Using Accessories to Anchor Attention Around the Face
Casually mentioning that dcrmom could use some fun earrings to anchor attention around her face when wearing the red top, I think I stumbled onto something. As highlighting the face is the most important task of any ensemble, there are probably lots of other ways to use accessories that can be added to my neckline advice to do the job.
Let’s just consider this brainstorming. I’ll go first:
- Pendant necklace: one that hits at the proper balance point. Bonus if the pendant shape echoes the shape and/or color of the eyes.
- Headband. In scale with the wearer’s facial features, color could be used to create a frame (by matching the top) or to focus attention on the eyes.
- When selecting earrings, consider where the shape of the earring draws the eye. While I’m fond of more dangly earrings, but they may not tend to draw attention directly to my face as much as my daughter’s little tiny studs that mimic her “sparkles” (what I call freckles).
Okay, now it’s up to you embellishment people:Â What are your best accessorizing tips?
I can’t wait to hear more on this, you had some very good tips, Rebecca. My dh prefers me to not wear earrings, so I haven’t in years and years. I do love necklaces, but feel kind of outdated in my collection.
Hope you have lots of comments!
I like the headband idea. I’m still experimenting with these, though. They seem to look good on everyone *else*
I’m a big fan of all of the above. One of my favorite accessories for drawing attention to my face recently has been hats - big, dressy ones. I have one in white, one in blue, and one in black. I got them all for reasonable prices at Stein Mart and I have had sooooo much fun with them. I’ve worn them to weddings, my sister’s graduation, a garden tour, even just out and about. I get so much positive attention when I wear them that it’s insane. It seems that everyone loves hats, but yet hardly anyone wears them unless it’s just a baseball cap. Big hats are so useful, too, for keeping the sun out of your eyes on off your hair (and covering up sweaty hair). Long live hats!
And BTW, many thanks for the blogroll link
Hats, yes, and also scarves on or in the hair. I’ve been wearing them a lot lately–can’t seem to do much with my hair in this humidity.
I visited an Orthodox church once and wore a scarf over my head and discovered I loved the look. So now I wear it for fun.
There’s some other point in there to be made about necklines and necklaces and I am not sure exactly how this works (future fashion lab?) but the choker that works inside my button-down shirt’s open neckline doesn’t work with my scoop T. I had a wardrobe dilemma over this very thing at 5 am. I have the most gorgeous black linen trousers with black scoop T (all from Target) and a band collar denim jacket in a fitted style with some stacked laser cut black sandals (that sort of slightly inverse-ish wedge heel in stacked wood, to be specific) and I had a total accessory melt-down when my bright seaglass and silver choker did NOT work! I had to find a necklace to - that’s it! - match my chin’s shape inside that neckline. I just arrived at the solution - the pointy chin with choker works when the neckline is pointed, not when it’s rounded. I think I had the jacket open and if I’d buttoned it, the necklace might have been fine.
Ooh - thanks for the space to ramble that out - I won’t delete just in case my post helps someone else…
I have been waiting for headbands to come back in style for years, and now that they are I’m having trouble getting myself to actually wear them. And I love the look of scarves as headbands, too!
Mary - can you see yourself in a hat?
Dana - that makes perfect sense. I was recently thinking about wearing collar-bone length beads inside a button-front shirt (I haven’t done it for a long time, I was thinking I should). For me, I think it’s the same issue, but with a different shape — my chin/jaw is more rounded square.
What about pretty scarves around the neck?
~Jody
My sister does that well. My suspicion is that there is a connection between wearing scarves at the neck well and timeless classic personality, but I suppose that remains to be proven.
Speaking of pretty scarves, Wendy has the middle one in this picture. Isn’t that gorgeous?
Ah, Dana. I am so familiar with the accessory meltdown! Subtle variations in neckline change what works and what doesn’t, sometimes in the most surprising ways. I have a black crew neck t-shirt that I’ve completely given up on. I just wear earrings with it.
I have two silk cords and three rubber cords of varying lengths. That solves a few issues for me with pendants.
Rebecca, I tend to think of dangly earrings as bringing more attention to the face (and if they’re really long, attention to the neck & even shoulders). But it certainly depends on the size and colour of studs. With earrings you get into ear issues, too. I don’t think I look good in a stud earring that is larger than 5mm. I have small ears and no discernable earlobes. My larger pearl earrings are drops, and I think they work just fine. I could never wear them as studs, though.
D’oh! And thanks very much for the compliment on my scarf.
I went to the mall today (pushing the double stroller and carrying one on my back) and waltzed on into the glasses store. Glasses bring attention to the face, don’t they? How do you choose which glasses look best on you , Rebecca?
I suspect the headband issue is one of width. I look awful in them when they’re an inch or more wide but I look great when they’re about 1/4″ wide. They don’t show much color so you don’t get a lot of oomph for your effort but they do show a bit. So I would say try the opposite width of headband from whichever one doesn’t work for you.
I also wish, wish, wish I could wear scarves over my head babushka style. You’d think with a peasant background I could. But no. It’s just scary bad.
I had gotten rid of all my hats and just bought a new one. My eyes are gray/green/blue, according to my mood I’m told. I have to be careful of stronger blues and greens washing out the color. But I just bought a wide brim straw in a mild aqua and it really makes my eyes bluer. What I liked about it, too, was that it had a rolled up brim edge all around but in a loose and not forced way.
I am a piercing virgin, so I can’t use earrings to accessorize. Mainly on my head/neck I accessorizet with my hair. I love tying a long scarf around my head as a headband. I usually choose something nice and bright, since I’m fairly conservative in my clothing, I like to add the punch with a smaller piece. I also love headbands, but if they are too funky I don’t care for them.
Bonnie, you’re right. The right glasses would bring attention especially to the eyes. Selecting glasses is a complex topic, but here’s a few semi off-the-cuff thoughts:
~ it’s good to have a general idea what you want before you get there, because their job is to present you with options. Small or big (they’re coming back! it’s only a matter of time), plastic or metal, or even frameless.
~ I like to emphasize my brown eyes by using a dark color frame, especially because my hair and skin are so light.
More later.
I luv Wendy’s scarf! Now that’s the kind of beautiful scarf I’m talkin’ about!
Today I put on a pretty, light pink scarf tied as a headband in my hair and let the ends dangle about my neck. I thought it looked pretty and feminine, but my teenaged sons said, “Ya look like a hippy, Mom.” Well…….maybe a little, but I liked it. I didn’t wear it out. Maybe next time.
I also have some silk cords and leather cords that I slide pendants on. It’s fun to be able to change them out.
~Jody
Sometimes I think when I no longer have the grow your own peanut gallery around to comment on my every outfit I will feel somehow more free to go out in fun stuff that they aren’t used to. But I don’t really want to give myself a reason to look forward to that day, so I better start thickening up my skin now, right?
BTW, bonnie, more later = my honey’s home, I had better give him the greeting he deserves. A couple of more things about how I chose my glasses: I like a slightly more delicate frame, since I have light bone structure and smallish features. The temples (is that what they are called?) are metallic, so they blend in with my hair, but they wouldn’t have to be.
I think it’s good to approximate some of the line movement in the face, if possible. For example, curved eyebrows might look good with a more curved frame; mine have a bit of a diagonal movement on the sides, and so on.
Do these thoughts give you any ideas? Can’t wait to see what you get.
Personally, I have decided I am going to live with these as long as I can, hopefully until bigger ones come back in style. It would be nice to not have the frame visible.
When I don’t feel like wearing a necklace, I often wear a brooch in the centre of my shoulder, near my collar. I guess this has the added bonus of highlighting my face, but I just do it because it looks cute
Hi Gauri!
Wearing a brooch is such a staple accessory I’m sitting here asking myself, “why didn’t I think to have that on my original list?” Great point!
Glasses are a big thing with me, you have to have the right pair that suit your face shape. A good fitter at the optometrist should be able to help you. Pick one that has interesting glasses themselves.
If you don’t have peirced ears, don’t forget the clip on options! Before I got mine peirced I used these all the time.
The other more permanent option would be a hair colour, or streaks as well.
Wow, this is an interesting topic. I didn’t catch it when it originally posted, for some reason. I have to admit, I hardly give a second thought to my accessories. I had no idea there was so much to think about, lol. I have diamond stud earrings that I wear 99.9% of the time. Recently I’ve begun to buy some dangly earrings for fun evenings out, though. I have one rally nice 16″ sterling necklace by John Hardy that I wear anytime I dress up and it fits in the neck of what I’m wearing. I’m realizing from this post that it probably doesn’t go with everything the way I thought it did.
Rebecca, I’d love to see more posts on accessorizing with earrings and necklaces!
[…] the current edition of the fabulous! festival, including my post on using Accessories to Anchor Attention Around Your Face, is up at iCiNG. Thanks, Gala […]
[…] Using Accessories to Anchor Attention Around the Face A great fashion tip: the purpose of jewelry is to highlight your most expressive features: your face and your hands. Here Rebecca shares how you can draw attention to your face with a well-placed accessory. […]
[…] Using Accessories to Anchor Attention Around the Face A great fashion tip: the purpose of jewelry is to highlight your most expressive features: your face and your hands. Here Rebecca shares how you can draw attention to your face with a well-placed accessory. […]
[…] Using Accessories to Anchor Attention Around the Face A great fashion tip: the purpose of jewelry is to highlight your most expressive features: your face and your hands. Here Rebecca shares how you can draw attention to your face with a well-placed accessory. […]