Ultimate secrets to look great in mixed prints

Disclosure: There are affiliate links in this post.

Mixing prints and pattern – yay or nay

Well, it’s an old fashion rule to only wear one print or pattern in an outfit.

Today, mixing prints and/or patterns are a modern way to look stylish. What is too much for one women, may be just right for another. When I wear a print or pattern I rarely wear just one. Somehow I do love to mix them. Today I want to share what works and what doesn’t. This post reveals the best stylists’ tricks and secrets on how to mix prints and/or pattern like a pro.

Don’t let the right outfit be a random thing. Wear the right look in every situation by looking up what to wear when in my style recipe book How to Dress for Success in Midlife. Buy the book now.

How to mix patterns and/or prints

… without looking like you dressed in the dark due to an outage. Here is a list of the tricks to get the mixed print-pattern trend right to the spot.

1. Polka dots of about the same size look great when the colors of the dots and background are inverted, or the dots have the same color, but the background has a different color. This polka dots on different color is a favorite next mix-and-match of fashion designers. The same applies for stripes. This type of mix is the easiest to start with.
2. You can mix all kind of prints and pattern when they are gray.
3. Ground your prints/patterns with a solid color. If the print/pattern has black using black is foolproof. Otherwise the color that dominates the print is a good one to use.
4. Mix prints/patterns that have several colors in common.
5. Try to mix printed pieces which are in the same color scheme, but have different shades.
6. Make sure the prints have a different size or they are the same print and size, but different colors.
7. Only one animal print per outfit is foolproof.
8. To look ageless in animal print choose it in its natural or close to natural colors and treat the animal print as a neutral paired with large floral print with or without stripes that pick up colors of the print.
9. Try different geometric prints together that have common colors.
10. Try florals of different size with common colors.
11. Restrict yourself to two neutrals like black and white or white and blue.

When you want to help me with keeping this blog up and running, please share the posts on facebook or twitter. I just read this post on the secrets of mixing prints and patterns. #coolpost #stylesecrets Click To Tweet

Mixed prints and patterns outfit ideas

Here are some outfit examples for inspiration how to mix prints and/or patterns to look effortlessly stylish. They are ordered by type so they are easy-to-recreate from your own closet.

Floral and stripes

Jeanne Pierre sweater over floral print eShakti floral print dress with BCBG belt, GNW tights, Steve Madden fall sandals, Hermes collier de chien bangle, and striped shawl (all own)

Insert flattering A-line top c/o Covered Perfectly, own GNW tight, Jimmy Choo tall boots, Oliveo leather skirt, floral print silk scarf, gemstone necklace, Hermes collier de chien bangle and self-made silver bangle

Animal plus …

Animal print behaves like a neutral. Thus, it is the easiest to wear with other non-solid colored clothing. Wearing a multi-color around-the-knee length summer dress with leopard-print mules is foolproof. Think Rihanna.

Talbot floral skirt, DIY belt, rutile quartz necklace, multi-gemstone cuff, Hermes collier de chien bangle (all own) Grateful golden tortoise Power frame c/o Empowered Eyewear, zebra top c/o Covered Perfectly

Stripes and plaid

GNW cardigan, Burberry skirt, L.K. Bennett wedges, Hermes collier de chien bangle, vintage watch, Moda International sweater (all own), and necklace c/o Almo Jewellery

You can find more ideas how to style a pink plaid skirt at this link.

Floral and plaid

Calvin Klein scuba dress, GNW purple tights, Chanel belt, Vince Camuto boots (all own) and shirt c/o Whistle River

Stripes and polka dots

Polka dots with plaid

GNW cardigan with Burberry pink plaid skirt, L.K. Bennett patent leather wedges, Hermes collier de chien bangle, Bulova watch, Kieselstein Cord belt and buckle, and Paloma Picasso sunglasses (all own)

Oliveo plaid cotton shirt with Ralph Lauren polka dot skirt, Celine tote, Ray Ban sunglasses, Kieselstein Cord belt and buckle, and L.K. Bennett pumps (all own)

When you like these outfit ideas, please feel free to pin them to your own Pinterest board so your family and friends can see them too.

Camouflage plus others

Gap camouflage dress, Only Mine striped cashmere sweater, Pour La Victoire snakeskin sandals, Winkwood wooden sunglasses (all own) and opaque gray tight c/o Hipstik Legwear

Notations zebra cardigan, layering top, Rebecca Colins gemstone necklace, Fendi boots, Jake’s shearling coat (all own), camouflage pants c/o Femme Luxe and vegan backpack c/o JORD

Three and up

Going all the way donning more than two prints is high risk, high reward. Why? Because more than the match of two is difficult to pull off unless your way of dressing has an Eclectic Style attitude.

Women with a luxury Bohemian Style may also get away with multiple prints in one look. Note that the first mentioned style may convey the message “I don’t care about the rules.”, while the second may read poverty, when it goes wrong.

The above example outfit is grounded by white. It occurs in all pieces and the solid white pumps. Navy blue and white are both neutrals. Thus, they balance the abstract blossoms of the top.

Same, but different size/color

This approach is relatively easy, but has great style impact.

Pendleton skirt, L.K. Bennett suede tall boots, Kieselstein Cord belt, Kieselstein Cord three horses buckle (all own) and shirt c/o Ethyl Clothing

Jones New York shirt, Lauren Ralph Lauren pleated skirt, Liz Claiborne pumps, Chanel belt, Hermes collier de chien bangle, Tissot watch and Jaeger tote (all own)

What doesn’t work when mixing prints/patterns

Before I wrap up the most important points, let’s quickly review the most frequent fashion faux-pas. Make sure to avoid them when you adapt the trend.

1. Stay away from animal prints in non-natural colors with solids and/or other prints. This means don’t fall for fantasy animal print.
2. Furthermore, don’t pair prints or pattern of same size that have nothing in common, but the size.
3. Also avoid to create outfits that look similar to a quilted bed throw, and
4. anything too busy like hounds-tooth with polka dots of same size.

Wrapping up

Be creative, experiment. Try out everything with everything and go with what looks the best wrong. Make the mix the statement. When you liked these free tips tweet to your friends:

How do you mix and match your prints and patterns? Or do you wear just one print or pattern at a time? I’m just curious.

Get the inspiration, support, motivation, and tips to look to your best in life. Get a subscription to High Latitude Style.

Photos: G. Kramm

© 2013-2021 Nicole Mölders | All rights reserved