How to Blend Risque Fashion and Elegance: 3 Easy Tips

Risk 1: Show a little bit more skin

This doesn't mean dressing in a way that makes you feel uncomfortable.

There are ways to show a little bit of skin and still feel modest and have an outfit full of class. We often overlook how big an impact raising a cuff or unbuttoning an extra button can make. 

To show a little bit more skin and not feel super déclassé, balance out any extra skin you're showing with an oversized and relaxed off-the-body silhouette. 

If I'm showing more skin, I will often do this with an oversized button-up or baggier pants.

If I'm showing my midriff, I'll do it with a voluminous pair of pants and a tighter shirt on top so that there's a nice juxtaposition.

If you like a tighter silhouette and want to show a bit of skin, make sure you've got really good coverage.

So if you have a lower neckline with a tighter fitted top, ensure the top is long-sleeved with no midriff showing. You want one show of skin as the focal point balanced with modesty everywhere else.

Another way that you can show skin in a fun and playful manner is by using your lingerie for the daytime. 

You could also go for an off-the-shoulder sweater, where we see a little bit of the bra strap that fits seamlessly with the rest of your outfit. 

My final tip for showing some skin is to play around with hemlines and slits. You could try wearing a skirt backward or try adding a slit into a skirt or a dress.

I'm not talking about something super thigh-high. I'm just talking about something that flashes a little bit of skin when you walk or cross your legs. 

Risk 2: Use unexpected color combinations or mix prints

Mixing prints can be fun. To make it less intimidating, make sure that there is one common denominator color between your two prints.

Typically, I like to use a neutral for this because it's the most subtle. The other thing you can do is to make sure that the scale of your prints is different.

I wouldn't pair two prints of a similar scale together as this can look too busy to the eye. 

When it comes to the bold colors in our closet, more often than not, we either wear them only one way or only wear them with one neutral that is usually black.

Try using color in an unexpected way. A couple of ways you can do this is by pairing it with a non-black neutral.

In the winter, pair your fun and interesting colors with more subtle neutrals like navy, charcoal gray, and brown.

And then, in the summer, try pairing them with navy, light gray, tan, and white. 

Other unexpected color combinations are analogous colors. This can be orange and red or pink in red or blue and green.

When we think of pairing our colors together, we often think of doing complementary colors such as blue and orange.

But, if you try pairing colors that are close together on the color wheel, it still comes off as really thoughtful and considered.

To make this work and not be too busy, ensure that everything else in the look is neutral. 

If you are afraid of color, try having one colorful accent in your outfit. This could be a purse, a pair of shoes, or a colorful scarf.

Risk 3: Mix two completely different styles together 

A fun thing to do is to take two different styles and pair them together to create a really interesting outfit.

The easiest way to do this without coming across as looking totally style confused is to try the two by two formula - have two pieces from one style and two pieces from another.

For example, if you like to pair polished pieces with casual pieces, make sure your outfit is two casual pieces and two more polished ones. 

Risque fashion

There we have my three style risks that anyone can take. I hope you’ve found them useful and will try them for yourself!

Next, check out my post on How to Shop Your Closet for New Outfits This Spring.