anything goes with emma chamberlain - the art of accessorizing

Episode Date: April 20, 2025

[video available on spotify] today we’re discussing one of my favorite art forms: the art of subtle, yet impactful, accessorizing - specifically within the context of fashion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today we'll be discussing one of my favorite art forms and that would be the art of subtle yet impactful accessorizing specifically within the context of fashion clothing self-expression I Love all types of accessorizing. I love accessorizing the home accessorizing the car Accessorizing the computer desktop like the list goes on but if I were to have that, we'd be here for six to seven hours. And I don't think either of us have time for that. So today we're just talking about accessorizing in fashion, in self-expression. I love accessorizing just as much as I love clothing. And I, in my brain, look at the

two things as sort of separate. They obviously come together to make a complete outfit, right? But in my head, they're two separate art forms in a way. And some of you might disagree with me about that. Some of you might see that as sort of the same thing. But I don't know, to me, it's a different art form. Like getting dressed with actual garments, pants, skirts, dresses, jackets, whatever, actual technical clothing items that are the base of the outfit, putting those together in a way that makes sense is its

own art form to me. It's the art form of sort of taking a silhouette of a pant or a skirt and balancing it with a silhouette in a color or whatever of the top and paying attention to the textiles and what looks good together and creating sort of a color palette, like a base color palette. But I feel like the most important element of putting clothing

pieces together is balancing the silhouettes together, making it look flattering together. And I think the art of accessorizing that base is its own separate sort of art form. And maybe I'm just taking all this too seriously, and maybe I sound pretentious and maybe you all hate me. But this is how I feel. I briefly pause this episode to let you know that this episode of Anything Goes is presented by Temptations Cat Treats. Your cat will come running for the perfectly irresistible Temptations Creamy Purrray and Temptations Lickable Spoon Cat Treats. The best time to feed lickable cat treats to your cat is anytime. Feed by hand for a playful moment, in a bowl for a creamy treat,

or as a topper to make mealtime fun. Visit TemptationsTreats.com to learn more. Now, let's get back to the episode. I feel like recently my mind has sort of expanded around what accessorizing is and can be. Because I feel like for a long time, when I thought of accessorizing, I was like, well, you know, I'm just wearing a bag that matches the outfit,

and I'm just wearing a pair of socks that matches the outfit, and I'm just wearing a belt that sort of matches the outfit or makes sense, I guess. Like I thought of it in very simple terms, and that is absolutely accessorizing. And sometimes that's all the accessorizing or makes sense, I guess. I thought of it in very simple terms, and that is absolutely accessorizing. Sometimes that's all the accessorizing that makes sense is sort of simple accessorizing. But more recently, I feel like my mind has expanded to what accessorizing can truly be

in fashion, like the potential for truly having fun with accessorizing, truly expressing yourself through accessorizing. And it's inspired me today to share with you a few things. Number one, some accessorizing advice. Is the advice professional? Of course not. It's me, silly. It's unprofessional. So take it with a grain of salt.

But I have learned a lot about accessorizing recently and I wanna share some of my learnings through advice. I also wanna give you some accessory inspiration that goes beyond just like a purse that matches your outfit or like a belt that matches your outfit. I want to give you some thought starters, some ideas for ways that you can accessorize that are a bit more interesting, a bit more unique to perhaps open your mind to what accessorizing

can be when you truly think outside the box and have fun with it. So without further ado, let's start with some accessorizing advice. Okay, number one, take your time to find the perfect accessories for your collection. Take your time and find ones that are strong. Okay, I'll explain what strong means in a second. To find strong accessories takes time, takes experimenting. It's better to go on an extended hunt for the perfect accessories than to just cave and buy what's at a trendy store. Because this is how you find accessories that number one, are going to be a reliable source

of a vibe. So cringe, but it's true. This is how you're going to find accessories that you'll gravitate to over and over again, that will actually make an impact on your outfit. Not just sort of be like, oh, just like a non interesting pair of glasses that you don't even really like, but you just bought because you're like, well, these are trendy and they're the best ones I found, you know, at this trendy store and like, eh, it's fine. You know, or like, oh, you know, this is just like a standard belt

and like, it's and it doesn't really add much. It just is kind of there, but it holds my pants up and it adds a bit of dimension, I guess. I think accessories are the most impactful when they're chosen really intentionally. I think for a lot of us, accessories are sort of an afterthought. And they're actually, honestly, like kind of a technical item, right? We wear sunglasses to protect our eyes. We wear belts to hold up our pants. We wear socks to protect our feet from our shoes. A lot of our accessories are actually functional.

So a lot of times they're afterthoughts and we just buy whatever makes, you know, whatever's right in front of us. But there's an opportunity for no more money, but just a little bit more time to make your accessories stronger, right? So like what I mean by strong is there are certain accessories that I personally have in my closet that every time I wear them, the outfit becomes elevated times 10. Okay? For example, I have this pair of sunglasses, black sunglasses. They're very simple, okay?

But they're wrapped in almost this leathery material. So they're like black sunglasses, but they're wrapped in this sort of leathery material. And they have white stitching on the side and the shape is kind of sporty, but like they're just super chic and super unique, but they're just a black pair of sunglasses, but they have a really cool material. They're made with a really cool material. The shape is super flattering on me, like very, very flattering, always looks good. And every time I wear them, I just look chic. Like I look very fashionable. They're just a fashionable pair of black sunglasses.

And listen, there are a bajillion pairs of black sunglasses out there. But I can't tell you how many times I've been wearing an outfit and I've put those on and it's completed the vibe and like taken it to the next level because they're a unique pair of glasses that not only are special because they're made out of a unique material and they have the stitching on the side, they're unusual, but they're also shaped so beautifully for my face and every single time I wear them, not only is it flattering, but it also sort of gives this vibe of like fashion. There's something very chic and very fashion about them. And so it makes the outfit feel more fashion because the glasses are so chic

that now the rest of my outfit reads even more chic because of those glasses. Another example would be like, you're looking for like the perfect belt, all right? There's so many different belts out there and a lot of them are very similar. Instead of just buying the first one that you see at the mall, go to like a cool vintage store instead and find one that has like, I don't know, like hand engraved, like little

metal clasps or find one that is super worn in and comfortable to wear. Find one that's in sort of a unique color maybe that like actually does match the palette of your outfit, but it's in a unique color. So now every time you add it to an outfit, you're adding another color, another dimension. Like take your time to find something that will actually add intrigue and value

and uniqueness to your outfit. Instead of just finding something that's like, well this will do and I'm not really passionate about it and a lot of other people have it or whatever. Not that it's wrong to have things that other people have. I have plenty of things that a lot of other people have. But I think when it comes to accessorizing, there are infinite accessories out there. There are so many options and there's a lot of opportunity to find things that are unique. So take your time and do that because the impact of the perfect accessory that is flattering and unique and perfectly picked out for you and your vibe and your

personal sense of style, that is so much more impactful when you wear it than something that you just sort of got because it was trendy and it was in front of you. So take your time to find the perfect accessories for your collection. This episode is brought to you by Air Canada. Ready for your next adventure? How about taking in views upon views in Athens,

browsing mouthwatering night markets in Bangkok, or dancing to carnival in the Caribbean with amazing beach breaks, city breaks, and bucket list trips to choose from? Air Canada has you covered. Start planning your trip to over 180 destinations today at aircanada.com or contact your travel agent. Air Canada, nice travels.

or contact your travel agent. Air Canada. Nice travels. She thinks her dress is why he wouldn't stop staring. She believes her lipstick is why he whistled at her. She thinks her shoes are why she was followed. It's not her dress, lipstick or shoes. Street harassment is never her fault. Learn how to safely intervene when witnessing street harassment with the Stand Up Training. My second piece of advice is to make it personalized. I already sort of touched on this, but let me really elaborate. Okay? Make it personalized.

Accessorizing is cool and makes an outfit more personalized in general, but accessorizing with hyper personal stuff is even cooler. It's taking accessorizing to the next level. Let me give you some examples. Let's say your favorite movie is Harry Potter. Let's say in the, I can't remember if Harry Potter actually like wore this or not. I don't know. I don't remember. But like, let's say

in the movie, Harry Potter wore a pair of maroon fingerless gloves. It's like a subtle little Easter egg. And you've been thinking like, oh, I kind of want to get fingerless gloves for this winter, you know, because it's kind of nice like, and also kind of a cool look. Maybe try to figure out like, Oh, Harry Potter wore maroon fingerless gloves. I'm going to get maroon fingerless gloves. Okay. That's an example of making something hyper personal. Another example would be like, let's say you wear the same belt every day. Maybe you spice it up by like painting it or putting stickers on it or add a personal touch.

Maybe you get a baseball cap. Maybe you love wearing baseball caps. Get a baseball cap custom made by a local artist or something. You can find somebody, like an artist, to custom paint or embroider a hat for you or, you know, go on online and find like a vintage baseball cap from like your favorite movie ever or like for your favorite sports team. Like make things as personalized as possible. And the reason why I like this, the reason why this is a piece of advice is because number

one, it's truly expressing yourself, which I think is something that more recently has been lost from accessorizing. I feel like accessorizing has become very trend focused. Like what are the trendy accessories? You know, oh, it's a New York Yankees hat, even though half the people wearing the New York Yankees hat haven't been to New York and haven't ever watched baseball before. You know what I'm saying? But the New York Yankees hat became a trendy accessory. Jane Birkening the bag, as we've talked about many, many, many times, where you add a bunch of charms to your bag, but you're not actually

adding charms that mean anything to you. You're just adding charms that you found online for a few bucks, right? And they're somewhat cute, but they're not personal at all. Accessorizing has become trendy, right? And so we've lost the sense of self-expression in that. Wearing a baseball cap for the town that you grew up in, for the town that you vacationed in every summer as a kid, for your favorite movie, for your favorite sports team, wearing a tote bag for your favorite bookstore, painting on your belt or on your water bottle or whatever. This is what accessorizing is. It's about

doing something that truly represents you as a person. And listen, there are times when we're going to accessorize a bit more simply, maybe a bit more generic, and it still is an accurate representation of ourselves. Like a good example would be today, as I'm recording this, I'm wearing little striped fingerless gloves because I just, for whatever reason, really love these striped fingerless gloves. They remind me of like Tim Burton movies which I grew up watching and loving.

So they are sort of somewhat personal in the sense that they remind me of something. But from a technical standpoint, it's not like, I think I got them from Brandy Melville like six years ago. And I didn't like buy them handmade from somebody that I love in my neighborhood or something like they aren't an exact replica of the gloves that were in the movie Coraline from 2008 or whatever year Coraline came out. I should know that because it's my favorite movie. But they remind me of that. They remind me of Coraline. They remind me of Tim Burton movies. And I don't

know. I just, I love them, but they're not like the most personal item in the world. I think there are probably many people who have these gloves and that's okay because they still feel personal to me in one way or another. Anyway, going back to why I think this is important because I think what makes an accessory timeless is its personalization, is the fact that it's unique to you. You know, I mean, obviously, simple accessories like a plain black leather belt with silver hardware, like that will never go out of style, ever. You know, that is a classic item.

And that's great. But like, what truly makes an accessory timeless is the fact that it's yours. It's your thing It's personal to you in one way or another Whether it's because you wear it all the time and it's your signature item or because it you know Maybe was a hand-me-down from a loved one or it was something that you know was custom-made or you know specifically selected because it represents something about you whether it's like something that you like or something that directly sort of represents your personality, whatever it may be, you know, that's what makes accessories timeless. Accessories that you'll go back to time and time again, if they mean something to you. And again, it's such a shame that this is

a lost art because I think when it comes to accessorizing across the board, fashion and otherwise, this is what makes accessories worth the purchase. This is what makes having five purses instead of 10 purses satisfying. This is what makes having two belts instead of 15 belts satisfying. And I know a lot of people are like, Emma, don't tell us like about quality over quantity. You have a lot of people are like, Emma, don't tell us about quality over quantity.

You have a lot of clothes. Even after you donated 90% of your closet, you still have a lot of clothes. Yes, I know, but I've learned. Let a girl learn. This is what I've learned. My next piece of advice, I already kind of touched on this a little bit, but I would recommend buying as many of your accessories as you can from places that sell things not on a trend cycle. Okay?

So like that would be like vintage stores, thrift stores, resale websites, right? boutiques, like small, handmade boutiques, artists who make, you know, hyper specific items online or in again, like in boutiques at flea markets. Like, when it comes to finding accessories, I think it can be obvious to us and easy to us to just go to like, the places that we know to go to that make popular accessories, whether that's a designer brand who makes designer bags and designer belts, or it's a popular trendy store that sells maybe more affordable bags and stuff. And it's trendy and we know it's on trend because they're selling it and everything that they sell is on trend. It can be tempting to go to these obvious places. And sometimes these obvious places are exactly where we need to go. I have quite a few mass produced

accessories, right? I have designer sunglasses. I have designer bags. I have even the gloves I'm wearing today, I got from Brandy Melville like six years ago, right? Like I have accessories that are from, you know, these sort of more mass produced places. And there's nothing necessarily wrong with that. And sometimes that's just what makes sense. However, I would say, try to find it elsewhere first. And this is something that if I could go back in time and rebuild my wardrobe, I would do more of, you know, now I'm at a place where I'm like, okay, I have a lot of stuff. And I would do more of. Now I'm at a place where I'm like, okay, I have a lot of stuff and I would love to go find a handmade silver and black belt, but I got one from Aritzia and it's great and I like it and I wear it a lot. It would be cool to have one that's

handmade because I wear that all the time. If I ever find one that I love that's handmade or vintage or unique or something, I'll go and I'll get that because I would prefer to have that. But like in the meantime and possibly even forever, because maybe I'll never find it feels justified to like, I already have a silver and black belt. I don't need to go buy a new one. You know what I mean? Unless one was like perfect and spoke to me and I was like, I absolutely need this.

I'm not going to go buy a new one for the sake of buying a new one, right? But if I could go back in time, I would have waited and spent time finding the perfect black and silver belt because that's a piece I wear all the time. And it would be awesome if it had personality to it, you know, if it was, if it was custom. Maybe one day I'll like somehow figure out a way to decorate it in a way that makes sense to make it more personalized. But yeah, if I could go back in time, that's something that I would focus more on is where I'm actually sourcing the stuff. And again, it doesn't mean more expensive. It doesn't mean more expensive. It just means more time. It just takes more time and a bit more hunting, if you will, which I think if you're somebody who's into fashion is Exciting like I love the hunt right like recently

The weather started to get warmer and I had to donate majority actually all of my jean shorts Because a lot of them either were too small for my liking. I like a baggier jean short they were either too tight or You know, they just weren't in a style that I wear anymore. So I donated all of my denim shorts. And I was so excited to find a new pair, not find like 30 pairs like what I used to have, which was completely excessive. But I was excited to find the perfect pair that was timeless that I'm going to wear for the next 10 years. But it took so long. It

took so long. And there were many times where I was like, these are fine, I guess. But I waited. And I eventually found the perfect pair of shorts. And I'm so happy that I did. It was fun too. Like if you look at it as fun and you look at it as a hunt, it makes it fun. Next piece of advice, think outside the box when it comes to accessorizing. A lot of us think of accessorizing and we think of the standard. We think of sunglasses, belts, purse, bag. There's so much more to accessorizing than just that. Anything that is on our body can be an accessory. That means the cup, like the insulated cup that we carry around, our laptop that we constantly carry around, our headphones that we're always wearing,

our lunch bag that we carry our lunch in, our nails, what we get on our nails. I try to think of everything as an accessory. And there are some things that I just personally don't care about being an accessory, right? For example, my Stanley cup. My Stanley cup is very standard. It's just a fucking Stanley cup. It is what it is. I haven't found a way to decorate it that inspired me. It just hasn't called to me.

I just don't care. However, my laptop I decided to paint on. My laptop is something that I'm constantly carrying around, that people constantly see me with. I mean, not, I guess, constantly, but like if I'm at the airport working on my computer, if I'm at a meeting working on my computer, if I go to a cafe to work, which doesn't happen as often anymore, but still every once in a while I'll do that. My laptop is an accessory.

It can be an accessory, which is why I painted it, which some people think is crazy. Like actually crazy and idiotic. But I had this idea. I was like, I want to paint my laptop. So I got acrylic paint and I painted the top of the laptop white. And then on the Apple logo, I painted a realistic looking apple. When I first did it, people in my life were like, you are a freak. Why would you do that? I'm obsessed with it.

I think it looks incredible. I think it looks incredible. It looks so cool. It's so personalized. Yes, I painted directly onto the laptop. I could have just painted on a case. No, I decided to paint on the laptop, which was a little bit crazy. Again, it's kind of dumb in retrospect. Actually, it's not though. My laptop has been painted for many

months. I'm not sick of it. Every time I look at it, it brings me joy. And it feels like this little accessory. I have no regrets. I have no regrets. But if you're not feeling that courageous, put a case on your laptop and paint it. Now your laptop is an accessory. Think outside of the box. Think about all the different ways that you can accessorize. It doesn't just need to be a pair of socks and a belt and a purse that match the rest of your outfit. You know what I mean? There's so much

more that it can be. I briefly pause this episode to let you know that this episode is brought to you by Skims. I remember the first time I tried on a push up bra. And you know what the first thing I thought was? Not, wow, my boobs look really good. No, I thought, wow, this is the most uncomfortable device I've ever put on my body in my life. What is this thing? Yes, it's effective. Yes, it's working, but wow, I'm uncomfortable. And I ultimately put it back and didn't buy it. And to be honest, I didn't put a push-up bra on again

until recently, when I tried on the Skims push-up bra. I was blown away. I was blown away. I was blown away. The boobs were up and I was comfortable. You're not sacrificing lift for comfort. With the Skims push-up bra, you actually get to have both. It's kind of incredible. Shop Skims Ultimate Bra Collection and more at skims.com

and at Skims LA Flagship on Sunset Boulevard. If you place an online order, be sure to let them know that we sent you. Select podcast in the survey, and then anything goes in the dropdown menu that follows. Now, back to the episode. My next piece of advice, let your accessories complete the sentence

that your outfit is trying to say, okay? It's almost like your outfit is half of a sentence. It's like the first half of the sentence and then the accessories are like the conclusion are like the ultimate point okay, so like let's say what your outfit is trying to say is I Make music. Okay, like let's say you're styling yourself in a way where you're like, I want to look like a rock star Fuck it. I make music. Okay, let's say that is what you want a way where you're like, I want to look like a rock star. Fuck it. I make music. Okay?

Let's say that is what you want your outfit to say. It sounds cringe, but that is like, that's sometimes how we style ourselves, right? Or maybe you want your outfit to say like, I watch a lot of movies. Like I'm a movie nerd. It's almost like the clothing that you put on the shirt, the pants is the first half of the sentence. So in the I make music example, it's almost like the clothes that you choose, the pants, the shirt, is the I make part. Okay? The clothing that you put on, the shapes that you choose, whether or

not the clothing is worn in or it has paint on it or it's ripped up or a lot of times if you're dressing to be like, I'm a rock star, look at me, I'm a rock star, you're wearing like maybe ripped up stuff or you're wearing leather and that sort of paints the picture like I make, I'm a creative person. The clothing is like, I'm a creative person. And then the sentence is completed, I make music when you add big fucking diva sunglasses, you know what I mean? Like badass sunglasses and like a belt, like a sick like retro like rock star belt and like a really cool vest that has like a music note

on it. No, I'm kidding. That's a little bit too on the nose. But you get what I'm saying here. Like it's almost like the conclusion is given by the accessories. And then it's the same thing with the other example, like I'm a movie nerd. If that's what your outfit is saying, right? Maybe your outfit looks very like you like to dress like Wes Anderson movies because you love movies. You dress very almost theatrical in a way or whatever. Wearing beautiful brown pants and a beautiful brown boot and wearing a beautiful brown boot and wearing like a, you know, bright

yellow blouse maybe tucked in. That could potentially paint the picture of like, I'm a movie because you look, you know, you're wearing these bright colors. You almost look like a character, right? But then I'm a movie nerd comes in when you really turn that thing into a costume and maybe you're a little nerdy. Maybe you're wearing like little nerdy glasses and you know, you're wearing like this green belt and it is making your shirt super tucked in and tight. Maybe this doesn't make sense to anyone else, but the accessories complete the sentence. They create this full, well-rounded image, sentence, message. That is what accessories are for.

They're for completing the sentence. So when it comes to figuring out like, okay, how do I accessorize this outfit? Figure out what the vibe is. What are you trying to say with the outfit? And then that can help guide what accessories to choose because then you're like, all right, I'm trying to choose the accessories that complete the sentence. This method that I'm describing to you right now might not make any fucking sense to you. You might be like, Emma, that is some of the weirdest, most abstract bullshit I've ever

heard in my life. Fair enough. Okay? But try to find value in that through figuring out a sort of formula. You know what I mean? That's the formula that makes sense to me. Sometimes I want to dress like a vampire. I want to look like a vampire's daughter. You know what I mean? I want to look like a vampire's wife. Those are two very different things. My clothes that I pick out might be like, I want to look like a vampire. It's like I'm wearing all black.

I'm maybe with some pops of maroon or whatever. Maybe I'm wearing sort of like gothic sort of silhouettes or something or like whatever. And then I want to look like a vampire's wife. Okay, maybe I'm adding like black lace, you know, tights or like I'm adding, maybe I have like long, you know, sort of gothic looking nails that are like red, you know, it's like that all adds to this vibe of like the vampire's wife. You know, like that's how I build an outfit in my head is I'm like, there's some sort of vague vision

and it's not necessarily on the nose, but it's like, it's saying something. And so basically this is the most cringe thing that I've ever explained in my life, so I need to move on. But take this with a grain of salt. Let your accessories complete the sentence that your outfit is trying to say. Do it that way you will. Let's move on.

My next piece of advice, use accessories to balance colors and tie things together. The right accessory can make two things that normally wouldn't make sense together, make sense together. And so use that to your advantage. If you're getting dressed, right? And listen, everybody builds outfits differently. Some people start with accessories or like, oh, I really want to wear this accessory today. I'm going to build an outfit around it. Some people are like, okay, I'm going to put on my base first and then accessorize from

there. You know, everybody's a little bit different. So it's kind of hard to give advice about it. But a lot of times I will start with sort of the base and I accessorize to pull things together later. I'll be like, I really like the idea of like wearing this top with this bottom, right? Like this feels interesting to me. But a lot of times two things that I want to put together don't actually look good together just by themselves, right? They make sense together,

but only when knowing that I'm about to accessorize later to make it all make sense. There are many different ways that you can use accessories to truly make the outfit feel cohesive and complete and make it make sense. Whether that's through being mindful about color palette, either balancing out colors by saying, okay, well, I'm wearing a white shirt and I'm wearing a black skirt. It'd be kind of nice to bring the black up to my eyes. So I'll wear black sunglasses. But I also feel like it needs kind of a pop of color. So maybe I'll add a pop of color with the

socks. I don't really like that. It doesn't feel balanced when I look at it. Maybe I'll add a red hat. Okay, great. That looks great. Okay. Now, when it comes to the shoes, I'm wearing black shoes. So then maybe I should wear a white sock because then it's like white, black, white, black. That feels balanced to me. And then there's the pop of red. I really like that. Okay, great. Moving on with our day. You use accessories to balance out the colors. Or perhaps you have sort of an earth tone look going. Maybe you have a beige top and mint green bottoms and brown shoes. Well, maybe you can create an outfit where it's just a bunch of different earth tones, a bunch of different, slightly different earth tones. So then maybe you add an orangey,

rusty grayish color for your socks. And then maybe you add like an orangey, rusty, you know, grayish color for your socks. And then maybe you add like a piece of jewelry that has a bunch of beautiful stones that are a bunch of different earth tones. And now your whole outfit is this beautiful collage of a bunch of different earth tones that feels cohesive. And even though you're wearing a bunch of different colors, it feels cohesive because, you know, that is the theme of the outfit. You're wearing a bunch of different earth tones. Whereas if you were to just be wearing a beige top and mint green pants and brown shoes, it's like, okay.

But now if you add another dimension with the sock and another dimension with the jewelry and maybe you add a pair of glasses that are another earth tone and then a bag that's another earth tone and it's just this sort of like beautiful palette all over the place. Now it feels intentional because you've made the choice to choose this color palette but not quite the same color twice. So many different times and now it feels like it makes sense. But also too, something that I pay close attention to when I'm accessorizing that might seem like overkill to some of you, but to me is something that I really find important when it comes to building an outfit is like textures, like paying attention to textures and balancing out textures. For example, if I'm wearing shiny black shoes with an outfit

and I'm trying to choose what pair of sunglasses to wear, a lot of times, I'm going to choose my shiny black pair of glasses rather than my more matte material pair of glasses. Or if I am wearing really like thick knit socks, right? I might say, oh wait, I have like a thick knit, you know, little head scarf sort of thing. Maybe I'll throw that around my neck or tie it around my belt loop or something. I try to create themes with textures as well. This doesn't always make sense, but I do pay attention to it because I think it's a subtle detail that can really make an outfit feel cohesive. My next piece of advice, be intuitive.

Add where you feel there's an empty space. Don't just make decisions based on what you've seen on Pinterest or what you've seen in fashion books. I think accessorizing needs to be intuitive and it needs to be determined by you in the moment based on what exactly is being worn by you. There are so many different variables that impact the way that an outfit reads on you as an individual. What is the daily jewelry that you wear? How do you style your hair? What color is your hair? What color are your nails? How do you get your nails done? Do you not get your nails done? What do you have in your wardrobe? What do you

even have available to you? You know, like all of these different things impact how you're able to accessorize. And I think that's why I don't personally always love the method of like, oh, I saw on Pinterest or whatever, I saw somebody wear a skirt and then they put another skirt on top of it to accessorize it, and it looked really good. And then they also wore like a bikini top over top of their tank top to add some dimension. Like that might look cool. That might work. And you can try it if you really want, you know what I mean? But I always recommend being intuitive, like try to be intuitive with it. Look at your outfit and see what it needs. Listen, I think it's fun to experiment. And if you see something that you like, I absolutely am all for being like,

okay, today I really want to try this sort of accessorizing technique or something, right? I really want to try it. Okay, great. Then that's how you start your outfit. But if you're taking an outfit and you're like, all right, what accessories do I add to this? In those moments, I think if it feels intuitive, like, oh, I saw somebody do that thing on Pinterest, I'm going to try that. Great. If it feels intuitive and it feels like that's what the outfit needs and you're looking in the mirror and you're like, oh, there's like a blank space here that feels empty like it needs something, it would benefit from something, then add it. But don't just add it because you see other people doing it. Does that make sense? Be intuitive with the accessorizing and try stuff. Try a bunch of stuff. Try things

on. It doesn't look good. Try the next thing. We can only see so much in our imagination. I think a lot of times we have to try things on and experiment to truly figure out what actually makes sense for an outfit. In my last piece of advice, at least that I can think of right now, your accessories need to either be functional or not noticeable to you physically, or else they're not a good accessory. Okay? Accessories should never be getting in your way, right?

Like a scarf that's itchy, a belt that's super huge and rides up and is super uncomfortable and doesn't fit in your belt loops, super heavy earrings that are hurting your ears, nails that are too long to function. These are not good accessories, right? Like painting on your laptop and then not using the right kind of paint and it chipping off. These are all not good accessories. This is not good ways of accessorizing. Accessorizing should either be fully functional, like it is helping. It's a belt that's holding up your pants. It's a pair of socks that are keeping you warm.

It's a scarf that actually keeps you warm. It's actually a functional accessory, or it's something you don't even notice. Like, oh, I put a little pin on my shirt, or like I put on a cute little watch, but I don't even feel it on my wrist. Or I ironed on a patch onto my favorite hat. Accessories should either be not noticeable, you barely even realize that they're there, or they actually serve a purpose. Otherwise it's a bad accessory.

If you really love a scarf and you want to buy it because you think it looks so cute, but it's itchy, that is a bad accessory. If you really love a scarf and you want to buy it because you think it looks so cute, but it's itchy, that is a bad accessory. Just because it's cute, just because it's like, whatever. Accessorizing is more than just like, oh, this looks cute and ties my outfit all together. No, it should also be functional and comfortable. Otherwise, it is a bad accessory. So keep that in mind when shopping for accessories and also, you know, getting dressed in the morning. If there's an accessory in your closet that in mind when shopping for accessories and also getting dressed in the morning. If there's an accessory in your closet that you don't gravitate towards, you don't choose because it's uncomfortable, it gets in the way, it's frustrating. A great example would be even sunglasses that are uncomfortable. That's the risk of buying

sunglasses online. I do it. I've done it. And it's worked out well before, but it's also worked out terribly because sunglasses need to fit your head. And if they don't fit your head properly, well, that's a problem. They're either too tight or they're too loose and falling off. You're not going to wear those. So that's a bad accessory. Even if they look cute, accessories need to be comfortable. This episode is brought to you by Missouri. Missouri does fine jewelry differently. They're all about buying for yourself,

where you decide the occasion. Everything is handcrafted with quality, craftsmanship, and responsible sourcing in mind. So these are pieces you can feel good about in more ways than one. Plus, there are so many designs you can mix and match to create a stack for every look. Shop online at majore.com or in-store today. Now that I've given you some advice, let me give you some thought starters, some suggestions,

some ideas. And I'm not giving you these suggestions, thought starters, ideas with the hope that you go out and buy them immediately. You know what I'm saying? Like that's not what I'm trying to do here. Okay? Because as I mentioned earlier, accessorizing should be as personal as possible. So look at this more as just inspiration. You know, truly look at this as a thought starter. Like let these ideas inspire you to come up with your own idea. Or hear one of these suggestions and find a version of it that's uniquely you. That is the purpose of this, okay? So let's begin. Number one, I'm absolutely obsessed with pins

and buttons and patches right now, but more specifically pins. I actually bought a pin maker so that I can make my own pins, like fully like a pin maker. Okay. Like, or a button, a button maker actually, you know what it is a button, isn't it? A pin is something else. Okay. I bought a button maker so that I could make personalized buttons that I could wear with my outfits. Because I was having a hard time finding buttons that I liked. I found a few good ones online from people who make them, but they weren't personalized enough. I was like, I want really personalized buttons and I couldn't really find... Anyway, I bought a button maker so that I could make

my own buttons. But I'm also going to continue searching for like cool vintage ones online, on eBay, like finding cool weird ones as time goes on. But I also want to make my own. But I think personal little pins, buttons, patches, these types of things that you can adhere to existing items and add a little pop of color, add a these types of things that you can adhere to existing items and add a little pop of color, add a bit of personality. It can be super impactful. And you can put a name patch on something. You could order a bunch of custom patches that all have your name on it and, I don't know, put them on your favorite belt and glue it onto your water bottle and glue it onto your laptop and like put it on one of your like basic black shirts that like is kind

of boring that you don't really like, you know what I mean? Like there's so many different ways that you can use pins, buttons, patches, these types of things to like add a lot of dimension and character to an outfit or to a piece of clothing. I also think a great area to experiment when it comes to accessorizing is in glasses. I've noticed that a really bold pair of glasses is something that I will rewear over and over again rather than like a really bold piece of clothing, like a statement piece of clothing, like a sweater that has like a really loud pattern on it and has like a quote on it and there's all this stuff going on,

that I'm less gravitated towards over and over again, a really bold pair of glasses with like a bold shape is something that I'll wear over and over and over again and I'm constantly drawn to it. In addition to that, I find that a really strong pair of glasses that are really stylized and really loud and really make a statement really, really heavily impact the vibe of an outfit.

For example, I have a pair of sort of black, like, shield glasses. Like shield, they're huge. They cover half my face. In fact, I actually lost them for like a year and a half and I had been trying to find them and I could not find them. And then I saw online that they were on sale and I was like, fucking I'm buying another pair because I loved this pair of glasses so much and I used to wear them so often and I lost them and I was so sad and I thought I would find them and I never did. And so then I ordered them again when they were on sale. Anyway, they're like huge black shield glasses.

Every time I wear those, it's like, Whoa, she is a badass. She's a fashion freak badass. Look at that freak. You know what I mean? It just reads creepy and weird and alien and cool and badass and scary and creepy and futuristic, but also like motorcycle, but also like not motorcycle, but also like alien, but also like cool. It's great, you know, but they're definitely extreme. It's like a bold choice, but I wear those glasses all the time. I constantly gravitate towards those glasses because they make such a statement and they

make such a difference. They make such a difference in my outfit that I actually choose those more than maybe more versatile, more simple glasses because those just don't have as much of an impact. I guess what I'm trying to say is I feel like you can be a bit more edgy, a bit more experimental with your accessories than maybe you can with your clothing. Because I think with your clothing, more experimental stuff tends to be less comfortable, tends to be more fatiguing and exhausting. And it tends to, I don't know, just not work out as well, I guess. That's my experience anyway. So my closet is definitely a bit less experimental. It's a lot of basics that I can layer together in different ways. And then where the personality and intrigue really comes out for me tends to be in the accessories

and the way that I layer things and stuff like that. I also suggest finding weird random shit that's kind of a little bit silly. Some of my favorite accessories are in this sort of category. For example, I have this purse that has a banana on it and I actually have another purse from the same brand that has a carrot on it, like a 3D banana, a 3D carrot, sticking out the front of the bag. And it's funny because I think this bag was so... I think it had kind of like a Pinterest moment, like a lot of people saw it. It was kind of a popular thing for a second there. And it's something that I actually think is technically sort of trendy because it's so eye-catching and it's so sort of humorous. But it's something

that to me, I like genuinely love so much. And I love the concept and I love it so much that to me, it's actually timeless. Or it's not even necessarily timeless, but it's something that even though maybe it had its moment a year ago and it was more trendy then, I still love it because I think it's funny and I think it's interesting and I continue to wear it. Anyway, that was sort of a side note. I love taking something as simple as a black bag and putting a banana or a carrot on the front of it, a 3D one that looks real. And now it's something different.

Now it's something more intriguing. Now it's a conversation starter. I think that that's great. I also recently bought online this like, it's so, well, not recently, a few months ago, I bought this handmade scarf that looks like a beautiful white mouse or white rat. And it has like little red eyes. It is so cute and it is so weird, but it's so cute. I love that thing. I absolutely love it. It's one of my favorite things that I own. It's so weird, but it actually looks

cute. Like I can style it in a cute way and it's functional and it keeps my neck warm and it's great. You know what I mean? You know, I love buying like little buttons and pins, like I mentioned earlier, or even making little buttons and pins that are weird, that say something weird on them, that say something funny, that infuse some humor into my outfit. Try to find ways to perhaps infuse humor into your outfit,

infuse weirdness into your outfit through accessories. I think that you'll find that that's a lot of fun. Oh my God, I just remembered when I used to have like this rubber chicken bag. It was like a bag that looked like a rubber chicken. That's another great example. Like it's fun. To some people, it might be corny, it might be cringe. It's not everyone's cup of tea, but it's a suggestion that I think is worth considering. I sort of mentioned this earlier, but decorate your average items. Everything can be an accessory.

Your phone, your laptop, your water bottle, the belt that you wear every day. Find ways to accessorize items that are normally just blah. Paint your laptop, paint your phone, put stickers all over your computer, put stickers all over your phone, put stickers on your belt. Find different ways to personalize normally mundane items. over your computer, put stickers all over your phone, put stickers on your belt, find different ways to personalize normally mundane items. And I think it's fun to do it DIY because you're the only one who's going to have it. That's really special and really cool.

And I don't know, it's fun. It's fun to put your own little stamp on something. And it's fun to think of everything as an accessory because it gives you a more intimate relationship with the things that you carry with you on a daily basis, you know, or on a consistent basis. It makes everything feel artistic, like art in a way. Like it makes your laptop feel like art. It makes your phone, your water bottle, your lunchbox, your book bag, it makes everything feel like art, interesting, like a form of self-expression.

And that's fun, that can be fun. So decorate your average items. Another suggestion, random, but fingerless gloves, lace gloves, thin like mesh gloves, gloves that are a little bit unusual. Like obviously when it's winter time, you know, we are all well aware of a glove or a mitten. You know, this is, we are no stranger to this. But I think we tend to forget that there are other types of gloves. You can buy, for example, lace gloves. That adds so much texture and dimension

to an outfit without actually adding warmth. You could wear that in the spring or summer and it would look so cool and so interesting, but you're not overheating. Gloves, maybe more avant-garde gloves can be a great way to accessorize that you wouldn't normally think of. In fact, I actually have been trying to get more into the glove. I love a fingerless glove. I've been wearing them for a few years now, but I'm kind of keeping my eye out for other types of gloves that could potentially be interesting to add to my

collection. Next, a little beret hat, like a little French beret, or like a little cap, like a little, not necessarily a French beret, but like any sort of little cap. I absolutely love a little like cap, you know, like a little felt hat, like something that isn't even quite as stylized as like a French beret, but like there are so many different types of little caps that you can wear that are elevated unlike maybe something like a baseball cap that's a little bit less elevated.

Like we tend to overlook what hats can be. And I absolutely love like a little cap. I hope that I'm like explaining that well. I have a few of them, but that's a great idea. That makes things feel chic and sort of classy in a very like, you know, easy sort of way, just throwing on a little cap, like a little beret, a little cap can really change the whole feeling of an outfit. And it's just a little beret, a little cap can really change the whole feeling of an outfit. And it's just a little hat. It's one of the few hats that I think are timeless. A lot

of hats are not timeless. Like, I don't know, like a cowboy hat? No. Unless you are a cowboy, unless you like do rodeos and stuff. Like, I don't know, a cowboy hat is not timeless to me. But a beret? Absolutely. Another suggestion, balaclava, detached hood, bonnet, some sort of headwear in that realm. I have a few of these now and I absolutely love wearing them. Anytime I can, anytime it's cool enough out to wear some sort of headpiece, I'm going to try to wear some sort of headpiece. In fact, I also would like to collect more of these over the years because I really do think that they can pack a punch when it comes to changing

the vibe of an outfit. Adding accessories to the head in this way, it's trendy. It's definitely trendy, but I actually think it's timeless. I think you can't go wrong with unique headwear, whether it's something lighter, made of perhaps lace or mesh with embroidery on it, or it's like a knit and it has like little fuzzy ears. I have a little fuzzy knit cat ear sort of bonnet almost, kind of like a balaclava, but it doesn't cover the mouth. So I don't really know what that's called. It's kind of like a detached hood almost. I get compliments every time I wear that thing because everybody's always like, whoa, that's so cool. Like it completely changes the tone of the outfit. And I think we tend

to overlook head pieces that are not hats. And a lot of us don't like hats. So think outside the box when it comes to accessorizing your head. And think of a bonnet or a detached hood or perhaps a balaclava. I think a lot of us too tend to look at socks as like, just, okay, I'm just wearing a sock. Like I'm wearing a white sock, I'm wearing a black sock. Add a pop of color. Add a pop of texture. You know, socks can be an incredible, incredible accessory. The length of sock can be an accessory. Is it up to the knee? Is it up to the thigh? Is it scrunched? Is it pulled tight? All of these different things. Socks are not to be ignored. A good sock can change everything. The right sock can really pull everything together, which leads me to interesting tights.

Whether you choose an interesting color or an interesting texture, tights can be utilized in many different interesting ways. You can wear tights under ripped pants and have the tight show through. That's an interesting thing you could do. Or you could wear tights and wear socks over it, perhaps. So now you have like your leg is one texture, but then you also have another texture of the sock and there's this layering happening. That could be very intriguing.

Tights aren't just for, I guess, keeping your legs warm during the winter. You can utilize tights as another texture and it can be really fun. And there are a lot of interesting tights out there. Like think outside the box. There aren't just neutral tights. There are very many interesting tights out there. Also, like thin little scarves that you can tie around your neck or head or around your pants or onto your bag. Having a little piece of fabric that you can tie onto things, whether it is on more traditional locations like your neck or your head, but could also be tied onto less traditional locations like your bag or your belt, but could also be tied onto less traditional locations like your bag or your belt loop or whatever. This is a very fun and simple way to add a

pop of color or add a bit of texture to an outfit in a way that is virtually like not even noticeable to you and can sometimes be functional if you're like keeping your ears warm or your neck warm, but can also just be like a, almost like a hack of like how to add a pop of color or pop of texture. Also an idea that I had recently that I haven't actually tried yet because I haven't found any of these things really, thrifted slash repurposed utilitarian items. Okay. Like a thrifted tool belt or gardening gloves or chef waste apron or whatever. You can use these things as fashionable pieces and they're also useful, you know? Like gardening gloves can sometimes be really cool. They can have like yellow rubber on them and like

actually look cool. Wear them as winter gloves one year if it's like not that cold. If it's obviously super cold, you need something a bit warmer, but you get the idea. Take like a vintage chef apron, like waist apron and cut it so it's like maybe a bit more skirt-like and layer that over top clothes. Get creative with finding functional accessories, perhaps even repurposing these sort of utilitarian work wear items that there's a plethora of in the thrift stores that aren't really being used because a lot of chefs or whatever or people who are like they donated the stuff for a reason because it's not fully functional anymore.

Well, you can repurpose it and use it as more of a fashion moment. Another idea, add charms to stuff. Collect cool charms. Make charms yourself. I don't care. Charms. add charms to stuff, collect cool charms, make charms yourself. I don't care. Charms. Add them to your earrings, add them to your belt loops, add them onto your bag, clip them onto stuff. Charms. But make them personal, okay? Make them personal. Hyper specific items that make sense for you, okay? Like for almost a comical level of convenience. Like for example, if you always lose your house key, make a necklace with like a cool ribbon and tie it around

your neck and have your key on your neck all the time. That looks cool actually. Or like if you smoke cigarettes, you shouldn't, but like, I don't know, have like a little lighter key chain or something. Like do you get what I'm saying? If you constantly have toothpicks in your mouth, find like a little toothpick carrier that you can like attach to your bag. Do you know what I'm saying? Like hyper specific items that make sense for you and your specific lifestyle and like what you would actually need to have available, what you would actually want to have conveniently placed. Think outside the box with it. Truly think about your life and your daily routine and find a way to accessorize it. Does that make sense? Find a way to turn that into an accessory. Even if you like write

with pens a lot, like maybe you start buying cool pens that you actually like want to show off and clip them to your bag or clip them to a collared shirt or like find a way to accessorize your routine, make your routine an accessory. That doesn't make sense, but you get what I mean. And last but not least, clothing toppers. I don't know if that's actually like a real term, but I'm actually wearing one right now. There's various different things that you can like throw on top of an outfit that couldn't be worn on their own, but are pieces that you can routinely throw over different things. They're either mesh or they're lace or they're like a vest that's open or they're like a waist belt, like a utilitarian sort of waist belt or whatever.

These types of toppers that you can throw on top of outfits that add dimension, add texture, add character, but are not like pieces of clothing themselves. But that also can be worn in a trillion different ways and kind of read differently depending on what they're paired with. These sorts of toppers, they're not things that you necessarily come across all the time, but every once in a while you do. And I think they're great accessories and they're bordering on clothing, but they are accessories or to me they're accessories because you couldn't wear them by themselves. You'd have some sort of genitalia revealed, which is not ideal. You know, even like having like a sheer lace skirt that's like completely sheer that you could like throw over other things. These

sorts of toppers layering pieces, I think are also incredible accessories that read differently. They're like very versatile in the sense that you can wear them with so many different things and they read differently every time. But you know, they're not clothing because you can't wear them alone. You guys, to be honest, I have to go. I have to go because I have to go to yoga right now. I have a yoga class in 20 minutes and I actually don't know if I'm going to make it to the class. If I don't do this yoga class, I'm going to be grumpy for the rest of the day. So I love you all. I appreciate you all. Thank you all for listening to this episode. It's always a pleasure getting to speak to you and hang out with you. Anything goes every Thursday and Sunday, anywhere you stream podcasts,

videos on YouTube and Spotify. I'm on social media at Emma Chamberlain. You can find my coffee company at chamberlaincoffee.com or at Chamberlain Coffee. More information on those website and social media locations. I love you all. I appreciate you all. You're the best. And I'm going to go to yoga now. It's kind of pathetic that I'm like, you guys, I have to go to yoga. Oh my God. It's very LA of me. Okay. I love you all and I'll talk to you soon. Okay. Bye.