Have you ever walked into a clothes store and passed through the women’s section on the way to the men’s? Female fashion has embraced graphic patterns for decades while, in many cases, men have been slow to follow.
Thanks to exciting retailers like Rockstar Original, men are finally beginning to embrace colorful patterns and graphic prints with enthusiasm. In this brave new era for everyday menswear, why should you welcome graphic prints into your wardrobe?
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Add a little color
Monochrome outfits are simple, classic, and can look fantastic, but they can also run a risk of tumbling into drab. Patterns and prints are a great way to blend in just enough color to liven up any look.
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Get a little attention
Our eyes are naturally drawn to patterns, images, and colors, so why not attract people’s gaze in your direction? Adding graphic print is a sure way to make your outfit more interesting and increase the attention coming your way.
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Give directions
Getting people to notice you is only half the battle, directing them to your best features is the real aim. People’s gaze will naturally be drawn to wherever you place your patterns, which puts you in complete control.
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Optical illusions
The human mind is an incredible thing, but you would be surprised how easily it can be tricked with a pattern. Make yourself appear taller, shorter, curvier, or more slender with smart use of stripes and other prints.
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Free your personality
The beauty of adding graphic prints or patterns to your outfits is that they come in almost limitless variations. Use print to show your fun side, be a little flirty, or perhaps cause a stir – the choice is yours.
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Dictate the mood
Different prints and patterns bring to mind different occasions, seasons, and atmospheres, and can even evoke memories. This gives you an opportunity to take control and set the tone of any situation, and perhaps even inspire conversation.
These are just a few of the benefits that incorporating graphic print into your outfits can bring. With great power, however, comes great responsibility, and if you’re going to do it, it’s important to do it right.
With that in mind, here are our six top tips for styling graphic prints into amazing outfits:
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After-work drinks
If you’re worried about drifting too far from the safe and traditional blazer and jeans look, don’t panic. Switching your plain shirt for graphic print is an easy way to add a little fun to this classic combo.
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Athletic style
In 2022, athleisure is bigger than ever, and it’s absolutely ripe for pepping up with a little pattern or print. Focus your print on one piece and keep everything else simple to achieve the best look without giving everyone headaches.
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Keeping it formal
Adding a little graphic print to a formal outfit might require a touch more subtlety, but it’s far from impossible. Keep the suit plain and dark, the shirt crisp and white, and choose complimentary colors for a discreetly patterned tie.
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On vacation
Keep stylish when you relax by combining a light suit with a graphic print shirt that showcases your fun side. Add sneakers and a hat for an extra level of casual style as you keep it classy.
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Switch it around
The classic casual combination is to mix plain trousers or shorts with a more eye-catching shirt or tee. Turn things on their head with a pair of graphic print jeans alongside a plain shirt in a complementary color.
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Out for the night
It is a fine line between dressing for a sophisticated night out and looking as though you’ve come straight from work. A low-key graphic print shirt with nicely fitted plain trousers keeps things stylish but relaxed for a city night out.
It’s natural to be nervous about adding patterns and prints to our wardrobe after so many years of simplicity. With these tips, taking those first steps into the latest menswear styles need not be so daunting.
So, which graphic print style are you going to embrace first?