Elegant Belts

Elegant belts are being presented here in a gallery for your viewing pleasure. More written about how to wear them below. Thank you!

Classic Elegant Belts
Brings attention to the waist. Worn delicately with dresses

Give me fire by Leena* (studying for exams) featuring Christian Louboutin shoes

Dressy Belt
Dressing belt adding sparkles to a plain-ish outift.

Unforgettable - for Shimaa4 by Nysh featuring Marni accessories

White or Cream Belt
Even though white or cream coloured belts are elegant, I feel it is rather bold to wear one because most people who dress elegant stay on the safe, using only dark colours. Go for it!

No Greater Love by ♥Carolina Girl♥ (On Vacay) featuring Monsoon bags

Pretty Elegant
Pretty and tasteful.

Elegant by little Miss. M featuring Vera Wang

Gold Glamour
For those a bit more adventurous. I love the colour gold. The use of gold can be delicately elegant if used sparingly.

for Sophia, by Nicolaa! featuring Paul & Joe sister dresses

Some Belt Tips

# If in doubt, choose basic colours like black, beige, navy.

# Choose thinner over fatter.

# Stick to the classic designs and you get more uses out of it.

# Use a dressy belt on a plain outfit, a plain belt for a dressy outfit, a plain belt for a plain outfit and never a dressy belt on a dressy outfit.

Your First Elegant Belt?
Breaking down the Classic Belt

Belts can be delicately elegant. This also means that the elegance of an outfit can be given away if a cheap looking belt is used. That does not mean using any designer belt will enhance your outfit or not make your dress look cheap looking. The key is careful selection and knowing how to use belts.

If you do not know how to use belts, I suggest you invest in a classic belt to start.

Classic Elegant Belts by Laurie Nicola featuring Alexander McQueen accessories

Benefits of A Classic Elegant Belt

No doubt belts make look appear 'shorter', the use of the right proportions of everything else can minimise that effect

Proportions to take note of:The length of your dress, the size of your bag in proportion to your body, where you place your belt, 'real waist', 'empire line', or around your hips, or slightly above hips.

Elegant belts, when worn the right way can give a slimming effect, enhance a more feminine and lady like look, and can also look very chic.

It can helps you stretch your wardrobe, by creating different looks with the same clothes that you have.

Creating Different Looks With Just One Belt

I once travelled to several countries and was only allowed to take a small collection of clothes with me. That is because prior to take, I had to stop over another country for work and offload a whole set of business materials.

I took only a couple of dresses and blouses in total not more than 10 pieces.

Featured here is a classic black belt, a mix with leather and elastic to wrap around my waist. Here you can see me wrapping over a white shirt.

Pardon my travel photos, I'm usually silly happy when I'm having fun.

Now I've belted my red dress, to make it less dressy and suitable for daywear.

Back view of the dress

Same belt over black coat.

I actually hardly use the actual belts of my coats for many reasons, sometimes I want to add a little 'off-tangent' detail to make it chic, to differentiate the coat from the 1000 similar coats in the market. Mostly it is because I feel the belts offered in my coats do not hug my waist as snugly as it should.

I prefer my belts to hug my waist to give place emphasis an hour-glass idea.

Again, the belt over my knit. Its not very obvious in this picture here, but you can see my waist. Most knits or knit sweaters/blouses have no waist. They just hang straight down, or have a little pillow effect if the ends are knit tighter around.

More Outfits With the Same Belt

This one I wore over a blouse. I've worn a dress underneath the blouse. I call this effect 'layering'. I like to layer because I'm not a fan of tucking in my shirt.

Wearing belts can sometimes break up the proportion or be used to make portions. This way instead of having a 'line break' in the middle of your dress, you soften the fashion lines of your outfit by giving another break above the middle, hence making you look more proportionate.

This 'line-breaking' effect is very useful for those who want to appear taller, more leggy, or just struggles with a longer torso and shorter legs body type.

Just another outfit where I use my coat like a blouse over my jeans, paired with the belt.

Other Examples of Belts I'm encouraged to use my own pictures, so I thought I'll include a few from my travel pictures.

Here is another example where I did not follow the "belt fitting loops" attached to my jacket. I merely knotted my belt around my real waist. Not all waist-loops (or whatever they are called) are positioned at the right height for you, as we all have different type bodies!

Sometimes I don't even buckle my belt properly, I usually knot it to ensure it is snug.

People tend to ignore the belts of their coats. If it fits, wear them! Especially if you know you are not going to taking off your coat for a few hours.

Search for more Elegant Belts!

You might also be interested in:

Embracing Timeless Dressing
Exquisite Shopping: Finer things Without Finer Prices
Fundamentals of Good Dressing

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