7 Ways To Always Look Put Together & Polished
Have you ever noticed that when you look good, you feel good?
It seems that we are living in an age of casualness, and it is so interesting because so much of society is wanting to be casual in their behaviour, casual in their manners, and casual in the way that they dress.
But if you started to reflect on the times that we are feeling our best… We can often find that these are also the times that we are also looking our best. So with saying that, I truly wonder why, as a society, we are starting to look more frumpy, more disheveled, and like we have just rolled out of bed.
As I am not a psychologist, I can only speculate on why this may be. But what I can for certain tell you today is, how I personally go about looking put together, and how I aim to always look polished.
1. You are never fully dressed without a great smile.
We like practical, tangible things around here; however, I think it goes without saying that showing off your great smile is always going to make you feel (and look) polished, poised, and always put together.
A few things that I like to consider when flashing my pearly whites are:
How white are my teeth? Could they be whiter?
Do I have anything stuck in between my teeth? Should I be using a water pick or floss?
Have I brushed my teeth? Perhaps I need to upgrade my toothbrush devices.
And lastly…
Am I smiling appropriately for this occasion?
We all have beautiful smiles that are worthy of showing off. But equally, understanding how to smile is quite a skill in itself. When we are smiling, we want to ensure that we are not smiling too “hard” or “wide” for the occasion.
I think we have all experienced someone who laughed or smiled a little too hard, and it just ended up looking a bit more hysterical, or borderline deranged than what was intended. Furthermore, have you ever been in a situation where you have met someone in a sombre or heavy moment?
And you noticed that they were just grinning from ear to ear?
Understand that you can smile in all moments, but also understand that in some circumstances, like funerals, hospitals, and some business occasions, we must reserve a more subdued smile when interacting with others.
2. Always have your hair done, no exceptions
If you find yourself reading this blog post, you are probably someone who wants to hold themselves to a higher standard. You are someone who probably wants to look polished, poised, and put together. And, my friend, I am here to tell you that the easiest way to look put together is to ensure that your hair is clean.
Again, not to sound like a broken record, but as a society, we have become so lackadaisical. Worse yet, we have even come to brag about how long we can go in between washes as if it is a marker for a trophy of the survival of the fittest. Not only is this highly unhygienic. But full, bouncy, clean, voluminous hair will ALWAYS make you look put together.
Think of someone like Catherine, The Princess of Wales, if you took away her thick, clean, shiny, and bouncy hair… would she look as put together as she does? Most certainly not.
Not all of us are blessed with a thick mane of hair the way that she has been, however, that goes to even further my point. My other fine-haired ladies, we even more so need to ensure that our hair is looking ( and actually is clean ) if we are looking to look put together, always.
When I recommend having your hair done always, this does not mean that you need to have a full head of highlights, or need to go to your local salon for a blow-out weekly. But this does mean that you will wash your hair, blow dry your hair, and use any hair styling tools to ensure that your hair has a polished look and finish.
Do you struggle with how to do this? Great news! We live in the lovely age of YouTube and its countless tutorials. I challenge you to find a tutorial with someone who has a similar hair type to yours and observe how they maintain it.
Is budget an issue? Find a hair maintenance regimen that gives you the most longevity out of your colour appointments. Perhaps this means that you opt for a natural, but illuminated, balayage that gives you the most flawless highlights. But better yet, a colour regimen that leaves you with very little regrowth & roots.
3. Like it or not, your manicure says a lot about you
It always surprises me when I see in Facebook Groups, Forums, or YouTube comment boxes the debate that is sparked when we get to the topic of what are elegant nails, and what aren’t elegant nails.
I can tell you what I deem to be elegant nails. For myself, I determine that elegant nails will be those that always make you look put together and polished. And I’ve noticed, that in most circumstances, this means that they need to be kept short, to a medium length.
I’ve also noticed that this will stick to classic tones and minimal (if any) nail art. These nails will be kept clean, and they will not be left for weeks on end without getting a fill.
Now, I understand that, depending on the culture that you find yourself a part of, long nails may be elegant. And you are completely entitled to this opinion or perspective. But if you will allow me, I am going to take a couple of moments to tell you why I don’t believe that long and artificial coloured manicures will make you look put together always.
When you have extremely long nails, it is more difficult to keep them clean and hygienic. Things will get caught under your nails, and this is not elegant, therefore will not maintain a look of being put together or polished.
When you choose to go for an extremely bold and artificial colour, not only is it harder to hide when you need a fill or have a chip, but it can also be very distracting or be in competition with your wardrobe. We want these colours to complement our outfits, not compete with them, so try to choose your colours accordingly.
Last but not least, in order to always look polished and put together, you will want to have a level of elegance that you practice. This is not possible if you are trying to function with nails that are not practical. Elegance means wearing things that are appropriate for the occasion. If you are not able to conduct yourself appropriately for the situations that you find yourself in, you will be detracting from your elegance and then equally detracting from always looking put together and polished.
4. Accessories are the cherry on top of your sundae
Have you heard of that idiom before? It basically means something that makes something that is already good even better, or perfect!
Accessories are meant to compliment your outfit. And when used effectively, they can do exactly that. Coco Chanel once famously said, “Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take at least one thing off.”
This is a great method to practice when wanting to always look put-together and polished. And you know what? This is also a great practice when you don't want to look like a caricature of someone who is dressed in cosplay of a certain type of style. Often, wearing too many items and too many accessories will make your outfit look unnecessarily busy. Furthermore, it will also make it look like you are perpetuating a certain type of person.
We often see this in ladies who are wanting to level up and craft a more elegant image. And they start donning their best pearls, finger gloves, and berets.
Although they look great, they also look like they have a costume or fancy dress on.
… But perhaps this is what they are aiming for?
5. Wear a Purse or Handbag that is appropriate for the occasion
When I look back on photos from before I started my level-up journey, one of the most glaringly obvious things is that I never used to wear handbags for the occasion. If I were going out to a cocktail bar, there would be me with my big, work-sized tote bag. In reality, a small clutch would have been much more appropriate.
How I tend to observe this now is that there are so many “trending” bags, and they can be quite pricey. So it’s understandable that people want to get their money’s worth out of it. Let’s take the iconic Loewe Basket bag in palm leaf and calfskin, It is such a lovely bag… for the beach.
But yet, we can see it used in almost every circumstance other than the beach.
You may think that these little forms of practicing proper etiquette are a bit nit-picky. But in reality, it’s these small little adjustments that will give you an overall appearance of looking put together and always polished.
6. Invest in getting your colours done (Stop relying on TikTok Filters to solve this)
Did you know that you can hire a personal stylist? Yes, you! You don’t need to be a celebrity. You do not need to be some kind of public figure or influencer. It doesn’t matter what your background is or what your profession is; you can invest in seeing a personal stylist.
And one of the benefits of doing this is that they will do a colour analysis on you and let you know the exact colour palette that works best for you and your skin tone.
This is so beneficial because it saves you from buying items that just do not work for you. And guess what? When you wear colours that make you look your best, it allows you to look even more put-together and polished without even trying.
Wouldn’t you like to work smarter, not harder? Start wearing the colours that work for you, and watch how this improves your overall look.
7. Learn to utilize the power of layering to make an outfit go from bland to chic!
One of the things that I often hear from other people, perhaps those who aren’t necessarily on a leveling-up journey, is that they find that when people dress in a more traditional and elegant way… They feel like it can look a little bit bland, and a little bit boring.
And if I were being honest with you, I used to feel like that too. And then I learned the power of layering!
Layering is a way that we can bring visual interest to an outfit, and also so we can bring a level of completion to an outfit.
I like to look at this a bit like a cake.
You can bake a beautiful, moist vanilla cake. But how much better would it be if you added a little icing to it?
How much better would it be if you added some dried flowers to decorate it with and bring in some visual interest? Or perhaps some sprigs of rosemary.
Layering should complement what you already have going on, but it shouldn’t overpower it. Much like the approach that we took to accessories, you will utilize layering to bring some visual interest to your outfit without going overboard.
Can you add a scarf to your outfit? Would a white shirt look nice underneath your Ralph Lauren cable knit sweater? Do you have a beautiful tweed jacket that you can wear on top of this outfit?
The great thing about layers is that you can always take some off. You can’t put any more on once you have left for the day.
What are your top ways of always looking put together and polished? I would love to hear them in the comments.
