This 8 Point Outfit “Rule” Will Make You Love Your Clothes Again (Before & After Photos Galore)
by Audie Metcalf
There are two kinds of people in this world when it comes to clothes:
People who love rules
People who hate rules
Both types are valid.
But today I am writing for the rules people. The people who are sick and tired of looking at themselves in a mirror and seeing a “shirt” and a “pair of jeans” instead of the personal style you know lurks within you.
We write so much on this site about how to simplify ideas around clothes, how to dress in a way that makes you feel most like yourself, how to be comfortable but also gorgeous, but leave it it to TikTok to articulate the simplest idea about outfits that I could have never come up with myself:
The 8 point system.
Everything you wear has a point the end. So elegant. So easy. So doable.
So doable in fact, that I’ve begun to do it myself—counting each piece I’m wearing with the goal of hovering around 6-8 points per outfit. Too few points and you’re just wearing clothes. Too many points and you look try-hard. So hitting the sweet spot of 6-8 is the daily goal and I have to say, I’ve never felt more satisfied with my wardrobe when I glance at myself in the reflection of the Trader Joe’s window. I look put together, I look chic, I’m wearing more of my clothes now, and nothing ever looks fussy.
And because this entire idea hinges on showing you boring outfits vs 8 point outfits, of course I had to take many, many photos for you in order to illustrate this point. Is it really even an internet article without a big series of before and after photos? I think not.
So here are 4 outfits, and I take each one from drab to fab (a perfect title for a 90s TLC show) showing how adding a few tweaks and hats and belts and things really can elevate all your clothes—and I look forward to your harsh judgement of all of my choices in the comment section.
Hopefully you’ll find some “inspo” for your own closet. You KNOW you only wear 17% of what you own. You know it. And this might change that.
So let’s begin.
O U t f i t O N E
Before: Jeans And A Sweater
The Pieces: The bones of this outfit are great. THESE are truly excellent jeans for curves and THIS cashmere cardi I wear every single day of my life. Oh, and THESE sneakers are actually incredible, but more about them later. So, 3 points.
Why It Sucks: Welp. It’s just stultifying. It’s a big lumpy mess, it’s the opposite of flattering, and overall, it looks like I’ve given up. There’s zero interestingness and I look like every other asshole in the mall. This is not what I want to look like.
After: The Sweater Ensemble
What Was Added: If you want to look chic, drape a JACKET over your shoulders. I don’t make the rules. THIS scarf will make you feel like a true lady, as will THESE shoes. Throw on an aggressive BELT to punctuate your waist, a HAT from Amazon, and pluck your slouchiest bag from whatever depths of your bedroom where you keep your bags. (Someone needs to solve this issue btw)
Why It’s Better: It’s an outfit! The SWEATER is tucked into THIS magic device so it reveals my waist, but also, wearing cardigans buttoned up like shirts has fully changed my life. Try it. The ramshackle hat mitigates the sweetness of the silk scarf, and the mixed patterns of the shoes/scarf bring our previously neutral outfit to a more thinky place.
Other Things To Consider: I know you’re going to yell at me about the belt. And I get it. I GUESS ALL YOU NEED TO DO IS BE DRIPPING IN DESIGNER LEATHER GOODS TO LOOK PUT TOGETHER!?!?!, you’ll say. And yes, I do sort of think that buying a few extremely high-quality, long-lasting, big-impact, timeless designer “pieces” can actually make an enormous difference in how chic our other, CHEAPER clothes look.
Here they are again, side by side for maximum wow. 3 points on the left vs 8 points on the right. Worlds better. One is a frump, one is a grown woman with ideas.
SHOP THE LOOK
O U T F I T T W O
Before: The Long Skirt
The Pieces: Again we have attractive pieces on their own. THIS sweater is classic (and so comfy!) and THIS skirt is (sort of) trendy right now but can a long, silk skirt ever go out of style? No.
Why It Sucks: As it is right now, it’s just a skirt and a sweater. It’s not alive. It’s not joyful. And it’s doing nothing “for my figure” as my grandmother used to say. It has zero point of view and the slides with it are sickening.
After: The Watcher-Inspired Black And White Number
What Was Added: Did you see The Watcher? It was only ok but Naomi Watts’ clothes were unspeakably beautiful. Everything was a sea of cream paired with some hugely chunky combat boot. It was the first interesting fashiony thing I’ve seen on TV in a long time. So I fully stole that concept for this. I added THESE boots (which I pair with anything “delicate” or “silky” that I own) along with THIS cashmere baseball hat which allows me to be the pig that I am and STILL look semi presentable—it lets me have a dirty hair day while still wearing chic clothes, you see. The braided pigtails/hat look is featured in every single outfit and for good reason—if you “do” your hair every day, god bless you. If you have stringy, unwashed hair most days and want a way to make it work for you, steal this all-black cashmere hat concept. It’s a miracle. I also love THIS jean jacket, which has the most flattering shape, THESE cheerful Kate Spade earrings I’ve had for 20 years, and THIS bag, whose brand is fast becoming the only purse brand I’m interested in.
Why It’s Better: Again, this outfit is about 4,784 times more flattering with an actually visible waist. We MUST trot out our waists more, ladies. I know I just sounded like a lady comedian from the 80s right then but it’s really true.
Other Things To Consider: To create that amazing waistline, I used THIS little contraption wherein you essentially tuck all your sweaters or chunky things into it, so you don’t get any bulk under your skirt or pants. Frankly it’s genius. Here’s a glimpse of what it looks like:
I’m also wearing this incredible ring my wonderful friend Libbie Summers gave me. It’s insane and I love it and I just wear it with regular clothes because why are we saving all these special things to wear to only special events? Special events are so rare and regular life is every single day so wear your special things.
Alt After: More Coverage
3 points v. 8 points. No rebuttals.
SHOP THE LOOK
O U T F I T T H R E E
Before: The Workish Trousers
The Pieces: THESE are the greatest fitting trousers I’ve ever owned. And I must say THESE glove boots are enormously walkable. And I do love THIS white shirt even though it’s clear I’ve misplaced the iron in my recent move.
Why It Sucks: For those of us who work from home now, or for anyone who goes into the office fewer times a week, what do we do with our “nice” pants with “nice” material? Similar to the gold bunny ring, do we just never wear them except to some event? That’s just silly. And there are MANY ways to wear them that don’t include a white shirt aka the most mindless “I look like a waiter” outfit any of us can possibly wear. Let’s chuck a few more points onto these babys, style them into something casj, and poof we can wear them to Ralph’s. (Or Kroger. Or Price Chopper. Or Stop and Shop. Just trying to hit all the major markets here)
After: The Everyday Trousers And Sneaks
What Was Added: I swapped the waitery white shirt with THIS amazing marinière, THIS hat, THIS bag, THIS scarf, and I’ve finally figured out how to wear THESE white sneakers without feeling like a try-hard millennial. They’re beyond comfortable and have a big platform heel so I’m 3 inches taller and I highly, highly recommend them if you’ve felt like an idiot in white sneakers your whole life. Oh, and I had to include my basique Stanley as one point for this look. It just makes sense.
Why It’s Better: Well, let’s see here. Because it just is? Because stripes are a middle aged lady’s life force? Because navy and white is so classic is hurts? Because a monogrammed scarf screams I’m from Connecticut and I’m not ashamed of my roots and outfits that communicate ideas like this are just inherently more interesting? Because the hat is part of a series of hats featuring different animals in different colors and this one says Black Sheep which I have always personally felt a kinship with which might be on the nose but again, clothes that communicate are clothes that become outfits? So that’s why it’s better.
Other Things To Consider: The particular pants I’m wearing sell out constantly, but THESE are very similar and also amazing and come in even better fabrics and cuts and colors for spring and summer. I actually bought several pairs of both styles, including 4 of the original pair pictured. Am I insane? Perhaps. But I donated all other wide leg pants I own. Ok so why 4? I bought 2 in black and 2 in navy, and I hemmed each one differently for different shoes. Sometimes I love to wear my black trousers with a huge platform heel like THIS one (which is the single most comfortable, flattering platform heel on god’s earth) but at that length, they’ll be dragging behind me with a sneaker. When pants are so superbly made and so flattering it’s worth it to me.
3 points vs. 7 points. Could have done a jacket to ratchet that number up to 8 but I wanted the stripes to have their day in the sun.
SHOP THE LOOK
O u t f i t F O U R
Before: The Nothing Workout Clothes
The Pieces: To be fair THIS sweatshirt is one of my favorites (and it’s prob gone by now because they stopped making it) and THESE leggings are also my favorite but they’re black and boring and I have a BIG IDEA about black that I want you to just stay mildly open to.
Why It Sucks: This one is a little bit of a departure because it’s more conceptual than just throwing on some accessories. And so as is, this look is just loungey workout clothes with no style whatsoever. And you’ll say to me, but Audie, sometimes that’s just what we need to wear when we’re working out! And I’ll get to that…
After: The Cute Set That Turns You Into A Workout Person
What Was Added: THIS bra, THESE leggings, THIS hat from Amazon (which I realize isn’t for everyone but is definitely for someone), THESE UGGs, some old giant TOTE for throwing all your crap into when you don’t want to think about it (I’ve had that one for 12 years) and THE AFOREMENTIONED SWEATSHIRT thrown over my shoulders to have at the ready in case you want to wrap it around your waist for another bum + tum coverage situation. Like this:
Why It’s Better: Patterns. Patterns are the answer! We have 47 black leggings in our drawers but what we actually need are 5 cute, patterned sets. Why? They’re fun! They’re fun to wear and fun to be seen in. People ask you questions and think of you as a bold person. AND, you know how you worry about wearing colored leggings for fear of cellulite shadows and this is why all of us go around wearing all black all the time? This is why patterns are so great! They’re a cellulite mask!
Other Things To Consider: Putting on cute, fun, workout sets in the morning as your actual outfit that day, makes you want to work out more. It’s true. I wear cute sets and I just feel like someone who lifts weights and so I do. It’s miraculous.
2 points vs. 7 points. We ended on a divisive one I know. I like to live on the edge.
SHOP THE LOOK
Audie Metcalf is the Editor-in-chief of The Candidly, and lives in LA with her family. You can find more of her articles here.
At The Candidly, we try a lot of stuff so you don’t have to. We only recommend things we truly love, and that we think you’ll love, too. All products are chosen independently by our creative team, and all details reflect the price and availability of products at the time of publication. If you buy something we link to, The Candidly may earn a commission.
We have to eat.
