How to Discover Your Personal Style in 6 Simple Steps

Would you like a look that truly reflects you and enhances your appearance? Are you keen to buy clothes that you'll actually wear? No more spending hours shopping without a clue about what to get?

I'll help you.

As a fashion enthusiast, I believe that the question of what to wear is crucial and deserves a bit of our attention.

In fact, finding your own style isn’t just about feeling comfortable in your clothes; it’s also a way to gain self-confidence, to feel beautiful, and even to save money by buying clothes that you will actually wear and enjoy for a long time.

Today, I’m sharing a straightforward guide that will help you, with practical tips, to determine your personal style and find clothes that you’ll truly enjoy wearing.

To discover your style, the first step is to take a good look at your wardrobe and pick out the clothes you genuinely love and wear regularly with enthusiasm. Next, try to identify their common features: this will serve as a starting point for your search for inspiration. You can do this by analysing the style of a personality you admire and creating collections of your favourite finds on Pinterest and Instagram. From there, you can sort through your wardrobe, giving away or selling the clothes that no longer suit you. Finally, determine the key elements of your style (prints, types of clothing, materials, accessories): these will help guide you during your next shopping trip!

Looking for more details? Keep reading to find out:

• How to define your style, and what it means in terms of fashion,
• An easy method to analyse your wardrobe and declutter your closets,
• Effective tips to define a style that suits you,
• Advice on finding clothes that you'll genuinely love during your shopping trips,
• And finally, more information about the bohemian chic style that embodies the spirit of our site, Life of Boheme, so you can see if it might be right for you!

What does it mean to have a style?

To discover your clothing personality, it’s essential to first understand what it involves and to break down the common misconceptions about what constitutes a style:

• It’s a way to express who you are, whether through your clothing, writing, or how you decorate your home. Your style reflects your personality and tastes: it is one-of-a-kind.
• In the fashion world, it’s a means for an individual to reveal who they are through their aesthetic choices in clothing, accessories, hairstyles, and especially how they select and combine the elements that make up their outfits.
• A style is timeless. Someone with style doesn’t necessarily follow the latest trends, but their way of dressing is always consistent and adheres to the same aesthetic. Having your own personal style means choosing your clothes based on your character and preferences, rather than blindly following fashion.

In the following lines, I’m going to share a simple and effective method to help you discover your style, which means that you will:

➡️ wear clothes that you love and in which you feel comfortable,

➡️ know in advance which clothes you can wear repeatedly without ever getting tired of them.

Step 1: Assess Your Wardrobe

To get started, you'll need to open your wardrobe to take a look at your clothes, accessories, and shoes. Choosing a style is very visual, which is why I encourage you to do this concretely, having all your clothes laid out in front of you.

Some signs that suggest you’re still searching for your style…

First, sort through and take a good look at the clothes you have barely worn or haven’t worn at all. Sometimes we buy clothes for the wrong reasons:

• Because it’s really affordable,
• Because they were on sale and the discount was appealing,
• Because that’s what was on the mannequin,
• Because a friend encouraged me to get that piece of clothing.

Do you see yourself in this? If so, you might need to define your style so you can finally buy clothes you'll wear time and again. By analysing your clothing personality, you'll also save money, as you won't be cluttering your wardrobe with clothes that rarely see the light of day, or are even brand new!

How to find what truly suits you?

Now that you've identified the clothes you're not too keen on, focus on those:

• that you've worn many times,
• in which you always feel good,
• that boost your confidence when you wear them,
• that you can easily match.

Once you've identified them, sort them out and arrange them so they're all visible, perhaps on your bed. You can then carry out a quick analysis by asking yourself the following question:

➡️ What do these clothes have in common?

To answer that, observe carefully:

• The types of clothing: trousers or skirts? Shirts or t-shirts?

• The patterns: plain or printed? Animal prints? Floral designs? Polka dots or checks?
• The cut: loose or fitted? Long or short skirts?
• The materials: natural (cotton, linen) or synthetic (polyester)?
• The colours: warm? Cool? A dominant shade?
• The brands: are they all different? Is there one that stands out in particular?
• The accessories: what type? What material? How do they complement the rest of your outfit?

From these findings, you can already start to see a style emerging that truly reflects your tastes and what you love.

Step 2: Draw Inspiration from Your Role Models

For the next part, I suggest we take inspiration from some inspiring people to help us go further.

➡️ Among the celebrities or influencers on social media, are there any individuals whose style you admire? Ones you’d love to emulate in your day-to-day life?

For example, in my case, it includes:

• Vanessa Hudgens
• Vanessa Paradis
• Kate Moss

Vanessa Hudgens / Vanessa Paradis / Kate Moss

Once I managed to identify them, all I had to do was ask myself what they had in common to realise that they actually shared a chic bohemian style, which perfectly aligns with my tastes.

👉 There are sometimes individuals we admire and appreciate for their unique style (Diane Keaton, Helena Bonham Carter). However, that doesn’t necessarily mean you would want to dress like them. The aim here is to find people whose wardrobe you’d love to borrow from and whom you feel a connection to.

Step 3: Visualise Your Style!

The technique discussed in the following paragraphs is truly worth your attention. It draws inspiration from the methods used to design the interior of your home and applies them to fashion. In just two simple steps, you'll be able to create a genuine shopping guide that will help you select clothes that suit you perfectly.

Create Your Own Moodboard!

Spend some time on social media, especially Pinterest and Instagram, which allow you to create collections. Then, set up a collection titled "personal style" and add your inspirations, outfits you like, and those you can imagine wearing.

Here’s how to go about it:

Afterwards, don’t hesitate to revisit it and sort through your things. Keep only the clothes that you truly love.

Analyse the Results

Once your collection starts to become a bit more substantial, it’s time to reflect. To do this, you can ask yourself the same questions you considered when analysing your wardrobe, in order to successfully identify the fabrics, cuts, types of clothing, or patterns that appear regularly. Don’t hesitate to take notes!

Use this collection as a shopping guide. Before you buy an item of clothing, consider whether it will help you achieve the look you want.

Step 4: Sort It Out!

Once you've put your collection together, you'll be able to use it to sort through your wardrobe or dressing room.

Give away or sell a piece of clothing if it doesn't fit the style you've chosen.

Don’t be disheartened if a lot of clothes don’t fit right… this is often the case when you're trying to find your style. It’s better to get rid of many items that don’t make you happy and to wear the same few pieces more often while you revamp your wardrobe, rather than filling your wardrobe with clothes you don’t wear.

Step 5: Choose a Few “Signature” Pieces

While reviewing your collection of inspirations, try to identify the recurring elements, which are the ones that appear multiple times and easily match with the rest. This could be a type of shoes, a particular bag style, an accessory (like a hat or belt), an animal print, or even a simple piece of clothing such as a plain white t-shirt.

Think of these clothes as landmarks for building your wardrobe. They are what will make an outfit feel like you and suit your style when you wear it. When you're out shopping, try them on during your fittings.

Step 6: Use the Rule of Three

Our wardrobes and style often get lost or become dishevelled because we don't always take the time to think about what we're really looking for when we go shopping.

A simple tip when you're buying something is to always choose something that you can wear in at least three different outfits.

For example, a t-shirt featuring a zebra print, perfect for someone with a rock and roll style, could be worn:

• With a leather jacket and black jeans,
• With a short leather skirt,
• With a long tulle skirt,

Of course, not all clothes can be worn in three different outfits. However, those that can will help define your style and will be the key pieces in your wardrobe.

Spotlight on ... Bohemian Chic Style

To help you better understand what a style is, let me give you an example – the bohemian chic style. This trend inspired the creation of our website, Life of Bohemia.

The bohemian chic style (also known as hippie chic or boho chic) originated in the 1970s, during the cultural and social revolution led by the hippie movements. It was about breaking free from the constraints imposed by society, and clothing naturally became an instrument of this liberation.

The legacy of this trend today is a very feminine style, characterised by:

• loose fitting styles and lightweight clothing,
• natural and pastel colours (white, cream, pale pink…),
• long dresses and tunic tops,
• lace inserts and embroidery,
• floral and botanical patterns…

Bohème style is incredibly versatile and can be tailored to suit your tastes and personality. It flatters most body shapes with its flattering and harmonious cuts.

👉 If you'd like more details, I recommend reading this article, which will explain to you in detail the secrets of the bohemian chic style. 😉

👉 I also invite you to visit the Boho Via online store to check out our collections. If you find some outfits you like, don’t forget to add them to your inspiration moodboard!

Bohemian Long Dress

I hope this article has helped you to define your style and understand your tastes and personality. Whatever happens, trust your instincts and only buy clothes that you genuinely want to wear! 😉

To explore further, check out our fashion tips on our bohemian blog!