn an amazing pair of blue jeans or reached for that solid black t-shirt?
To maximize your wardrobe and build a crazy amount of great outfits, establish that strong basic wardrobe. These garments should be the foundation of your wardrobe that can be worn with a million different outfit combinations. These pieces are the items in your closet you search for on a daily basis and you already know can be worn in different ways.
Basic Pieces to Consider for your Closet
If you’re looking for a place to start with finding the key basic pieces, consider adding the following pieces to your wardrobe to became the staple pieces in your daily outfit formula. Find a pair of blue jeans that fit well along with a pair of black and white pants. Make sure you have casual and formal neutral skirts. A few essentials to have are a few black, white and nude tops in your arsenal. Have that comfy yet cute pair of sneakers at the ready along with a pair of dress shoes that look great, go with everything, and don’t kill your feet (and vibe) by the end of the night.
To start an investment wardrobe instead of a fleeting wardrobe, buy new clothes with longevity. A good example for next time there’s a t-shirt sale at Old Navy or Target, instead of grabbing the bright and colorful graphic tees with trendy prints, choose more solid colors or timeless designs that won’t just fade out after a season.
Building a Basic Wardrobe for Kids
If you’re building a great basic wardrobe for your kids, find jeans with adjustable waistbands. Buy the jeans a little big and as your kids are growing, adjust the waist to fit them at that growth stage. Find neutral-colored clothes that could be used for play, but also dressed up for school or less casual activities. When you’re shopping for your family, think about each garment you’re about to purchase and consider the potential combinations of outfits that item can serve in your kid’s pre-existing wardrobe.
When building a great basic wardrobe for anyone in your family, the key is to focus on timelessness and classiness over current trends and fleeting designs.
Once you’ve established that great basic wardrobe, make sure to keep track of it! Use our clothing labels to label everything (especially your kiddos' clothes) so that a great pair of jeans, those comfy tennis shoes, and that versatile jacket won’t go missing!
Get Creative
Do you have a favorite summertime dress you just wish you could wear all year round? Or perhaps it’s a flowy maxi skirt or printed tank top you just wish you’d have more opportunities to wear.
Regardless of what the clothing piece is, there are a million creative ways to wear it.
Styling Dresses in Different Ways
If you’re looking to style dresses in the fall or wintertime, winterize your piece by layering under it a long-sleeved shirt. If the dress is more minimalistic and design-free, add a pop of color or a new element of design by layering it with a colorful or patterned top. If the dress is more bright and patterned, add a simple and solid color top underneath.
You can also wear a sweater over top of your dresses and instantly have a new skirt in your wardrobe! If you have a midi-length dress, adding a sweater instantly creates a new midi skirt. If it’s extra-cold in the winter, layer a thick sweater over a dress and add warm tights or leggings and boots too!
For certain dresses, you may even be able to get away with tucking that dress into a pair of jeans or a longer skirt. You instantly have a new top!
Layering Tips
Layering is your friend when it comes to creatively rewearing clothes. A fun outfit combo for kids is to layer graphic t-shirts with patterned long sleeves. This outfit combo has hundreds of possibilities, and you or your kids can have fun picking out different t-shirts to go with their long sleeves!
When it comes to thinking out-of-the-box, there are millions of methods to use to re-wear outfits and style your clothes! Let your creativity and personal style run wild.
Accesorize. Accesorize. Accesorize.
Accessories change everything. Think about a white t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans. If you threw on a baseball cap and a pair of sneakers, your outfit would become more athleisure-y and comfortable. But, if you grabbed a pair of dramatic gold hoops and your favorite summer wedges, instantly, your outfit would be 100% more dressy.
Accessories have the power to change an outfit in a matter of seconds!
A few accessories that are great and inexpensive to invite into your or your kid’s wardrobe are headwear, jewelry, and outerwear.
Headwear Pieces you need for your Wardrobe
A great baseball cap is a timeless accessory to own. It can instantly turn any outfit into a casual and sporty feel. Hair accessories like hair bows, headbands, and clips are pretty inexpensive and can easily change the vibe of an outfit. If your outfit needs an added accessory to dress it up, try out a headband! We love this pack of knotted headbands from Amazon. This pack comes in so many different colors and is great for dressing up any outfit! A trendy hair accessory that has made a major comeback from the 90s is the claw clip. This pack of claw clips from Amazon is amazing to add a more chic element to any look.
A bow can be a great touch to any little girl’s outfit! If she’s wearing a casual outfit and wants a more girly touch, throw one of these bows onto any ponytail or pigtail, and instantly her outfit is 1000% more elevated!
Look at these adorable butterfly hair clips – these would be perfect for adding some glitter and magic to any outfit.
Add Jewelry!
Jewelry is also great for changing the look and feel of an old outfit. Bold earrings can elevate a look or make a different statement. Layering necklaces or bracelets can also cause a different effect to a previously worn look!
Outerwear = A Key Staple to Outfit Repeating
Lastly, outerwear is great (especially in colder months) to add to an outfit. A thick puffer coat will make an outfit more casual, while a more formal jacket like a peacoat will dress an outfit up.
A puffer vest in a cheery color will add a fun and colorful element to your kids’ winter outfits, and a more neutral jacket will bring a timeless and classic feel!
Have fun with accessories – use them to your advantage when it comes to styling and re-wearing outfits in your and your kiddo’s wardrobe! Make sure to label all accessories you buy like hats, scarves, and jackets. For accessories like headbands and hair bows, buy a container to keep all of them in and label the container with our write-on labels so you can stay organized and keep track of all the accessories in your house!
You are officially an amazing outfit repeater!
Name Bubbles reader, you are officially an outfit repeater! Finding creative and inventive ways to repeat outfits and style different outfits in your wardrobe is a great way to re-discover old clothes and save money on not buying new wardrobe pieces.
In today’s climate, repeating and re-wearing outfits is also something small we can all do together to support sustainability and fight against the fast fashion industry.
(If you’re looking for great basic pieces or fun accessories, you may even want to consider looking at your local consignment or thrift store! This is a fun way to discover unique pieces no one else will own, plus support the environment!)
If you try any of our clothing tips, take a picture of your or your kid’s outfits and share it with us on social media!
For more fun and helpful parenting and lifestyle tips, check out our blog here!
