How to get a signature style

Knowing which colours and shades flatter you is the first step to figuring our your personal look. As a rule of thumb, men with olive or pale complexions will look better in blues and blacks, while guys with darker skin can pull off warm reds and yellows. 

Really, though, the key is to experiment. Once you find the colours that work for you, add them into your wardrobe as much as possible (without going overboard).

Most people have some kind of borderline fashion fetish – are bomber jackets your thing? Do brogues make your pulse race? Are novelty sweats something you just can’t walk past?

Whatever it is, invest in different shades and styles and wear as often as possible. After all, style is about enjoying how you look, so trust in what you love.

The first rule of style is fit and while buying accurately off the rack is fine for most guys, men with unconventional body shapes stand to benefit massively from having their clothes professionally altered.

Being the fella whose clothes always fit perfectly is a subtle but impressive signature style to have, so find a tailor with a tape measure you trust and put him on your Christmas-card list.

While the logical aim for any shopping spree is to cover as many bases as possible with your budget, sometimes it pays to splash out on one item rather than spread your funds about.

Buying the leather jacket or designer bomber of your dreams may feel like an extravagance, but cornerstone items can be the piece you build your signature look around and wear every day. Just make sure you can still pay the bills.

‘Trends schmends’, said the king of cool, Steve McQueen. OK, he didn’t really, but he may as well have. The point is, if you’re always worrying about what’s ‘in’, you’ll always be changing your look and you’ll never develop a signature style of your own.

The odd foray into fashion is fine but try and anchor your look in established, classic items that will stand the test of time.

OK, a real quote this time from fashion author Scott Omelianuk: ‘If you’re not sure whether it looks good on you, it doesn’t.’ The more you experiment with different colours, fabrics and items, the more you’ll develop an instinctive sense of what looks good on you and what doesn’t.

Ditto for brands. The trick is to make a mental note of the successes and failures and wear what works for you. Once you know this, developing a signature style will naturally follow.