Exploring The 2021 Feel Good Fashion Trend: Dopamine Dressing

It turns out there's a logic to dressing up that's scientifically proven to make you feel happier, and it happens to be the new wave in fashion.

We were big on comfort last year. While you may not be ready to relinquish loungewear, dopamine dressing may be the kick your closet, and your emotions need.

Dopamine dressing is essentially all about dressing up to feel good. Though it may be nothing new, we're expecting it to become more prominent in 2021.

What Is Dopamine Dressing?

Have you ever taken note of the effect that your clothes have on your mood and, subsequently, your behavior? The way wearing a flowy dress can make you feel cheerful and confident. Not quite the same as when you're in your all grey sweats.

When we are confident, we are able to exert influence through our confidence alone. When we feel good, we are likely to be perceived as looking good too, as our posture, voice and other nonverbal aspects will be more positive.”

Behavioral psychologist and author of The Psychology of Fashion, Carolyn Mair, told Stylist.

Research

A study released in 2012 found that when participants were asked to wear clothing that held some to them meaning, their perceived confidence increased.

“What we wear is how we show ourselves to those we interact with - we are influenced by their reaction to it. If we are well received, it boosts our confidence and can ultimately affect our wellbeing.”

Mair added

There's No Hard Rules

There are supposedly no hard rules to dopamine dressing, and it really depends on the individual. While some people associate yellow with cheerfulness, it isn't the case for everyone.

In this way, it truly is about bringing mindfulness into your fashion choices. That means understanding how to dress to cater to your mood on a particular day. So it seems there's a logic to lucky undies after all.

Recommended Colors

While, of course, we relate to colors subjectively, if you don't know where to start, you could try colors like red, which is generally quite vibrant and bold.

You might also think pink, the go-to happy go lucky color yellow, and sometimes light blue could have a calming effect. But again, it's all up to you.

Takeaways

Consider not only the different colors that you're wearing but also how the different fabrics and patterns make you feel and move.

While one your shot of dopamine may be obtained with a red power suit, other days, it may be a wrap dress or even those old reliable sweats. The only rule is to listen to what your body is telling you.