Oversized: The Trend and How To Style It
“Oversized, baggy, and loose fitted clothing are flying in as the next big fashion trend.”
If there is one thing about fashion, a trend one year can be out of style the next. A few months ago, I was skimming through the Men’s section of Women’s Wear Daily and read that “skinny jeans are so out” and oversized, baggy, and loose fitted clothing are flying in as the next big fashion trend. Hearing this had me thinking two things… 1. What the hell am I going to do with all my tight-fitting pants and 2. How is a skinny guy like me going to pull off this baggy style? I am always trying to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to what is up and coming in fashion, but in this instance, I found myself a bit lost.
THE STYLE
The style is quite simple, just clothes that are big… but it is a lot more complex than that. Oversized clothing can create some knockout looks if done correctly. Blurring the lines of the human physical shape, emphasizing body parts like shoulders and hips, and giving increased flexibility with textures and fabrics are all components brought about from the oversized clothing movement. While an older form of dressing inspired by fashion trends in the 80’s and 90’s, the style has become modernized by design houses like Raf Simons, Balenciaga, and Gucci.
Although this trend is loved in the high fashion world and by street style stars, oversized styling in everyday wear requires a bit of finessing. The looks need to be oversized and balanced, yet tailored and strong. One of the biggest challenges I have faced when trying this style out for myself is that the pieces have to work proportionately to your body shape and size. After a bit of trial and error, I have come up with some great tips on how you can pull off this Autumn/Winter trend, and not look like you are wearing borrowed clothing.
BUY OVERSIZED, NOT BIG. The pieces you buy should not eat you alive. Oversized is all about reframing the silhouette of your body in a unique way. Looking like a sack of potatoes is not the vibe you want to be going for when incorporating this style into your everyday wardrobe.
TRY IT ON. This seems pretty self-explanatory. Once when I was shopping for an oversized shirt, I saw a sign that said “oversized: stay true to your typical size.” This was a terrible suggestion. Oversized clothing fits very differently than normal sizes. It is important that if you are a typical “medium” you should try on both a medium and small to see how the fit works on your body. If shopping online, try and stick to “free return” retailers just in case the fits on you look completely different than the model did at 1AM when you were scrolling. Another really helpful tip is to look at the model’s dimensions and clothing size when shopping online.
BALANCE IS KEY. Like everything in life, “balance is key.” It can be tempting to want to jump head first into calf-length coats, tall beanies, dad sneakers, and an oversized sweater, but this style works best when you incorporate it one piece at time. In this look I am wearing an oversized sweater by Stockholm Syndrome but paired it with some fitted joggers from Zanerobe. The camel coat gives me a bit of shape when needed but when taken off, the tucked in sweater still stands fine on its own.
LAYER LAYER LAYER. A really fun aspect of fashion right now is layering, and oversized clothing makes layering really easy. Try throwing on a fitted shirt tucked into a straight legged denim, all under a large trench. When layering, try and go easy on colors in the oversized pieces. Neutrals like grey, white, tan, black and beige are great for the less fitted pieces and give you the flexibility to play with different texture and fabrics.
DON’T GET DISCOURAGED. The most important part of diving into unchartered styles is to keep your head up and keep trying. Remember that it takes time to find the brands, retailers, and specific pieces that work for you and if you are finding it difficult, don’t give up. I find that I get the most compliments on looks where I have incorporated oversized pieces, but when I first tried to incorporate this trend none of the pieces I found gave me any luck. Feeling like the style wasn’t for me, I stopped trying to find new clothing items and stayed with my more classic style and expected looks. Now, having fully embraced this throwback style and found brands and retailers which fit my body, I wish I had stuck out the trial-and-error period longer. I for sure would have had a longer compliment list.
