STOP following these “fashion rules”

I can't wear this because I'm too short. This doesn't look good on me. I'm too skinny. You should never wear black and navy together. Stop following these fashion rules. The internet is filled with over-prescribed style advice, watered-down fashion tips, and outdated rules. And having been creating fashion videos for nearly 8 years, I'm also partially guilty for giving out over-generalized tips that don't necessarily make sense for everybody. But I believe in being a lifelong learner. And my fashion knowledge has grown, evolved, and become a little more nuanced. And I think some of the most common fashion tips and rules are actually holding you back from improving your style. And I don't want that for you. I want you to love your wardrobe and for your clothing to add to your life, make you more confident, assertive, and joyful. So I'd like to tackle some common fashion advice that I think need to be dispelled.

Number one, dress for your body type. The general advice is that if you're short, you should wear monochrome outfits, short jackets, and definitely avoid long coats and anything oversized. And if you're tall, you should break up your outfit with different blocks of colors, a belt, and avoid vertical stripes. This advice is not exactly false. Following it will indeed make you look a little taller or shorter from a distance or maybe in a picture with no other reference point. But the harsh reality is if you're 5'7", you're going to stay 5'7" regardless of what you wear. And when you're standing next to someone, the length of your coat is not going to make you look any taller. So the only thing that you're actually influencing by using every little tip and trick in the book is maybe someone else's perception of your height when looking at you from afar or in a picture with no one else in it. So where does that leave us? Well, if you're on the shorter side, are you simply never going to wear a long coat and stick to single colored outfits for your whole life? And is a tall guy bound to an existence devoid of striped shirts? I don't know about you, but I think that's a little excessive just to hopefully make other people perceive you to be an inch more or less from a distance. So, here's a different way that I would encourage you to think about this. Instead of focusing on other people's perception so much, how about wear whatever you think looks cool? Excuse the language, but I needed to emphasize this point. I truly think how much you like your style is the best barometer for whether you should wear something. It's kind of common sense when you think about it, but I think many of us fall into this trap of dressing a little too much for other people's approval and perception, and we need to focus on what fashion is supposed to be about. I'm a short guy, and I love rocking an oversized T, some wide-leg trousers, and a big overcoat. Does it make me look any taller? No, but do I think it looks cool, and do I feel great wearing it? Absolutely, and I think that's what fashion and personal style is all about. So, if you see an outfit, a style, a silhouette, and you think that looks sick, try it, wear it, and just pay attention to the proportions. If, let's say, in the inspiration photo you're looking at, the guy is 6'4, jacked, with a V-shaped torso, and your body is not shaped that way, obviously, if you try buying those exact pieces, it might look gigantic on you. But, if you simply take inspiration from the overall silhouette, and then find pieces with the right proportions for your body, you will absolutely be able to nail that look and rock a similar silhouette.

Number two, dress for your age. This is another common style advice that is overly prescribed, in my opinion. I've seen countless style guides talking about what you should wear as a teenager versus in your 20s, 30s, 40s, and so on. Now, I'm not saying you should dress in baggy jeans and graphic tees in your 40s, or rock a three-piece suit at 15 years old. There's a time and place for everything, but I just wish there was a little more nuance added to the discussion. Menswear nowadays is so vast and filled with options. And it's just not as rigid as it once was in our parents and grandparents' time. And there was a lot of beauty and elegance in the more homogeneous styles and dress codes of the 20th century. And I think that was beautiful, but given how broad-ranging fashion has become today, I just think it would be a shame not to take advantage of that and allow yourself to express more through your style, and have fun with it. Let's say if you're in your 40s, but maybe you love streetwear culture, I think you can absolutely incorporate that within your style while still looking put-together and mature. I think even graphic tees can be pulled off in a tasteful way as an older man. Or if you're in your early 20s, but love classic tailoring, who's to say you can't rock a sharp suit every day. I think authenticity is what really makes somebody's style interesting and cool. So, instead of focusing on how you should dress according to your age, I would focus more on asking yourself, what does your life demand from you? How do you live on a day-to-day basis? What are your hobbies, interests? What do you gravitate to aesthetically? Dressing authentically in clothes that you acquired thoughtfully and styled with intention is a way better guideline than age, in my humble opinion.

Number three, color combinations. Everyone loves color combination guides. If you've read a few style articles in your life, you've probably come across color theory at some point. Maybe you read about how contrasting colors on the color wheel look good together or the concept of pairing analogous colors together. And this color theory is great to know, and it can serve as a solid foundation to have a better understanding of which colors tend to look good with which colors. But the truth is, many of these rules can be broken as the honorable Mr. Wisdom has proven time and time again. And yes, I know he doesn't count. He can stop a whole anything. But it just goes to show you, rules can be broken and color combination guides don't always have to be followed to the T. A popular one is never wear navy and black together. And I couldn't disagree more. Even though I don't really wear navy myself, I think those two colors go beautifully together and can make for very nuanced, interesting outfits.

Number four, the smart casual dress code. Ha, the infamous Dress codes used to be like this, extremely strict, clear guidelines, no room for misinterpretation. And most people would follow them. But times have changed and the smart casual dress code was invented and that's when all hell broke loose, kind of. In a world where the suit is no longer expected to be the default attire for men in most circumstances, what does smart casual mean exactly? It can be pretty confusing. I mean, when you think about it, the term itself is a bit of an oxymoron. Most people would rightly interpret it as pairing a traditionally smarter piece like a blazer with a traditionally casual piece like a t-shirt or trainers. And that would be pretty easily navigable if a blazer and a t-shirt were the only options of smart and casual attire to combine. But nowadays, there is an infinite amount of possible pieces that you could pair together that would fit the smart and casual boxes. Smart trousers with a tank top and blazer, a t-shirt, cardigan, and pleated trousers, jeans and a blazer, a shirt and tie with a leather jacket, a crew neck knits, trousers, and loafers. I could go on and on because the options truly are endless, which means the smart casual dress code is one with very blurred lines. I can't tell you the number of events I've been to where there was a smart casual dress code, but you'll take one look at the room and it looks like there was no dress code mentioned at all. But there are also times when what smart casual means is simply wear a blazer. I've noticed that more in certain restaurants, for example. So my advice is, if you see a smart casual dress code on an invite, use context and your own discernment to assess. Is this the kind of place where you will most likely be expected to have a blazer or suit jacket on? If so, wear that. And if not, loosen up and feel free to wear whatever you want as long as there's some element of smart and casual combined in your outfit, preferably leaning towards the smarter side.

Number five, the only rule that really matters. At the end of the day, I think many {quote} fashion rules can be useful to learn at the start, but most of them can be broken when you've become more knowledgeable about fashion and comfortable within your personal style. And if you really want a single rule, tip, or guideline to remember, let it be this. True style is an authentic expression of strong personal identity built by a well-rounded life, not adherence to external dictates. That's it. Tim Dessaint, 2026, write it down. Seriously though, I briefly touched on that earlier and I truly think style should be shaped by how you actually live your life. For example, fishermen wore heavy wool knits to protect them from the elements. Cowboys wore denim and boots because they rode horses for long hours. Same thing with pilots, sailors, etc., etc. All those people had one thing in common. Their style was practical. They didn't wear these clothes because the clothes were cool. They made the clothes look cool because they made sense for their lifestyle. Nowadays, I think we far too often make the mistake of cosplaying our style just a little bit too much. And that's how you end up with really cool pieces in your wardrobe that you never wear because they either don't make sense for your life or you chase the fleeting trend instead of staying authentic to your own taste. I've made that mistake one too many times. So, I would encourage you to let your style be shaped by how you actually live your life, by your hobbies, interests, career, lifestyle, etc. When buying a new piece, look at it from a practical lens first. Ask yourself, does this item make sense for your life? Does it integrate well into your existing wardrobe? And is it an authentic expression of your taste and lifestyle? And that pretty much sums up my thoughts around certain fashion rules. I don't think all these rules are inherently bad. I think they're useful to learn and understand where they come from. But, I do also think they should be taken with a heavy grain of salt. Personal style is such an intricate and nuanced thing, and it's meant to be personal as the name implies. So, I think it's important to not let yourself be boxed in by certain rules. And instead of trying to rigidly follow these rules, it's far more interesting to learn them and then break them intentionally and tastefully. The people with the best style do exactly that. They understand the rules and choose when to ignore them. So, maybe experiment a little more, have some fun, and most importantly, build a wardrobe that actually fits your life. That's where great style comes from. This will be the last video filmed from this apartment, by the way, as I'm going to be moving very soon. Well, tomorrow, actually. So, by the time you watch this, I will already have moved and will likely be busy furnishing the new place. I'll still be in London for now, but just moving from east to west. So, that'll be a nice little change. But, anyways, I digress. This video has probably been going on for quite long at this point, so let's wrap it up. I hope you enjoyed this one, guys. I wish you all a beautiful day and I will see you very soon.