Earlier this week I have posted a plea for help to help me understand why my cropped trousers outfit did not feel fab:
http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....nts-outfit
I received a lot of great and helpful feedback and decided to experiment.
Pic 1 is from the original post.
Pic 2 is my today experiment.
I think I know the answer now but I want to hear what do you think?
catgirl replied 11 years ago
Well, my favorite is the second photo of the second batch (the half-tuck with dark belt), which is what I actually suggested, so no suprised there. Curious to see what others think.
This is like one of those "spot the differences" things - thanks for posting the examples!
Vildy replied 11 years ago
The navy shirt that works has shorter sleeves?
shiny replied 11 years ago
Well I'm no help because I think you look fab in all ...
catgirl replied 11 years ago
Okay, I meant my favorite of the turquoise shirt. The navy is my favorite of all.
Deborah replied 11 years ago
In the newer stylings Sveta I favour #4. IMO it is more streamlined and the lower contrast creates a nice line that is easy on the eye and does not shorten you:)
Kristin L replied 11 years ago
I like the navy top, but I think the pants look better with the brighter top.
DeclawedJaguar replied 11 years ago
Semi-tuck all the way! The dark belt looks better than the light one with this shirt to me, but both work. A very helpful visual!
Suz replied 11 years ago
Ha! We are all at sixes and sevens!
I think semi-tuck really helps, but I prefer the lighter belt with the turquoise shirt. That may just be the match-matchy in me; if you were wearing darker footwear I would like the darker belt.
And wow, this is showing me how seriously I need a light coloured belt.
DeniseP replied 11 years ago
Sveta, your hairstyle in photo 2 is amazing. I can't even spot the fashion details for your cute 'do'!
I'm set on that I prefer the semituck. As far as the belts, I think I'm going against my first suggestion and I will vote for the black one. More fun that way!
Transcona Shannon replied 11 years ago
Oooohhh this is interesting Sveta - the semi tuck makes a HUGE difference and yet I have no idea why!
Maria replied 11 years ago
I like the tucked in look for you. The half tuck seems to sit on the hips and accentuates it. I like #4 of the the second pic. because it looks stream-lined. I really love the snakeskin bag and the navy blouse in the first picture too!
Lisa replied 11 years ago
In the new photo I like #3, semi tuck with nude belt. The belt blends to continue the vertical line and the semi tuck contrasts nicely with the crisp style of both the shirt and trouser. Nice job!
Lyrebirdgully replied 11 years ago
Great post Sveta -- I love to think about why certain stylings work and others don't. Your pics are really educational!
Re your turquoise outfit:
The TUCK-- it seems to me that the semi-tuck works better than the full tuck, because it creates an inverted V-shape at your hips, rather than that horizontal line that was mentioned earlier by others. Horizontals across the hips are very tricky when your top doesn't have a strongly-shaped shoulder effect to counterbalance the hip emphasis. The V shape of the semituck mirrors the v shape of your open neckline, which I find very appealing. The semitucking also lengthens the shirt, which I feel gives more balance to your top half, relative to your lower half.
NB. the v is more pronounced in the black belt example: with the cream belt semituck example, the V is less pointy, forming more of an arch -- which I find less satisfying, probably because the flow-on effect from the v-neckline is lost.
The BELT: while I am Team Matchymatchy for life -- so I naturally adore the cream belt with the fawn suede shoes -- in this example I actually prefer the black belt. Why? because it picks up and emphasises your dark hair colour (a sort of "bookend' effect). I love it when hair colour and contrast values come out to play in an overall colour scheme, as I think it gives an outfit a little extra impact. Your dark hair works naturally well with dark/light contrast in outfits (yet another reason why the navy shirt example above looks so very "you"). In the examples with the cream belt, I would be curious to try picking up your hair colour some other way, e.g. with a bag with dark trim, or a small dark scarf tied onto the red bag, or a dark bangle or ring.
I'm so glad you reposted the updated outfit. I thought I would like the light belt with the semi tuck, but I actually like the dark black with the semi tuck (#2). Please post and let us know which one you picked.
catgirl replied 11 years ago
LBG articulated my feelings so precisely! I am a semi tuck addict and I would have gone with the dark belt, but I couldn't figure out why....
Sveta replied 11 years ago
Ha-ha, different opinions here for sure but definitely all new looks are not as clear failures as the first one :-)
Here was my thinking: I prefer low contrast belt with full tuck (#4) and higher contrast belt with a semi-tuck (#2) but I don't mind the semi-tuck with a low contrast belt as well (#3).
However in general with cropped trousers (as well as with BF jeans I prefer semi-tuck on me. If I was slender on the bottom like Angie I would like a full tuck but with my fuller bottom it is just too many of horizontal cuts are going on: belt line and hem line, they just cut me off and make my bottom part look bigger. It is not too bad from the front but much worse from the back (at least for my discerning eyes). Here is where semi-tuck comes to the resque:
- no horisontal line at the belt but a gentle "V" pointing up - to my slimmest part;
- belt contrast does not play a big role here becauseit is not a full circle but just a little piece.
- shorter top in the front plays better with cropped trouser length but longer lengthin the back gives me a better coverage and more balance.
I do a full tuck as well but with skirts and with full length trousers when there is no an additional cut line at the hem.
As for the way I like to semi-tuck: I like to pretend that the shirt just got caught over my belt buckle or I just expose a belt buckle so it does not create a bulk under the top. This is the only way of the semi-tuck which works for me.
Thanks for playing with me today! Your comments were so interesting and definitely gave me some food for thought. Hmm. which other dressing challenge game should I play next? :-)
AJ replied 11 years ago
The semi-tuck and cropped pants are all new to me. I think all your variations look good!
Great post! I'm learning a lot from this already!
jayne replied 11 years ago
great tip about the tuck right above the buckle. I think I have the same shape as you, although I am much shorter, so I need to learn this from the master
Suz replied 11 years ago
Thanks for explaining your thinking, Sveta. This is really helpful! I think you are right about the proportional effects. And it means each of us needs to play with it for our own body's proportions.