A Minimalist’s Guide to Accessories

August 3, 2020

Accessorizing a minimalist outfit means being selective about your jewelry, as well as intentional. 

This minimalist’s style guide to accessories will help you answer these questions, as many of my personal styling clients have asked before.

Question 1. Do I need to wear accessories?

No!

You don’t have to wear accessories to be fashionable. It’s a personal preference. 

For me, I accessorize my minimalist outfits with simply my wedding ring and my hoops and that’s all. Sometimes I will put on a statement earring or maybe some bracelets but it’s a bit too high maintenance for me for day to day wear.

You shouldn’t feel pressure to wear jewelry in any way, and you can remain stylish and fashionable without it as well.

Question 2. If I do want to wear jewelry, where do I start?

First, figure out which type of jewelry you actually enjoy wearing. 

If bracelets just get in the way when you are typing or working, and you always end up taking them off, maybe those aren’t for you. 

If earrings get caught in your hair and bother you, it’s defeating one of the main purposes of accessorizing a minimalist outfit: function. 

If you want to keep things simple, invest in gold and silver. Between those two metals, you’ll be set to wear them with any outfit.

My recommendation: 

Mini Natasha Hoops | Jennifer Fisher

These simple and classic earrings could accompany a cocktail dress or jeans and a plain tee equally well, making them a versatile choice. These 1-inch hoops come in yellow gold, silver, and rose gold options.

Not sure the size of the hoops you should get? 

If you want to be sassy, get a bigger hoop! For formal and business casual offices, play it safe with a smaller hoop (1 inch or smaller)

Question 3. “I already love wearing jewelry, but how do I wear it?”

Just because you’ve committed to dressing like a minimalist doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a variety of jewelry as you have before. 

Jewelry is meant to be fun, so there are no hard and fast rules you have to follow.

My advice to my styling clients who ask me about wearing jewelry is to let one piece have the spotlight at a time. If I wear a statement earring, I won’t pair it with a statement necklace. I might wear bracelets instead to allow the earring to be the focal point.

So, start with your statement piece and tone down other choices from there if you are wearing earrings, necklaces, bracelets and/or rings all together at once. 

If you are looking for some new jewelry designers as inspiration on what to buy next, simply check out a department store website and scroll through their jewelry section. 

This will help you narrow down what designers you like and want to follow as you make your current and future purchases.

My recommendation: 

Net a Porter jewelry

This brand is one of my go-to choices, as they offer simple yet interesting details on their jewelry, in quality materials such as gold and silver. Check out their site to build your jewelry collection through statement pieces and simple everyday wear options.

The main takeaway

Jewelry should be fun, and should not feel forced. 

A minimalist’s guide to accessorizing can be boiled down to one guideline: go with what you are interested in, without wearing too many statement pieces at once.

About the Author - Cassandra Sethi
About the Author - Cassandra Sethi

Personal Stylist & Image Consultant

Cassandra Sethi is a Personal Stylist and Founder of Next Level Wardrobe, a luxury Personal Styling and Shopping Service that helps successful professionals of all ages and sizes. After working in the fashion industry for over 25 years, she used her expert knowledge to create a proprietary styling system called ‘The Next Level Wardrobe Style System' which guarantees clients more outfits with less items in their closet. NLW has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, The Tamron Hall Show, NY Mag, Huffington Post and more.

*Disclosure: Next Level Wardrobe only recommends products that we’d suggest to our clients or personally wear ourselves. All opinions expressed here are our own. This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, Next Level Wardrobe may earn a small commission. Read the full privacy policy here.

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Cassandra Sethi

is a NYC Personal Stylist and Image Consultant. She is the Founder of Next Level Wardrobe and 'The NLW Style System' that guarantees clients more outfits with less items.

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