The Biggest Style Mistakes You Can Make If You're Going For Quiet Luxury
The 2020s so far have produced plenty of fashion trends geared towards maximalist fans. Movements like Barbiecore and Cluttercore offer the opportunity to dress in bright and bold designs to your heart's content, while the world still seems to be riding the color-blocking wave set in motion by Bottega green. However, there is one mega-popular minimalist trend to counteract all that chaos and intensity.
Quiet luxury is a subtle, understated aesthetic that relies on a few high-quality staples to bring the entire closet together. As with most minimalist styles, it favors monochrome and neutral shades, and relies on classic silhouettes rather than statement-making pieces. However, By Malene Birger creative director Maja Dixdotter emphasizes that quiet luxury is really all about quality and a concise synchronicity.
"I believe that feeling of luxury comes from some kind of harmony. A harmony in the colour palette, in different textures and shapes," Dixdotter told Elle. "A home or an outfit feels luxurious when it breathes a clear style."
Not to be confused with stealth wealth, which aims to hide a person's wealth by wearing minimalist clothing, quiet luxury uses neutral tones, tailored pieces, and timeless style to emulate a wealthy or upper-class look. The most common mistake made when trying to pull off quiet luxury is forgetting the pillars of the trend: subtlety, quality, and longevity.
Fast fashion over classic pieces
At its core, quiet luxury embodies elegance and sophistication. The goal is to look like you just walked out of a first-class lounge, not a fashion show. While runway fashion can be incredibly expensive, quiet luxury steers clear of the latest ground-breaking designs in favor of old faithful silhouettes. With that in mind, a classic mistake is spending money on fast fashion rather than well-made, traditional-looking pieces that will never go out of style.
Fast fashion goes to all lengths to keep up with the latest trends and pump them out en masse before they're no longer en vogue. Other characteristics of fast fashion include clothing made with cheap, low-quality materials, and low prices. Designs tend to copy what's hot on the runways rather than favoring classic outlines, and this combined with the poor materials means you won't get your quality, long-lasting pieces by going down this route.
Additionally, Eco Stylist explains that fast fashion is associated with the use of harmful chemicals during production, significant carbon footprints, and worker exploitation, among other issues. Whether you're trying to build a quiet luxury wardrobe or not, fast fashion is clearly not the move.
Maximalist shades
Wearing bright colors is a huge faux pas when your goal is quiet luxury, but at least this mistake is easy to avoid. Though vibrant, saturated shades are seemingly everywhere you look and definitely in fashion, they won't help you to achieve subtlety.
As quiet luxury is created with quality items, a full wardrobe can be expensive to acquire when you're starting from scratch. But luckily, many people nail the look by mixing and matching a small number of pieces, rather than relying on an excess of low-quality items. This is another reason why you should avoid color. As you'll be re-wearing a lot of your clothes, you want to steer clear of easily recognizable garments, or those that don't go with much in your wardrobe.
Fashion journalist Harriet Quick revealed to Marie Claire that "beiges and greys" should be on the top of your shopping list. Also opt for navy, white, black, cream, and minimalist brown tones. Say goodbye to your Bottega green and Barbiecore hot pink (at least while you're about quiet luxury).
Identifiable patterns, accents, and logos
The confusion surrounding quiet luxury is often related to the idea of what makes a person seem wealthy. Of course, there are many looks and items that are definitely expensive and a sign of wealth, but they have no place in this trend because they don't meet the important pillar of subtlety, and sometimes, longevity. Quiet luxury relies on minimalism and refinement rather than in-your-face features. As such, you should avoid famous patterns, accents, and logos that are detectible.
Wearing a belt with Valentino's signature Vlogo, for instance, will give people the idea that your outfit was expensive, but only because you're basically shouting to the world, "I have a Valentino belt." Quiet luxury pieces should avoid those identifiable details so people get the feeling your outfit is expensive without having it rubbed in their face. Rather, they'll get the idea from the fact that it has a clean silhouette and is made from quality fabrics. With this trend, let the elegance of your clothing speak for you.
Along with avoiding logos and designer names on your outfits and accessories, also try to avoid patterns and other details that have become synonymous with certain brands. A good example is Gucci's signature green and red stripe. Sometimes you'll be able to get away with identifiable details if they're subtle. A Burberry trenchcoat is a good quiet luxury piece to invest in because on many designs, the brand's signature plaid is only visible on the coat's lining.
Statement jewelry (or statement anything)
Think of quiet luxury this way: Your entire sophisticated, elegant, and refined outfit is the statement. The trend is understated and minimal, but it's not boring. By wearing high-quality clean and classic pieces that work together in harmony, you're telling the world that you have style without needing to prove it. Therefore, you won't need statement accessories or clothing items.
When it comes to jewelry, in particular, anything chunky and oversized is not your friend. Instead, go for pieces that are dainty and refined, and blend in with the rest of your outfit. Forbes explains that a little bling is okay as long as you're still reaching for quality in the way if items like hand-cut diamonds and modest tennis bracelets. If you're trying to decide whether it's worth investing in jewelry to complement your quiet luxury wardrobe, ask yourself if you could wear it everyday. If a ring or necklace is so over-the-top or eye-catching that it looks like it belongs with a ballgown only, then it probably isn't right for this trend — no matter how expensive it is.
Forgetting about tailoring
A quiet luxury wardrobe can be costly to build, although it will truly last forever. However, the costs extend beyond just buying high-quality pieces; in many cases, you'll also need to get them tailored. A great pair of suit pants looks a lot less sophisticated and refined when dragging on the floor. Similarly, a smart blazer loses its touch when the sleeves drop down below your wrists.
Tailoring is the perfect way to finish off the quiet luxury wardrobe because it will (very subtly) cement the fact that you spent money on your 'fit. If you're lucky, you might not have to alter many pieces to fit you perfectly. But if you're on the shorter side, you'll probably become very well-acquainted with your tailor.
There is also the option to learn how to tailor your own clothes, which may indeed be worth the investment in the long run. MasterClass explains that it's simply a matter of learning your personal measurements by heart and mastering the art of sewing. Be sure to practice on old clothes before bringing your scissors near any of your new quiet luxury items.