The Art of Mixing Patterns

Settling into Winter Dressing

It's mid-January, the holidays have passed, and it's around time for us to settle into winter. For those of us in the colder temperatures, that means another few months of frostiness. Either by now or in the days to come, the novelty of breaking out your winter clothes has worn off, and we're yearning for a respite from the bracing cold, whether that be a one-off warm day or a long weekend in the Caribbean—just to remind yourself that you can feel warm again.

In these times, I typically like—or just simply try—to lean into these cold temperatures. Because of the nature of the season and the number of clothes required to remain warm, more clothes are needed, which got me thinking about a topic that could certainly be applied to all seasons, but for me, it's directly applicable to winter—the art of mixing patterns.

For the last couple of years, my most worn jacket during the winter is a sports coat from Sid Mashburn. It's a fantastic jacket with an excellent fit, but it has more of a stronger pattern than most of my other pieces of tailoring, which has made me get creative with the types of things I pair it with.

To this, I'm reminded of a great quote from Alan Flusser's seminal book, Dressing The Man; Alan says, "The first step towards pattern-mixing prowess is learning how to mate two-like patterned garments, such as a striped tie with a striped dress shirt, or a checked necktie with a plaid suit. When combining two patterns of the same design, the size of each should be as different from the other as possible. Otherwise, the similarity will produce an optical illusion of movement or vibration." Essentially, if I've got a loud pattern, such as the aforementioned sport coat, it needs to be subtle if I were to wear another pattern.

Mixing stripes is the most common illustration of this quandary. Whether your suit jacket has a Glen Plaid pattern, and you're pairing it with a shirt or a tie—let's not even consider both at the same time—just make sure that the two stripes in question aren't of similar size. I'm a big proponent of buying clothes that mix and match and go with everything; I don't have the interest—or the budget—to buy a specific tie for a certain shirt or suit, so generally speaking, most things go with everything. Sure, there will always be a percentage where this is not true, but if you keep this principle in mind when putting a new item into your wardrobe, you'll always be safe.

In terms of numbers, I generally keep the pattern mixing to two in any given outfit. Three is bordering risqué territory, and you must be an expert—and have a good reason—for wanting to hit this sartorial home run by swinging for the fences. But with two patterns, you should be on safe ground. It's a rule that's applicable even for the non-tailored garment side. Layering sweaters is another avenue I like to play around with during winter.

The most important thing, however, is to have fun with it. Try some things out, and don't be afraid to mess up—it is only clothes, after all.