“I don’t feel comfortable mixing patterns.”

“I don’t know how to pair a printed tichel with a printed outfit.”

"I can only wear a solid tichel with a printed outfit or vice versa.”

 

If I can only tell you how many times I’ve heard these and similar statements throughout the years. So, why do so many feel uncomfortable with mixing patterns in their outfit? It obviously could be a combination of many reasons and disclaimer #1: I am not a professional fashion editor in any sort of way, but I have found ways to mix and match prints that work for the most part 😂. Any statements in this piece are totally reflection of my own thoughts and experiences.

Disclaimer #2: You do not have to follow any of these! You do you and be happy! Everyone’s sense of style is so personal and this piece is not meant to take that away from you at all.

Without any further ado, here are some recommendations that will help you feel more comfortable with mixing patterns in your outfit.

#1 The most important: your pieces (mitpachat and shirt/dress) should have at least two colors in common. For example, if your dress is comprised of pink, black, white, and gray your head covering should have at least two of these colors in common.

#2 The two colors in common *should* be almost exactly the same. I use the word *should* very lightly. It doesn’t have to be exactly the same, but it will definitely help the finished look if they are almost exactly the same.

#3 Try to get comfortable with mixing print sizes and different patterns. In general, do one larger print with one smaller print when you want to mix patterns. For instance, if you have a shirt with narrow stripes, try pairing it with a big floral printed tichel. You may choose to wear a floral dress with a more geometric designed headcovering.

I’m not going to pretend like this all came to me overnight, it didn’t. But what really helps is pairing things together to see how they look to you. You may even feel uncomfortable wearing mixed prints together the first few times, even so, I can say that some of my favorite outfits were born out of these experiments.

What do you think of these “guidelines”? Doable?

Share your thoughts! If you experiment with your outfits, please do tag me on social media @TheLittleTichelLady so I can see 😊