Traits of highly stylish people

What, precisely, makes someone stylish? It has to be more than a list of habits — habits that are not transferable without the spark that inspired them in the first place.

Having spent my life around stylish people, I have to say there are certain traits they possess that make a fabulous lifestyle that much easier, indicating why style is not exactly teachable. Here are the characteristics they possess;

They are interested in fashion

You would think this is obvious. I mean, come on! But interest in fashion does not mean it consumes, is necessarily one’s career or that one goes into debt for shoes and bags.

Interest here is a curiosity about grooming, trends, colour, cut, style and feel. Stylish people have a healthy curiosity about, and a perspective that, fashion is a platform.

It is something that can be used: to extend oneself, play, express, obfuscate, titillate, engage, nudge, kick, provoke, soothe. Style is more than just what they are wearing. Why wear it is a far more fascinating question.  

They leverage their upbringing

Stylish people rarely come across the realisation that they love looking good at the ripe age of, well, full-blown adulthood.

It will have come across in a variety of ways, small and large; the pencil case they picked for school, how they wore their hair, down to the school shoes they were drawn to as children.

Stylish people are more likely to have a wealth of coming of age stories tied to fashion ranging from outbursts with parents, hanging out with similar friends, run-ins with school authorities to “Back to School” ads as their first, legitimate encounter with a must-haves.

They gravitate towards other stylish people

Birds of a feather really do flock together and none with plumage as striking as stylish people. They create for each other safe spaces to share tips, ideas, networks and experiences — feeling more at ease with others of their kind.

They will not hesitate to discuss the merits of red versus print; yes, that includes men, because they know they are in the company of kindred spirits. Other stylish people will appreciate the investment.  

They blend personality and self-reflection

Stylish people undergo a period of awkwardness much earlier than those otherwise challenged. This lends itself to self-examination, curiosity and the ability to fail fast.

By the time a stylish person is formed, they will have got most of their angst out of the way. When we meet them, the foundations will have been laid and a strong sense of self will be evident.

To use a cliché, what you are now seeing is the icing on the cake. 

They consider style to be part of their routine

Stylish people don’t have handmaidens. They have consistency and routine. Cue cultivated habits like planning what to wear in advance, checking for tears, rips and stains, cared for and versatile clothes.

Style is not predicated on a sort of permanent buzz that comes from shopping. It’s built on a daily, or regular, practice of choice. 

They have a well-considered closet

Stylish people have a discerning eye that over time leads to a healthy wardrobe. This does not mean they have 600 items in their walk-in closets. It means everything inside it has earned its place.

Again, cue habits like purges done on the regular, a developed look that amounts to a unique sense of style, clothes worn often to enough outfits that translate into something nice should they need to make a quick dash. They keep what makes them feel good, not just look good.    

They have personal definitions of style

This is the crux of it. Stylish people are not cookie cutter and there are as many definitions of style as there are people. What they have in common though, is a sense of self.

This comes out in their style choices. Sometimes, people who make best-dressed or most stylish lists are not exactly conventional or even conventional-looking. Some can seem odd at best.

Still, truly stylish people have a je ne sais quoi. Think of their look as a mime. Notice, as well, no two people are ever stylish in exactly the same way. One dress can be worn in countless ways by different women.

Style, then, is about quirks, oddities, curiosities and ticks. It can rise out of little things that make up a person.

Even when one works with a stylist, by the time they are considered stylish it is because the stylist has successfully teased them out, enhancing those very qualities we now celebrate.

Ultimately, we each have something about us that resonates with style, whether technological, steeped in décor, selection of socks, most complimented body part or how we do our nails.

It is that thing, that thing that you might overlook because you think it is so little, that counts for much and sets you apart. Once you find it, tap into it. That is where your uniqueness lies.