Revisiting Style Analysis

From time to time I get engrossed in studying personal style in more depth so I have a bit of a different post for you today revisiting style analysis and musing on style words, Kibbe and essences. Sit down with a cuppa if you find this kind of thing interesting šŸ™‚

What 3 Words?

So when I talk about my style words, Iā€™m referencing the Alison Bornstein 3-word method where you analyse what aspects of your style are important to you, find 3 words that resonate with you and try to apply them to your clothing choices when putting outfits together.

Before I found out about the 3-word method, Iā€™d already chosen some words to describe my style (in this post) they were ‘upscale casual with a twist’. They’re ok but they can be interpreted a bit vaguely. There was room for improvement and I needed something more personal and specific that reflected how I wanted to feel and look in a garment or outfit. 

I tried to figure out my words once before, but had another go after watching a video by Jenn of Style Refinement and I understood the assignment more. I thought long and hard about my words and these are what I came up with:

1: According to the method the first word is your realistic or practical word that describes the ā€˜regularsā€™ that we wear again and again, something that is non-negotiable. My word is COMFORTABLE.  I will not wear anything that I feel the slightest bit uncomfortable in. 

2: The next word is our aspirational word. Itā€™s a word that describes our ideal style or what inspires us. My word is CONTRASTED (more on this later because I was undecided between contrasting, detailed or interesting)

3: The final word is an emotional word associated with how we want to feel in our style. I found this difficult to nail down but ultimately came up with UNCLUTTERED. I dislike too much visual clutter in my surroundings and the same goes for clothes. I love interesting and unusual details in clothes but I will never be a maximalist and could never dress in multiple layers with lots of jewellery, belts, lots of ruffles, lots of prints etc. I mean, I love to watch the YouTube videos of B Jones Style, but if I were to dress like her I would feel irritable having to constantly fuss with keeping all of the many elements of an outfit where they are meant to be. I need to be able to move freely and not worry about a top coming untucked a belt twisting, or a long necklace dropping in my food. 

I feel like my 3 words provide clarity with my clothes and can be applied to any outfit whether Iā€™m dressing to go for a walk in the countryside, to put the bins out or going out to dinner.

I just want to talk about my second word though, and why I came up with ā€˜contrastedā€™ or contrast. I nearly chose ā€˜detailedā€™ or ā€˜interestingā€™ and those still apply to some extent, but Iā€™ve realised that Iā€™m always happiest when I have some contrast in an outfit.

I prefer some colour or tonal contrast because it works with the level of contrast between my hair and skin colour. I like to wear contrast in volume, so if I have a loose top I need a closer-fitting bottom and vice versa. I also like differences in fabric textures and pairing prints with plains or having some contrast within a print (no sludgy prints for me). Contrastingā€™ feels right šŸ™‚

Revisiting David Kibbe

In 1987 David Kibbe wrote about an image identity system based on categorising body types relating to the skeletal system, flesh and facial features. He used the ideas of Yin (curved and soft) and Yang (angular and structured). There are lots of online resources out there if you fancy researching it yourself, though one of my favourites is Gabrielle Arruda. Anyway, a couple of years or so ago, I tried the Kibbe questionnaire and found it quite difficult to narrow down my body type, though I know I have a lot of Classic in my style I thought back then that I had some dramatic in there so I came up with Dramatic Classic, but it never felt quite right. I didnā€™t investigate any further and forgot all about it.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago when I saw an Instagram post by Kath Borup who Iā€™ve followed for a long time. She was talking about Kibbe and I commented that I never quite nailed down my type except for the fact I knew I had some classic in me (you can be a blend of more than one type). Without hesitation, she said that I may have some Gamnine thereā€¦

ā€¦Well, you know what happened next donā€™t you Yesā€¦I got lost down many an internet rabbit hole for hours investigating further. 

Iā€™ve come to realise that I donā€™t have the vertical lines and height associated with the Classic Dramatic. I used to be a little over 5ā€™5ā€ but itā€™s dawned on me over this last year and particularly since my Osteoporosis diagnosis that Iā€™m not as tall as I was. Hubby measured me today and Iā€™m just over 5ā€™3 Ā½ā€, so Iā€™ve unfortunately lost height šŸ™.Ā 

That means I have Gamine of some sort in my blend due to my height (or lack of).

Soft Gamines have softness and curves and I donā€™t have defined curves as such. I have only a slight waist definition with not much of a bottom. I also have square shoulders with some bonyness on them at the end of my collarbones. My nose is quite prominent and angled too (from the side). So could I have some Flamboyant Gamine in my blend?

I landed on this video by Aly Art on YouTube. As she described the type of Autumn clothes recommended for Flamboyant Gamines, I found myself agreeing with a lot of the ideas. She mentioned contrasts in volume, details, textures, fabrics with some weight and sometimes asymmetry in garmentsā€¦all things that I love, especially the fact that FGā€™s donā€™t look right in excessive volume or ruffles and flounces and any drape needs to be a bit small, controlled or angularā€¦I couldnā€™t agree more!

Style Essences

But waitā€¦thereā€™s more! (maybe you should get another hot beverage at this point šŸ˜€). Physically and style-wise I do feel that a Classic/Flamboyant Gamine blend fits with my style, but Iā€™m aware that my character/vibe doesnā€™t fit entirely with the Flamboyant Gamine part of the blend. Thatā€™s where essences come in. 

In this blog post by Gabrielle Arruda she talks about Essences by David Kitchener she explains the essences and says ā€Style essences are essentially the harmonious reflection of your inner and outer self and your style lines.Ā  They seek to bridge the gap between your body and your clothing lines.Ā  They take into consideration your ā€œvibeā€ and how you come across to the world but are not boiled down to a personality trait.ā€

I used the chart at the bottom of the post by Gabrielle mentioned above. I went through it twice to be sure, collected my results and came up with the following blend: Iā€™m 38% Classic, 28% Gamine, 12% Ingenue and the remainder is a combination of small amounts of two or 3 other essences (not enough to make a difference). Seeing that Ingenue is in the mix makes sense because Ingenue relates to youthful qualities in the way people perceive me. Iā€™ve often had comments from people who think Iā€™m younger than I am and I know I have a young outlook on life. Ingenues can sometimes be described as having a shy and graceful quality too which fits with my personality, so mixed with the Classic and Gamine, it all makes sense to me.

I’m sure I have more outfits that I could haveĀ used as examples but these two seem to fit the Classic/Flamboyant blend. The shorter length tops, the substantial fabrics, the fun pants and sandals, the way the slit of the skirt breaks the plainness, and the fact that both the midaxi skirt and pants stop above my ankles.

I found this deep dive into style fun and enlightening and it made me realise why I felt off in some outfits and totally at ease in others. I think it will make planning new sewing projects and creating outfits easier. 

Speaking of planning, 

Fashion Croquis

To make it easier to sketch out my ideas and be sure that they work for my proportions I created my personal fashion croquis. I followed the advice on this video by Jenny of Cornwall Pocket Farm and took photos that I turned into line drawings.

She suggests that you take photos of yourself in well-fitting underwear. You run the photos through an app to create line drawings. You can then trace off the main outline and modify it with fit lines. Itā€™s easy to lay the croquis under some semi-transparent paper and sketch outfit ideas onto it. The desktop app I used is called Free Picture Stencil Maker and it was easy to use. 

Here are my finished Croquis:

Well, I guess I have no excuse now, not to create an amazing and stylish wardrobe eh? Heheā€¦sometimes itā€™s interesting to do a bit of self-analysis though donā€™t you think? 

Have you tried any image identity analysis systems? If not are you tempted? Even if you arenā€™t 100% sure that your analysis is correct, I think what matters is that it resonates with you and feels authentic. Let me know in the comments what you think.

See you soon!

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14 Comments

  1. Vicki Maiorano
    October 2, 2024 / 10:42 am

    Like you I have done various things over the years. Since COVID and retirement I have lost interest really (sad I know). I just wear the same old jeans with flat shoes and a top or jumper of sorts. Sometimes I think I need to lift my game and then other times I think I just canā€™t be bothered, that goes for sewing too. Don;t tell anyone but I have been going out without makeup on!! think your post will inspire me to have fun with it. Btw, have you heard of osteostrong? Not sure if you have it in the UK, but it is a special form of exercise on machines that work on our skeleton and is supposed to strengthen bones. I have osteoporosis too particularly in my spine. I run, do resistance training and do Osteostrong, plus eat 90 grams or more a day of animal protein, so far so good – I havenā€™t broken any bones or shrunkā€¦.yet

    • Diane
      Author
      October 2, 2024 / 12:06 pm

      I can relate to the jeans and jumper thing. I go through periods where I have to give myself a good talking to and start wearing the darn clothes even if they are just casual, they can still be interesting casual šŸ™‚
      Re-osteostrong. I have heard of it but here in the UK there’s literally only one place and it’s at the other end of the country to me. I’m eating lots of protein and doing some sort of weightlifting with dumbbells as much as I’m able (considering I had back fractures). Running would be out of the question for me as the impact could cause me more fractures. You’re lucky you caught your Osteoporosis in time. I actually feel quite bitter about the fact that it probably went on totally unchecked in my body for about a decade šŸ™ Looking back I was let down by doctors that never picked up on things, like the time I fractured a rib with very little effort…the doctor refused to believe it was fractured and it was a physio that picked up on it. I was unaware of osteooporosis and the dangers too. I’d love to go back and tell 45 year old me to stick to my guns and ask questions.

      • Vicki Maiorano
        October 3, 2024 / 6:02 am

        I do feel for you as you are so young. Hopefully the work you are putting in does the trick ā¤ļø. I meant to tell you but got sidetracked, that you always look great and I think your assessment sums up your style very well.

        • Diane
          Author
          October 3, 2024 / 12:05 pm

          Ohhh, thanks Vicki you’ve really cheered me up xxx

  2. Marjorie Brigham
    October 2, 2024 / 10:40 pm

    This was a very interesting post! I’ve never thought about a personal style as such. Rather I have a range of colors that I think are flattering and preferences for styles of tops, pants, skirts and dresses ( I rarely wear the latter). I definitely lean toward an Uncluttered look. In addition to mostly casual clothes I like some fun things like jumpsuits. I sew many of my clothes except pants. Your blog inspires me because your sewing skills are so professional.

    Marjorie

    • Diane
      Author
      October 3, 2024 / 12:09 pm

      Oh bless you, Marjorie, that’s lovely of you to say. And you seem to have a really good idea about what suits you. Your mention of fun items really resonates with me as I’d like to inject a bit fun or playfulness into my some of outfits, so bravo for doing that already.

  3. Barbara Briant
    October 3, 2024 / 4:56 am

    Great post Diane, I feel a rabbit hole in my near future.

    Barbara

    • Diane
      Author
      October 3, 2024 / 12:06 pm

      Thank you Barbara. Haha, you may get lost on the internet for a long time, there is so much information on style and Kibbe. Good luck!

  4. Heather in Colorado
    October 4, 2024 / 10:09 pm

    Another interesting post! I’ve not been successful in defining my 3 words or distilling my style. I like classic-like lines, color and clothes with some fun in them, I realize. My last 3 sewn garments fit that – a black and cream canvas graphic flower print funnel collar swing coat with turquoise lining (but not very warm), a bright blue and white asymmetric cotton dress with added red flag piping to accentuate the asymmetric lines, a Closet Core Sophie swimsuit brown sides with a beautiful white purple pink abstract floral center (I took the online class). Maybe I’ll have to work on this – but now back to making a blue hoodie!šŸ˜‚

    • Diane
      Author
      October 5, 2024 / 2:02 pm

      Thank you Heather! Well it’s taken years of trial and error to find some words that resonate with me that can be applied to any outfit whether its casual or dressy. Of course I don’t always hit the mark with my makes as it’s a work in progress. Ooh, I have to say that your recent makes sound absolutely fabulous! And enjoy sewing your hoodie x

  5. Megan
    October 7, 2024 / 5:55 am

    I got into this in a big way after realising how long it takes to make my own clothes and therefore not wanting to waste time on something I wouldnā€™t like.
    Have you checked out Truth is Beauty? Similar to Kibbe but she had her own system, a lot of blog posts and a tool you can buy to analyse yourself. It was useful.
    I also strongly recommend Stasia Savusak. Her work is kind of the opposite of a typing system but it has been the most meaningful influence in my life over the past few years. I did her 5 week style school and it was worth every penny. Life-changing. She has a great Ted Talk which is how I found her.
    Nice to see you posting here again šŸ™‚
    All the best!

    • Diane
      Author
      October 7, 2024 / 8:23 pm

      Thanks for the lovely comment Megan. It’s good to be posting more again even if it is a bit sporadic (lots of house renovations happening).

      I have heard of Truth is Beauty, but it’s been a good long while since I looked at the website, so I should revisit it, thanks for the reminder. On the other hand I’ve never heard of Stasia Savusak, but my interest is piqued šŸ™‚ I’m definitely going to watch her TED talk to see what it’s all about. Cheers Megan x

  6. Joan
    October 18, 2024 / 5:53 pm

    Well, I have never felt motivated to work on my 3 words (not that it wouldnā€™t be helpful!), but even though you did not use the word before, I always have felt you had some ā€˜gamineā€™ going on!

    You consistently choose styles that have some playfulness and/or interesting feature, or You ADD that feature of your own design process to a simpler garment.

    I really empathize with your frustration over your osteoporosis diagnosis, Diane. Can you walk with a weighted vest? That is something that my exercise teacher (Prof/PhD in Biology turned gym owner) said to add to my exercise. I chose an 8 # vest but there are lots of options on Amazon, and reasonably priced.

    Also, growing up in a household of brothers, and parents involved in their careers, it was apparent to me that only I could speak up for myself ā€” no one else was that concerned about little ā€˜ol me. I fear coming off as strident, but one doesnā€™t need to be strident, just PERSISTENT.

    If I hadnā€™t spoken up for myself when I did 13 years ago, my cancer would have become at least stage 2. And if I had spoken up immediately, I would not have had to do radiation at all. My dumb Ob/Gyn tried to convince me to not do a simple scrape test after extra ultrasound views showed issues ā€” I was in his office for just that test, and he tried to convince me I was too young to have endometrial cancer because I was 10+ years younger than the AVERAGE for the disease. An MD that doesnā€™t know understand basic math and statistics!

    So please, Diane and everyone, be your own best advocate.

    • Diane
      Author
      October 19, 2024 / 9:54 am

      Thanks for the lovely thoughtful comment Joan.
      Hehe, it’s funny how others see our style differently than we do ourselves, because Gamine had never been on my radar before and yet you’ve noticed it many a time. Of course now I see it, I can’t unsee it…hehe.
      You know, I’m going to look for a weighted vest, thanks for the reminder. I’m sure if I start light and work up gradually, that it’s doable. You’re so right though, about having to speak up for ourselves when in the midst of dealing with people the medical field. Thank goodness you spoke out and were able to get the treatment you needed.

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