How to Nail the Women’s Street-Wear Look

Streetwear has been increasing in popularity since the mid ‘90s. Svelte male models in snapback caps, graphic T-shirts, and basketball shorts have been walking the runways around the world, from Sydney to Tokyo to Paris to New York. However, as the streetwear revolution grows, it has evolved. More and more designers are incorporating elements of the streetwear style in their women’s lines, which means that women everywhere can indulge in the streetwear style like a fashionista. If you’re interested in changing up your stodgy blazer-and-flats look for something with an edge, find out how you can make the streetwear look your own in 2014.

Keep It Simple, Stupid

The streetwear look is all about being casual, so even when you’re trying to be fashionable in streetwear, you should be comfortable in your clothes. The streetwear basics are:

• Graphic T-shirts
• Sweatshirts or hoodies
• Leggings
• Skinny black jeans
• Combat boots
• Sneakers
• Beanies
• Snapback caps

If you are transitioning into a streetwear style, you need to make sure you have these staples in your wardrobe. Within these broad outlines, you have plenty of room to play around to make the style your own. What is depicted on your graphic T-shirt is up to you — you could have images of cats or the name of your favorite city. Jimmy Jazz Streetwear is the perfect place to start to pick up and experiment with the essentials.

Mix and Match

Once you feel comfortable working with the basic elements of the style, you can start branching out with pieces that don’t necessarily count strictly as streetwear. Though you might think this would defeat the purpose of trying to stick within streetwear’s confines, you’d be wrong. Streetwear is all about pushing boundaries and thinking outside the neat lines created in much of fashion, so experimenting with your look is a crucial part of the streetwear scene. The most important rule of streetwear is that you stay comfortable in your clothes; if you aren’t relaxed in what you’re wearing, you won’t be confident in your look, and the outfit will fall flat.

The primary colors of streetwear are black and white. Though these colors tend to be flattering on most skin tones and body types, it is an unfortunately limited palate for most fashionistas. A great way to change up the streetwear style is to incorporate your favorite colors. Though black skinny jeans are a staple, if you add to the rotation skinny jeans of different colors, particularly dark washes like maroons and teals, you can add something unique to your wardrobe. If you are even more daring, you can try to incorporate brighter colors with the other basics of the style. A vibrant T-shirt or hat and sneakers would add some pop to a standard streetwear outfit.

Most streetwear clothes are rather unisex; both men and women wear caps, T-shirts, and jeans without any fuss. This is perfect for women who like the androgynous look, but for women who like to be flirty and feminine every once and a while, streetwear can pose some problems. Luckily, because streetwear is all about staying true to you, it’s easy to mix in more traditionally feminine styles to the basics of streetwear. It isn’t hard to pair skirts and sneakers to achieve a customary streetwear look, and some snapbacks will go well even with a standard floral sundress. The goal here is to give the feminine pieces of clothing an edge with the elements of streetwear.

Don’t Forget the Hair and Face

You could be rocking a quintessential streetwear outfit only to mess it up with your make-up and hairstyle choices. Like with everything else in streetwear, your hair and make-up should be simple and comfortable. Natural hair is the standard — think long and wavy — and nude tones on the face would look most acceptable. However, just like with your clothing options, you have the ability to add some unconventional flair with your hair and face, but be careful not to overthink it. You can add some curl to your hair to give it more body as it hangs, but an intricate up-do is a definite no-no. Similarly, you should stick to blacks around the eyes, but if you want to add a subtle color of eye shadow to complement your outfit, go ahead and try it out.