The essence of making any budget outfit “look” expensive is to go for the quiet luxury aesthetic. This means prioritizing color palettes and materials over designer logos, loud accessories, and flashy graphics.

But that’s easier said than done. What does it mean to dress quietly luxurious? And how do you accomplish this for spring?

We’ve created this spring lookbook to answer these questions and help you look expensive, without breaking the bank.

Neutral palette
The easiest sophisticated looking spring outfit to pull off is one with a neutral palette. Think earthy tones and neutral shades like beige, cream, white, navy and olive. Clothes in these colors will also help you create a ‘capsule’ wardrobe. A capsule wardrobe is a collection where you can easily mix and match different clothes because they work so well with each other. Minimalist, logo-less clothing in neutral colors help you achieve just that.

Here are a few outfit ideas:

Outfit 1- White chino pants, white shirts layered with a navy or beige sweater/upper.
Outfit 2- Lightly colored pants paired with a knit polo or light fabric shirt for cooler days
Outfit 3- If it’s chilly, incorporate a classic trench coat in neutral color like beige or camel.

Dark palette
Dark palettes can make you look like a thousand bucks especially on nights out when it’s a bit chilly. Outfits dominated with black colors exude a bit of mystery and sleekness which works very well to make you look expensive. For outfits in this style, the quality of the fabric is non-negotiable. Here are a few ideas:

Outfit 1- All black chino pants with a high quality turtleneck or pullover. Minimal accessories like a ring and watch.
Outfit 2 -Black shirt paired with black pants and high quality leather shoes or chelsea boots.
Outfit 3- High quality tank or black polo shirt. Wear with black pants for an amazing night out outfit. Can also be worn tucked with a white pants and accessories like watch and sunglasses.

Spring Pallette
We’ve covered neutral and dark looks but that doesn’t do spring justice. After all, spring is the season of colors. We know pairing colors properly can be tricky, so here are a few colorful outfit ideas:

Outfit 1-A teal shirt with white linen pants or burgundy pants with a white shirt and loafers.
Outfit 2- A striped button up shirt over a white crew neck t-shirt and pair them with beige chinos or shorts and white sneakers for a casual spring outfit
Outfit 3 -lightweight blazer in a bold shade like forest green or peach fuzz, layered over a knit polo shirt, paired with indigo jeans and classic white low-top sneakers.

There you go,

A big misconception of this aesthetic is that you need to spend a lot of money to make it work. That’s not true. Brands such as H&M and Zara offer affordable options for these styles. Luxurious spring outfits aren’t about money but about knowing what works.

Follow these tips and you’ll always look your sharpest this spring.

-Forte Team