After 20+ Years as a Stylist, These Are Clothes I’ll Never Wear
After twenty years as a stylist, I’ve tried a lot of clothes. Some wonderful. Some questionable. A few that probably should have stayed on the rack. And after all that time dressing women for a living, I’ve gotten pretty clear on what I’ll never put on my own body again. Pull up a chair, because I’m spilling it.
The older I get, the more honest I get with myself about what actually works for my life versus what just looked good in the dressing room or I saw on some influencer. I’ve gotten much more ruthless about editing, and I’ve stopped fighting the battles that never end in my favor. Below is my personal short list. And if something on this list is your favorite thing to wear, ignore me completely.
Why I Don’t Wear Capri Pants
This is an opinion I’ve held for a long time, and I’ve only gotten more confident about it.
Capri pants are tricky because of where they hit. Most end right at the widest point of the calf, and when a pant ends at the widest point of anything, it makes the whole look read wider. That break also interrupts the line of the leg and tends to make the silhouette appear shorter. It’s a double hit, and even women with great proportions can feel like something’s off without being able to pinpoint why.
Pants, crops, and skirts are most flattering when they end where the leg narrows, not where it’s at its fullest. That’s why a cropped pant that ends just above the ankle works so much better. The leg is narrower there, the line is cleaner, and the whole silhouette looks longer. Full-length works for the same reason.
And since pedal pushers are having a moment right now, it’s worth talking about why they can still be tricky even though they do end where the leg narrows. The cut point sits just below the knee, which, by contrast, makes the thigh look wider and heavier. You’re drawing a horizontal line that the eye reads as the bottom of the thigh, and everything above it looks bigger. Shoe choice also becomes critical with pedal pushers. A flat shoe loses all the length from knee to ankle and can make the leg look short and stumpy. A heel or pointed toe helps, but that limits how versatile they actually are.
The ankle really is the sweet spot. You keep almost all of the leg’s length visible while still getting that clean, modern crop.
Why I Don’t Wear Leggings (Even to Pilates)
Leggings are everywhere, and I get it. They’re comfortable, easy, and when you’re running out the door, the appeal is obvious. But they’ve never really been my thing, and honestly, the older I get, the less I want to wear them anywhere people can see me.
Here’s the truth: leggings don’t leave much to the imagination, and I’ve reached a point in my life where I’m just not that interested in sharing quite so much with the general public. I feel better in pieces that offer a little more coverage and structure. Even at Pilates, I wear joggers. Just as easy to move in, a little more ease through the leg, and I’m not thinking about what everything looks like when I bend over.
Plenty of women feel amazing in leggings and wear them beautifully. This one is purely personal. I’ve just made my peace with the fact that they’re not for me.
Why I Wear Natural Fibers
I’ve bought plenty of cheap acrylic and polyester pieces over the years. Usually, because the style was right and I wasn’t paying close enough attention to the label. And almost every time, I regretted it. Those fabrics trap heat, cling in odd places, and lose their shape fast.
Now I default to natural fibers whenever I can. Cotton, linen, wool, cashmere. They breathe better and hang more naturally on the body. I’ll still wear blends when they make sense, but I’ve stopped talking myself into cheap fabric just because the cut is cute. It almost never works out.
Getting older has made getting dressed simpler, honestly. I’ve stopped trying to make things work that just don’t feel like me and started paying closer attention to fit, fabric, and whether something supports the actual life I’m living, not the one I thought I’d be living when I bought it.
Here’s what I want you to take from this. Every item on this list fails for me for the same reason: it works against my body instead of with it. Capris cut the leg at its widest. Leggings leave nothing to the imagination, and frankly, some things are better left to the imagination. Cheap fabric fights your shape all day. Clothes that are too tight pull attention exactly where you don’t want it.
Once you understand why something isn’t working, you stop blaming your body and start questioning the garment. That shift changes everything about how you shop. You walk into a store differently. You stop talking yourself into things that were never going to work and start leaving with pieces that actually do.
And if you take nothing else from this, take this: your clothes should work for you, not the other way around. You’ve got better things to think about than whether something shifted when you sat down.
My list is the result of a lot of observation and a fair amount of trial and error. Yours might look completely different, and that’s wonderful. I encourage you to wear what looks best on you and makes you feel confident.
I’d love to know what’s on your never-wear list.
Thank you for your wise guidance. You are right 99% of the time. I have never regretted your choices I have bought. I learned from you to recognize my mistakes and purged them. I would rather have things I wear all the time that are quality rather than quantity.
I agree about the leggings! NOT for me! I do wear them to bed, though, as my pj bottoms.
I agree with you—
Hardly anyone looks good in leggings or pedal pushers. So many that wear them don’t know how bad they look or know how much of them is showing unpleasantly.
I sub at public schools and am shocked by the clothes worn by the female teachers no matter their sizes! I watch them walk into the building with their leggings that “hug, hug” and the fabric looks soooo shiny/clingy. Guess they never look at themselves in the mirror? Sloppy tee shirts, tank tops, sweat shirts…what??? What ever happened to a dress code, even a simple one that means females look so much nicer.
Sadly, people never decided to get dressed properly after Covid. It was questionable before but much worse after.
100% agree with your “nope, no thanks” items! I’d also add: anything that’s “in” style but not “my” style. For ME right now that’s barrel jeans. I laughed at myself every time I tried on a pair and was giving P.T. Barnum clown chic.
I’ve been looking for the pedal pusher length pants with a straight leg–not slim and not wide. I’m having no luck. Any suggestions?
I haven’t seen them but I can keep an eye out for you.
Oh boy, my list is long… I’ll sound cranky, but I’m really not, just opinionated, ha! No puffed sleeves, black or gray close to my face, whiskering on jeans, ragged hems, cuffed jeans, slub and most gauze fabrics, ruffles, shiny satin blouses and/or skirts, blue denim on blue denim, cold shoulder tops, jeans and dress pants that drag on the ground, appliqué, flare jeans (look great, but extra fabric flapping around my ankles = annoying), rhinestones, ditsy prints, tunics, pointy shoes (on me or anyone – painful vibes) and Burberry plaid – iconic, I know, but it needs to take a rest. It’s true that capris aren’t especially flattering, but on a steamy-hot day, long pants or even ankle length can look oppressive.
Capris and leggings be gone! I try to avoid any outfit where someone will say I look “cute.” Also, maternal nightgowns. Something cool and sleek makes me feel elegant and relaxed for bed. Thanks for these great articles!
I like capris! But they fit my body type, that’s why. I am a small boned petite with thin legs. The widest part of my leg is still thin…..and unlike most petites, I am short through the torso, not my legs. Narrow cuts are my most flattering.
But when it comes to capris (or pedal pusher or Bermuda shorts) I try to stay away from high contrast: such as black or dark navy against my pale skin. For me, it’s more the contrast that eliminates the vertical look, rather than where the hemline hits.
As for what I don’t/won’t wear: I seldom wear a maxi skirt/dress, and being petite most regular sized midis are maxi on me. Especially in summer, when I am sitting outdoors, the skirt hem drags on the ground. Ugh!
Enjoy your trip! Hubby does not like to fly, I will never get him halfway around the world no matter how many friends rave about their trips to Asia, Australia, etc. It took me nearly 30 years to get him to African safari (Kenya and Tanzania) and that’s as far as I’ve gotten him to fly. And BTW he now says it was the trip of a lifetime!
I want to drag us on a safari next. He’s not so keen on the idea!
I totally agree with you about capri pants and I look forward to the day leggings are off the streets and back in the gym.
I to will not wear capris or ankle. So over wide leg ankle and Capri. I have very small thighs and have a hard time finding pants to fit. 5’5″ 105 lbs and over 70. Just no hope this me.
All pants seem to have large “saddle bags” for thighs. Is there any help for me? love loose fitting, but not with huge “saddle bags”. love your site. enjoy your trip! notice a Louise Penny book! Great reads!
It sounds like you’d do better with brands that offer straight cut vs curvy. They’re slimmer through the hips.
I never wore capris or leggings because I carry more weight on the bottom and try not to highlight that area! I’m 5’6″, 146 lbs but feel challenged to balance my proportions. Now 70, I have come to dislike the way a t-shirt or most tops without collars look on my high round back, collarbone area, and neck. Spent hours and hours shopping today and it was discouraging! I decided there must be a quality control problem with the mirrors they’re putting in dressing rooms these days :)!
I agree with everything in your post. Thanks for your sensibility!
My list-> 1)wide leg jeans because I can’t abide the flapping around of heavy fabric.
2) long or midi denim skirts because same as above
3) over use if neutrals because there’s nothing neutral about me.
4) barrel leg anything because who wants to appear to have bowed legs? 5) Huge clothing because I am easily overwhelmed by excess fabric. 6) bikinis because those days are long past
I wear capris or the like because I am always warmer than others and hitting at widest part of my legs isn’t a concern for me. I wear leggings because any access fabric in a gym setting can be a hazard. Besides, I like leggings.
Hi Jennifer,
I’m trying this again. I love your blog and I’ve tried to post comments but they never show up.
Can you help. Thanks
Carolyn
I see this one! They take a while to show up because I have to moderate comments to prevent porn comments going through.
No on leggings! Never tried, never will. Agree with you reveals too much, so unsightly.
Yes on capris and Bermuda shorts. Live in AZ and I’m tall.
Hear, hear to this blog. I absolutely agree with you on all points, especially leggings. The older I get the more immodest I think they are. As for capri pants that just screams old to me… love your blogs
Agreed!
A big NO to pedal pushers or capri’s or whatever they are calling that awful length pants these days. Also a hard no to Leggings. I so agree with you.
I am with you on your nevers. (Though I will wear leggings to Pilates. BUT I will never leave the studio without a wearing something to cover my bum!) My only addition to your list is this High/low hemline that some dresses have.