Dress in stripes and checks

Is it appropriate to wear stripes and checks? Despite the tendency to think otherwise, including stripes and squares in the same look is no nonsense. In fact, joining these two prints is a much better idea than it may seem.

It should be noted that it is not the easiest combination to carry out that exists (there are things less risky), but it is worth a try if you want raise the level of your looks while giving them a personal touch.

A risky combination, but with a lot of potential

Stripes and plaids are very interesting and have great potential when they go hand in hand.. You just need to be a little more careful than usual. Compared to other combinations, when you dress in stripes and plaid in any way, without any planning, the result is more likely to be a disaster. However, it is much simpler than it seems.

If you have a striped piece and a plaid piece that you would like to include in the same look, the first thing to do is look at their colors. If you find that these work well together (something personal preferences can weigh a lot on), this is a great start. In this sense, dressing in stripes and checks is no different from dressing in plain colors or combining prints and plain colors. In the end it all comes down to whether two, three or more garments work well as a team or not.

Keep the color palette under control in formal looks

When it comes to the formal style, tonal looks are the safe bet. Stripes and squares of similar colors (blues, browns, grays) help take the look away from clutter and closer to that smooth effect needed on big dates.

The secret is in the striped ties. And is that the most frequent combinations are a suit or a checked shirt with a striped tie. Make sure that at least one color of the tie matches your chosen plaid garment. In this case we have a navy blue suit, this color also being the link between the two patterns.

Stripes and squares, better concentrated or distributed?

This is one of the most common doubts. The answer is that both ways are valid. What matters is that the look makes sense and does not clash in the context where you are going to wear it. You can wear concentrated checks and stripes on the top and plain trousers on the bottom to counteract. For example through an open plaid shirt over a horizontal striped t-shirt or a plaid shirt and a striped tie.

But, as you can see, spreading the two prints in your look between the top and the bottom also works. In this case it is an oversize knitted sweater and slim fit pants. Although this is not always the case, given the presence of prints on both the top and the bottom, the result tends to be more striking. The dominance of black in the jersey helps balance the color palette of the look.

Stripes and pictures on the catwalks

The catwalks are an unrivaled source of inspiration to combine all kinds of garments, and stripes and checks are no exception.

Without going further, the collections of this season offer many good ideas to dress stripes and checks. Both relaxed and more formal looks are enriched when these two prints come into play.

Contrary to what it may seem, zebra stripes are easy to match due to the black and white giving them neutrality. Bottega Veneta proposes to wear a shirt with this type of print under a daring red checkered suit jacket.

This Brunello Cucinelli look proves that formality is not incompatible with individuality. Striped tie and classic checked coat are combined with a separate blazer and trousers for a very stylish look.

When it comes to wearing stripes and plaids, accessories like the scarf have a lot to say. And this is demonstrated in this look from the Ami brand, consisting of a checked blazer and a matching striped scarf. An interesting idea to easily give depth to winter looks.

Can you wear stripes and plaid from head to toe without making a mess? Missoni, one of the masters of prints, shows that she does by combining striped sweater and trousers with a checked coat. The secret is that all patterns are in neutral colors except for the bright blue of the knitted sweater.