Mixin' It Up: Pattern Matching 101

The ultimate guide to clashing without crashing.

Matching (or clashing, as the case may be) patterns is one of the more…controversial looks within fashion. For those of us who aren’t clomping down runways or posing for magazine editorials, it can be downright intimidating, but, when it’s done right, it’s so striking and just plain cool that it’s hard to not envy those that do it so effortlessly.

Of course, as a champion of personal style that is truly personal, I always hesitate to give any hard and fast rules regarding getting dressed. However, it helps to have a foundation of knowledge about what generally works, to serve as a starting point for figuring out what works for you. And so, as you read this, remember, this isn’t meant to be an exhaustive list of every possible pattern combination, but, rather, a guide to effective experimentation.

There are six main ways to approach mixing patterns and, within those, there’s the easy, more “beginner” level; the intermediate; and, the more abstract “advanced” level. I’m going to walk you through them all. I even made some cute little graphics to help!