Trendy or stylish: which are you?

Fashion and style are completely different concepts, and without knowing it, most people gravitate towards one or the other. People who are into fashion are fashionable or trendy; people who are into style are stylish.

You can be fashionable, or you can be stylish, but you can’t be both.

So which are you: trendy or stylish?

Fashionable

To be fashionable or trendy means:

• you wear clothing that’s currently fashionable
• you buy clothes to keep you up-to-date
• you stop wearing them when the trend has passed
• you will wear something that doesn’t suit you or your lifestyle if the trend is compelling enough

Being fashionable tells the world that you’re outwardly focused and engaged with what’s happening around you. On the flip side, being too trendy makes it look like you have no identity of your own.

Stylish

To be stylish means:

• you wear clothing that suits your figure, colouring, personality, lifestyle and environment
• you only ever buy clothes because you genuinely need them
• you stop wearing them when they’re worn out (or no longer suit you)
• you will wear something that’s completely out of style if it suits you well enough

Being stylish says that you know who you are and are happy to be that person. On the flip side, being too stylish can makes you seem inwardly focused and out-of-touch with the world around you.

Which are you?

Are you fashionable / trendy? Are you stylish? Somewhere in the middle?

My answer: I’m somewhere in the middle, but more stylish than fashionable. I skip any trend that doesn’t suit me, but I also stop wearing clothes I love while they’re hopelessly out of fashion. I occasionally shop for things to freshen up my wardrobe, but mostly I only buy things I really do need. And I never, ever buy anything that will be ‘out’ in under a season — my budget doesn’t stretch that far!