You know that moment when you first encounter a fabulous statement piece? Something that just screams at you in the store, desperately clamoring to come home with you lest your heart and your closet be irrevocably broken. I typically tend to gravitate toward a new one every season or so (I’ve already told you, there’s a lot of turnover in my closet). I make this outrageous object mine and I work it into as many situations and outfits as possible.

Making a loud and recognizable statement piece work across your entire wardrobe is not an easy thing to do. Most of you will fall in love with it in the store, wear it once or twice, and then feel like you can’t keep wearing it because it only goes with a couple of outfits. You get self conscious and discouraged that you’re wearing the same look over and over and so you retire your new love to the back of the closet. Maybe you’ll wear her next season. Maybe you’ll try to forget you spent so much on her only to wear her 3 times.

“You can and should make that statement piece work for you without having to buy a new outfit specifically for it.”

I’m here to tell you it doesn’t have to be this way. There is definitely a method you can and should use to make that statement piece work for you without having to buy a new outfit specifically for it, or only wear it once or twice because you’re not sure how it fits into your everyday wardrobe. Stick with me. I’m going to show you how to do it using this season’s obsession: My LFB (that would be “Little Fur Bomber” to you).

This Season’s LFB

I found this little gem in a vintage shop in San Francisco. I saw her in the back of the store the moment I walked in, and I pounced on her from across the room and made her mine. It was 80°, but I still carried her around with me for a full day of “citying” and made my friend ship her home to me when she wouldn’t fit in my carryon.

What do I love about her?

First things first, how often do you see a vintage 80’s rabbit fur bomber jacket?? The cream color is a perfect winter white, and the gold satin lining just adds to the luxeness of her. I knew I was going to have a hard time wearing anything else this winter.

I know what you’re thinking, a cream and gold rabbit fur bomber jacket is pretty recognizable and specific, not to mention hard to wear. You’re right, she is. That’s the whole point of a statement piece. The real trick to making it a part of your wardrobe is to make your wardrobe work around the piece. If you don’t do this, the piece wears you, not the other way around. That’s when you find yourself pulling her out, sighing over her, and then tucking her back into the closet because its already been done and you don’t want to wear the same look over and over.

Ok, enough about my LFB. I promised you a tutorial. There are 3 rules you need to follow with every outfit in order to make your statement piece a favorite you can wear again and again. Let’s get into them.

1 Be “Extra”

This one should be the easiest concept to grasp. You already know that your statement piece is extra. That’s why she makes a statement. You’re tracking with me here, right?

In order for her to feel like a part of your outfit and not some usurper taking over your everyday style, you need to make sure she’s got a friend or two hanging out with her. That doesn’t mean you go all out and wear an outfit of nothing but statement pieces. Not at all. What you need to do is reflect some of the things that make your statement piece special in other places in your outfit. This ties her in to the overall look and makes it feel more cohesive.

Case in point: I’ve even worn my LFB post hike with a look that was anything but chic before she came to the party. By adding a little fur on my beanie and my beer-drinking boots the LFB starts to make sense as part of the overall look, rather than being totally confusing with dirty hiking pants.

2 Coordinate

This is similar to the first rule. Its also the opposite. Don’t do too many things at once, especially introducing competing colors and patterns into the look. Think about playing off the most obvious aesthetic of your statement piece in order to make your outfit feel cohesive.

I did this with a work outfit by focusing on two things about my LFB to coordinate with the rest of my outfit. First, texture. Obviously LFB is very soft and luxurious, and I wanted to create a texture theme playing off of that fact. I used soft twill trousers and a suede top to play up the luxe factor of the entire outfit. Next, I made sure that the colors I chose were all from a warm neutral palette, even though they did not match. That way, there is not one obvious color pop or piece that stands out.

If you’re going to be like me, and work your statement piece into a work outfit, you should also make sure your shapes coordinate and make sense together here. I am using layering in this outfit to make a fun play on multiple tailored pieces. By layering the work-appropriate styles and keeping them untucked, the overall look is not too formal or fussy, which makes the unstructured fit of the LFB fit in nicely.

Here’s another example of a coordinating outfit that takes the theme of my LFB to the next level. I wore this for – what else – date night with Mr. Wonderful.

Winter whites are one of my favorite ways to be extra while staying warm this time of year. It is also a fabulous way to coordinate with the cream fur of my statement piece. I took it to the next level by adding some metallic accessories that played off the gold satin lining, and some fur mittens.

3 Stay In Your Comfort Zone

Let’s be truly honest, no outfit works if you aren’t comfortable and confident wearing it. This is straightforward Style 101. So, with that in mind, you should never buy or style a statement piece if it doesn’t fit within your existing aesthetic.

I’ve also worn my LFB in what would I would term a very casual weekend outfit. I stuck to the first two rules, adding a little pop of gold and making sure that all the other pieces of my outfit did not compete with the statement piece. Because I already love wearing interesting jackets and blazers, especially with casual looks, it fit right in to an outfit that is quintessentially “Kait”.

I feel like this is a foolproof set of rules that will help you wear any piece of clothing you love, no matter how out-there it may be. I think it works. Do you agree?

Tell me. Maybe I can help you with your LFB.

XOXO,