Your Ultimate Leopard Print Style Guide for an Iconic Look

I love cats, cats of all size. I love their elegant moves, their jumping abilities, their face, and the color pattern of those who have a pattern. Thus, it is no wonder that I love leopard printed patterns on everything from shoes over cardigans and jackets to tights. In this post, I share with you my secrets how to style the print in an effortlessly stylish way.

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Leopard Print from Red Light to Work Appropriate

Leopard print has been around already so long. It became mainstream and nearly a classic in recent years. In the 1950s, the exotic print was for date night and bombshells style only. In the 60s, this print was associated with nightlife, sexy underwear or night gowns. You wouldn’t had worn it to the office, church or any formal occasion!

How times and fashion changed in the last 60 years! In a couple of decades, the current decade will probably be known as the time of the leopard print conquering the day life and even the office.

The daring fashionista can even mix this feline print with florals, stripes or any other large geometric fabric adornment. When you chose the beasts natural fur colors

But let’s take one step at a time to get the most out of the trendy (or new classic ?) It piece.

Try It with Neutrals or Bold Color Solids

Black is a fool proof pairing. It makes the feline piece the statement (see photo below).

The neutral colors of the sweater in the photo below permit grounding the look with another color than black. This fact makes the look more interesting because most of the time black is used. It’s important to repeat colors to tie the look together. Here the brown tights and heels do the job. The heeled loafers elongate the leg and the belt adds some shape.

When Wearing Leopard Print Tights, Make It the Statement

Leopard-print tights are a statement. The safe way to look sophisticated in the animal print trend is only one fur print item at a time. Here two inspirations how to style the leo tights.

In the above example, the gray background color of the print ties the gray cashmere cardigan and chocolate sheath dress together. The plateau high heeled loafers and bag add extra pops of color in burgundy and fuchsia to the otherwise all neutrals business casual winter work outfit.

Interested in more leopard print outfit ideas? Then you may enjoy reading my 15 tips to look ageless in animal prints.

The next example shows how to integrate the leo print tights into an outerwear look. The shearling motorcycle jacket and gray pom pom hat sort of repeat the colors of the tights.

You can find more on how to wear patterned tights in the guide at the link. Please feel free to pin the photos to your Pinterest post.

Wear the right outfit every time, no matter what the situation. Just look up what to wear when in How to Dress for Success in Midlife and create the outfit suggestions with pieces from your closet with Buy the book now.

Snowleopard Is a Great Desaturated Choice

Wearing stylish animal print outfits is a big trend. But picking the right cut and direction of the spots can do a lot for your look. A V-neck and vertical design of the pattern like to top in the photo below  have a slimming effect. Going for a snowleopard is a cool twist on the eternal classic of black and white.

Of course, you can wear this print as an all neutral look with a gray, black or white bottom. Add dress pants, skirt, jeans, leggings and even leather pants in these colors. Pair the look with matching shoes, pearls or silver jewelry. It’s a recipe for a posh and stylish look in no time. Like with the brown-beige-black version of the feline’s fur print any bold jewelry color works well as a fashion statement.

Try Leopard Print with Stripes, Florals, Tartan and Alike

We saw a lot of mixing prints and patterns on the runways. Of course, you can do so with this feline design. Just remember to

• Wear it as a neutral
• Ground your look with a color that is common to all pieces, and
• Select designs of distinct different size.

Stylist tip: You can mix all patterns when they are gray.

In its natural colors – either in brown black or black-gray-white – the design like any neutral works with about anything from floral to stripes to neutral, plaid, colors or real bold statement colors like my orange skirt shown later in this post.

When you are a beginner in mixing prints/patterns, pick another print in similar colors and ground your look with black tights. So chic! The following photos feature a simple to copy  example for a mixed patterns, desaturated look in gray shades between black and white.

You can learn mixing leopard and floral prints in this special post.  See the post at the link for a lesson solely dedicated to mixing stripes with leopard.

How to Style Leopard Pattern Coats, Jackets and Vests

The feline motif looks great with bold colors. Thus, wearing a natural color, faux fur vest like the one in the photo below works with all combinations of grounding neutral and solid bold, unmuted color.

In the case of jackets and coats, pay attention to the pieces that will show in the outerwear outfit. As a rule of thumb whatever hem is visible should be about 4 inches (10 cm) longer than your coat/jacket for a balanced stylish appearance. Jeans with sweaters or shirts tucked in work well. For the color and print combinations use the tips discussed above. See this guide for more on how to style an animal print coat. See this guide for a more general focus on tips how to style your outerwear.

What to Wear with Leo Print Shoes?

Footwear with the feline pattern is having a moment. The principle on how to style them is the same as laid out above.

There is a funny thing about the boots shown below: The first time I wore them a co-worker said she’d recognized me from the back by my boots. I was like “I never wore them before.” Her answer was “You are the only one on campus who would wear such boots.” Score! Touché! You name it! She’s right! These boots are so me!

When you like the tips and advice on the blog, you will also like my book How to Dress for Success in Midlife. Buy your copy now.

Wrapping Up

Always go for a motif in the natural colors of the feline. Style it like a neutral with clean (unmuted) colors. When combining with other designs chose different scales and ground your look with a common color.

Photos of me: G. Kramm

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