Sweatpants are hands down one of our favorite types of clothes: they’re comfy, versatile, and the perfect active or loungewear. But how do we make them fashion goals? While it’s easy sometimes to slink back into your sweatshirt and messy bun, it’s definitely fun to dress up your favorite sweats and go out feeling cute and fashionable. So here are our tips for how to level up your sweatpants game and be Instagram-ready and comfortable.
The first step to sweatpants’ fashion goals is to invest in some good ones – they don’t have to be expensive or name brand, but try to find some nice, fitted sweatpants to base your outfit around. For one thing, fitted sweatpants will do wonders for your butt. While baggy sweatpants can be a nice aesthetic look, but it’s fitted sweatpants that will emphasize and enunciate your figure. The better you feel like your body looks in your sweats, the better you’ll feel going out in them. Nice sweats are like nice jeans – still comfortable, but dang, that cake.
Shoes are the second step for upping your sweatpants to fashion goals. For casual looks, buying nice tennis shoes or combat boots/doc martens can be a great pairing for sweatpants. This keeps the casual, comfy feel of the sweatpants aesthetic but also adds a little extra spice to your outfit. Personally, I like to add a pair of Timberlands or clean Nike tennis shoes with my black joggers. That way I can look cute and active without actually being active (which, let’s be real, who actually works out in sweatpants).
If you wanna go a step beyond cute and active with tennis shoes into sexy, classy fashion goals territory, then pairing your nice sweatpants with a cute pair of heels is the definite choice. Pairing heels with a cute sweatpants outfit can be a great brunch look or night out with the girls, and you will both feel comfy and classy in this aesthetic. That being said, for those who can’t wear heels for very long, nice flats or simple booties can also be a great way to class up the sweatpants look without having to suffer in heels.
I do not need an excuse to wear a crop top and crop tops are always the answer in my opinion, so what’s better for turning sweatpants into fashion goals than a cute crop top? Crop tops can add a nice vintage t-shirt aesthetic without the baggy extra shirt materials, and the lack of said materials can really help emphasize your body shape. Remember how we found sweatpants that made our butt look good? You don’t want to immediately pair those nice butt pants with a shirt that hides your curves! So pick a crop top and let your fly booty speak for itself.
The best way to dress anything up and make sweatpants into fashion goals is through layers. Whether it’s a nice blazer, a bomber or leather jacket, or just an oversized flannel, layers can add extra depth, patterns, and textures to your sweatpants look. Don’t be afraid of creating interesting length dynamics in your layers – if everything is long and the same length, then it can make you look frumpy and shapeless. But if you pair a long flannel or bomber with a cute bandeau or crop top and some nice sweatpants, your outfit will skyrocket from bleh to boss babe.
The best way to dress up any looks and make them fashion goals is to dress yourself up in other areas. Even a full sweatpants look can be Instagram-ready if you’re hair and makeup are done. That’s not to say that you have to do your makeup to look good – I’m all for the natural look. However, you do have to admit that sometimes you just feel better when you know your hair and makeup are done. And that’s totally cool! Even if all you do is a little highlighter, eyebrows, and mascara, just by adding that little extra touch to your overall look you can level up your sweatpants game.
I’m a sucker for accessories – I go through phases of overbuying necklaces, earrings, hats, and hair accessories. And I can say that, without a doubt, my outfit rises to fashion goals when I add some extra accessories to my look. It’s the same with your sweatpants aesthetic. By adding a nice necklace, some hoop earrings, or a cute cap or bucket hat, your overall outfit will start to look more put together and classy. Have some cute sunglasses or chunky bracelets? Yes, please add them, your outfit will become a top-tier fashion inspiration.
Another option for accessorizing your sweatpants outfit and becoming fashion goals is by choosing a statement bag to add to your look. Maybe it’s a tiny Lizzo inspired purse, maybe it’s an inspired cross-body bag, maybe it’s an oversized canvas purse. Whatever your purse aesthetic is, it can be a great addition to a sweatpants look by just adding that statement piece to the overall outfit. Added bonus – extra pocket space.
Nothing is more classy – and, in turn, fashion goals – than an overall monochrome look. Whether you go all white, all black, or just pick one color and run with it, by creating a unified aesthetic in your sweatpants look, you can make it comfy and classy. Plus, no matter whether it’s sweatpants or jeans or slacks, a monochrome look is always a fashion inspiration in my opinion. But a monochrome sweatpants look allows you to look good and still never leave your comfy, stay-at-home athleisure wear.
If monochrome isn’t your thing, that’s totally fine! You can still achieve fashion goals by really emphasizing a fun, flashy print in your sweatpants’ look. Whether you choose to wear sweatpants with a fun print, or maybe layering a patterned, short-sleeved button-down over your crop top, adding that extra print can bring some excitement to your cute, casual outfit. Go extra wild and find some fun patterned tennis shoes – you’re outfit will be original and unique and perfect for a casual day out on the town.
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