Accessories are a key part of any outfit. Often accessories also have a practical use but they also look gorgeous and change something as simple as a pair of black trousers and a black top in to a really eye catching outfit. It is often said that it is not what you wear, it is how you wear it and this is where accessories really come in. Someone who accessorises well will always look really stylish.
Jewellery
Jewellery is often the finishing touch to any outfit. I find that, if I have an outfit that doesn’t quite look right, adding some jewellery finished it off perfectly. The type of jewellery that I choose to wear depends on the look that I am trying to create. For the evening, I almost always wear something quite sparkly and glitzy and in the day time I prefer large chunky beaded necklaces and bangles. For work I would choose something smaller and less noticeable like a pendant necklace. It is great to have a selection of costume jewellery so that it is easy to choose something to match any outfit that you are wearing. It is also useful to have a variety of lengths of necklaces to go with any neckline. As a minimum, I like to have a long and short necklace for evening wear and a few long and short necklaces for daytime wear perhaps some in black or colours that go with black and some in more neutral colours or made from wood to go with brown and cream outfits.
Handbag
A hand bag is both a practical and visual accessory to any outfit and sometimes there has to be a trade off between the two when deciding which hand bag to carry. For casual outfits a big handbag looks great and is perfect for carry just about everything other than the kitchen sink around with you. For evening or smarter occasions a much smaller clutch bag looks great but you will have to dramatically reduce what you need to take with you. A hand bag is a key accessory that really adds to an outfit so if possible it is good to have a few different bags for different occasions and different outfits. I like to have a large leather tote or shopper style bag for everyday use, a smarter black handbag for wearing to work with a suit and a small clutch for evenings.
Shoes
Although shoes are an essential part of clothing that most people would never leave the house without (except perhaps to go into the garden on a hot summer day), I also like to think of them as an important accessory to an outfit. A pair of chosen should be chosen to ensure that they compliment the outfit that you are wearing as well as being comfy and easy to walk in of course. Shoes do need to match the colour of an outfit or handbag and actually it is usually better if they do not as this often looks too much. But careful attention should be paid to whether the style of shoes fit the outfit and add something to the look that you are trying to create. For example a casual outfit with smart shoes will look strange as will a pair of winter boots with a summery skirt. Most people will need a pair of winter boots, summer shoes or sandals and a pair or evening shoes as a minimum but many people have a lot more shoes to go with different outfits in their wardrobe. For some people their shoes are one of the key features of their outfit.
