People no longer possess the ability to critically think. If they took a moment to stop and ask themselves..."Is this harmful and I should speak out against this, or do I just not resonate with what this person is saying/doing?" Too many people feel that their opinion is more important than others. At the end of the day it's not that deep but they thrive on being upset about almost anything in life.
It reminds me of basically every recipe online. Without fail there is someone moaning that the recipe is excluding them because they can't eat or don't like XYZ key ingredient. Rather than pausing and thinking, hmm maybe this just isn't for me and MOVING ON, they decide it is best to complain at the creator. Very childish & indicative of main character syndrome!
Miranda’s monologue in Devil Wears Prada is iconic and so accurate. How even the choices you make are influenced by something that has lead you there. To the people who say “I wear whatever I want” do you wear clothing seven sizes too big for you or shoes three sizes too small so they squeeze you and fall off your body? How about makeup that’s completely the wrong shade for you, like way too dark or too light for you. No you don’t… because you follow size guides. Those are rules and yet you follow them. You actually don’t wear whatever you want, you choose in a set of clothing that fits you the options that resonate. That’s the same as style theory. Make it make sense
If what you said was true, we would all agree on what looks good and what looks bad and instinctively follow those rules. And we very clearly don’t. We apparently all need to be lectured for hours on “style rules” by “experts” and “professionals” in order to find out what ✨really✨ looks good on ourselves and others. 🙃 (Also, seven sizes too big would just be horribly impractical and uncomfortable, so on that basis alone people aren’t doing that 🙃)
The "rules" don't tell us what to wear or what colors to wear. They just tell us how certain things will look on us and that can help us achieve the look we want. It's incredibly childish to go around saying "I wear whatever I want" because that's a given. The point is to wear what you want with purpose instead of spending a lot of time and money trying to achieve a certain look only to end up looking nothing like what we wanted to.
Why do you want to break rules? This feels repellent. People like to think of themselves as “rule breakers” but the truth is that having personal style means the opposite of that - you learn the rules then you use them in original ways. What rules did Grace Kelly “break”? And if you point to something like punk then I will say that punk is deliberately ugly - is that what you want? To be deliberately ugly? Or, do you think you are a fashion genius like Ralph Lauren or Coco Chanel? Please show us the fruits of your rule-breaking labours. 🙄
I was an art student for a while and I had multiple teachers/mentors say the same thing in different words. Here's my paraphrase: "if you actually want to break the rules and push boundaries, you have to actually learn what those rules and boundaries are and understand them and even follow them in practice at first" ... I think this definitely applies to style of course. I feel like these people who make negative comments need to understand this. Learning about style theory will only help you truly do what you want to do, whether or not you follow the rules or break them
Omg yes! This needed to be said. I have a friend that swears color theory isn’t real and you should just wear whatever you want smh. It’s literally an art form, I hate that stylists don’t get the respect they deserve.
A few years ago I asked myself, "why do clothes look so bad on me?" Then searched for videos that helped me with this. I learned about my lines and essentially learned what looks fabulous on me. Some of us want and need videos like these.
I love that you speak your truth without fear of upsetting that 1% who leave annoying comments. I have gained so much insight from your videos, never stop posting please!
Merriam, no matter what other people say, I want you to know that you and others who helped me understand my body made me see myself differently and helped my body image so much! I know it’s hard to have a YT channel and deal with a lot of abuse in the comment section. But I want you to know you are helping people like me who couldn’t figure out why I hated myself in my clothes. I was just wearing the wrong lines, wrong colors, wrong essence. You and others like Thoughts by Rita and Elle Jean and the other Kibbe and personal style creators have helped me love my body. So please don’t stop creating content! You are helping people. We are just not as loud in the comments as the people with egos who can’t accept their true selves. The loudest people are the ones who are in denial about their lines or essence. I feel sorry for them. They judge others because they judge themselves. But I love your input and your perspective and it has helped me immensely so thank you!
I’ve said something like that before, but to friends, not in video comments, and I meant it in the context of knowing what looks good on me in the first place - as in, “you have to first know the rules in order to break them effectively.” And your videos have helped me improve the skills to do that. I once had an art teacher who said: whatever you do, you have to make it look intentional, otherwise it looks like a mistake.
I was trying to explain the Kibbe style system to a friend and he reacted like I was talking about fairies and magic spells. I said, “This isn’t magic. It’s geometry.”
That's hilarious. Alot of men will dismiss ideas/concepts/theories that women express interest in, no matter the topic. Not even to be intentionally obnoxious or dismissive, but out of a genuine subconscious notion that women make up baseless wivestale-type-hokum to, idk, occupy our time with delusional make-belief. Meanwhile, many of them are busy fantasizing about the alpha and omega-verse.
Some people are so arrogant and believe they need not learn anything from anyone. It must get exhausting dealing with all the stupid comments. Thank you for sharing your understanding of color and body typing so that we can all wear whatever we want in the best way possible. ❤
Lol. TH-camrs are subjected to all these crazy people who choose to watch and then critique. Every time they have to qualify their statements when we tune in precisely for that information. Not easy to ignore I'm sure, but they're not going anywhere. Love your content.
Very well said. I loooove color analysis and the kibbe system 💕💖. They are so useful. I used to get sad when I looked horrible with opposite lines/colours.
I've used this analogy before so it really resonated with me and it was great to hear you express the same way of thinking about learning about style. Thanks Merriam.
These same kinds of people do this with personality systems (for example). They are what they are, but refuse to be put into a "box", while continuing to be what they are. Thanks for the logic & reason, we need more of this in the world rn. :)
i liked what you said around the 12:30 mark: your actions don’t have rules, they just have consequences, i.e. obvs wear whatever you want, just know that wearing clothes that go against your lines will come with the consequence of not looking native on you. 🙂🤷🏻♀️
Thank you for making this video, I've thought this way before and in my experience (that I've grown beyond) is from decades of people not explaining that the rules in art and other things are a way of looking at the world and organizing the brain, and instead are framed more like overly stifling dress codes in school that punish you for showing shoulders, or not being able to sit down at work. Especially in the U.S. a lot of people are used to having really weird rules forced on them and haven't been able to grow beyond being rebellious against all rules in all aspects of life. It's so important to realize that a lot of rules are designed to open your world and perspective instead of closing it. I hope more people are respectful towards you going forward, and mature into appreciating knowledge from people who have studied style, art, and other specialized fields.
To be fair, some style channels do tell people what to wear, and sometimes their "rules" are more subjective, rather than based on study. That's why it's still important to encourage creativity in people, especially if these rule followers take it to heart so much, and try to spread the message. It's better to give them a good message to spread.
So well said! Thank you for putting this into perspective for everyone 🙏 I think this all the time but haven't been able to articulate it this well. NO ONE IS IS TRYING TO TELL YOU WHAT TO DO lol 😅
Normally, people who does want to follow rules are the persons that needed the most...:) You give a guideline, that we choose to follow or not...Thanks for your values....
"I wear whatever I want" "Yeah, I think I saw you in one of those Walmart customers compilations" 😂 💖 💖 💖 💖 💖 💖 💖 Honesty Merriam I hope you know how much you help people like me, how much I appreciate your advice. Even when I wear my work uniform, that is designed to make everyone look horrible I can use your advice to style it with as little as I am allowed to, tomake me more feminine and less like a drone. I always appreciated how you're straight to the point rather than apologising every two minutes and throwing in a sentence to validate those insecure, immature people.
My fine artist husband would totally agree with you, Merriam! How can anyone be an artist or [fill in the blank] without skills? But it happens. Unfortunately, most of the artists claiming that title nowadays actually don't have many skills. The reason art looks so weird and disjointed today is that the 'artists' just plain can't draw, don't understand paint and varnish properties, etc., etc. They just pick up some tools and come up with a 'brand' of art and call it good. Thank you for offering principles.
Thank you for making that great comparison in the start about the art class. I always found it so silly when people click on a how-to video, then take exception at that person giving them how to accomplish that certain thing advice!😂 It's especially rampant on the how to dress more classy videos. They'll leave comments like 'everybody should dress however they' please, and I'm thinking 'uh yeah' that's why I clicked on this video on how to dress classy...because I want to dress classy. I don't get the disconnect. Keep up the great work Merriam, it's been beneficial to alot of people's lives😘
This is very honest and really resonated with me. I’ve been studying style and color theory for years. Taking a deep dive into these over the last 2 years, especially. Information is key. Picasso reportedly said to learn the rules like an artist, so you can break them. The more I watch your videos the more your thoughts and messages resonate.
I love creativity and it’s always been my obsession… nothing better than a frame, some structure to create like crazy inside of it ! I really appreciate people who can offer a solid structure or frame, as it makes me feel more free and more confident to try and explore things ! Thanx for your work, Merriam ;)
Don't let them get under your skin. Some people are just annoying, trying to play devils advocates. Ugh! 1800 ignore! 😅 that's what I do! Getting trolls means your channel is growing! 🎉❤ your biggest fan! Teresa
There are lots of outfits that I really like that I would love to wear BUT I know they'd look like crap on me. Or some colors. Nobody really wants to wear things that are unflattering, and we all want to look good. Sure that can be subjective to a point, but optics are what they are and how certain types of clothes hang on your body just is what it is.
Yes!!! I use this as a guideline not end all be all, and it’s helped me understand my body better especially after becoming a mother. Many influencers who mock this just do not get the general use of these types of analysis for those of us who are trying to understand our own bodies as it changes. Thank you Merriam! ❤
Love your vid and agree! I think a lot of the frustration around style discourse is actually a frustration with the ever changing lens of fashion. Someone will have a nice wardrobe that they love, and after a few years, even if it perfectly suits their personal style, it may just not look “right”, or as classic as it may have seemed at first. It’s costly, out of one’s control, and if you don’t update somehow it’s like the world moves on without you. I worked in fashion for many years and many men an women expressed this frustration to me.
Why would a person like that, (who doens´t even like advises presented to them or others) would even come to these kind of channels. These advises could be really helpful to them, but yeah, it sounds very immature. I really appreciate that someone with this kind of education and knowledge that Merriam Style has, is giving they consultation for us! Really has helped me a lot!
That was nice and all but... I wear whatever I want (😂)! I frequently see comments like these on body typing and colour analysis channels. Not too long ago, I responded to a comment on a colour analysis channel that said something like "People don't need this, they can do whatever they want." I replied to the girl, saying, "It's ironic that people like you who always say that people can do whatever they want are the first to get upset under this type of videos because are choosing to follow these rules."
That makes me so bad when people think that someone is trying to "tell " them what to wear, it's like they are on constant alert to someone telling them what to do. What do they think that all the analisis or beauty helpers are trying to put them in a box that is very immature. Nobody is trying to put your personality into a box.
I have been seeing this everywhere and come to the same conclusions as you. I keep seeing, in particular, women who are professional painters, creative directors, personal stylists (who don't do color, beauty or fashion creators, talk about how people don't need these systems. One in particular made an entire video on how seasonal analysis is wrong or unnecessary but all you need to understand is contrast. The irony! Her profession tells me she understands color theory, and her appearance told me she's a muted color type, thus her obsession with contrast. They literally bash while observing their own characteristics and follow rules they bash! I'm not so sure why image professionals get so much disrespect.
I think I saw the video you mean! I guess I thought the same at first, because I was really actually confused about what seasonal colors are. But Merriam helped me understand it better and over time and reading about it I finally got it😅 And now I wear my best colors and I'm very happy.
Excellent video. I got so tired of people who thought they were "above rules" in writing classes. Typically they were the least talented who couldn't bother learning about techniques. Your channel is non-judgmental & helps us navigate our own personal style and vision. There is a great deal of flexibility. Clearly if I was going to Ascot or a picnic, I would approach each event differently.
Well said! Especially the art teacher analogy....Though the way things are going these days I wouldn't be surprised in the least if a teacher stood up there and made the typical disclaimer about just doing you! lol
I remember my school years 😂😂😂. I was really good in biology, like I knew and understood more things as on the school programme, also I was participating in competitions. Lots of my classmates would ask me to explain some things from the last lecture or how better to answer questions from homework. There was one schoolmate who was always asking me if she her answer is korrekt, and sometimes I would tell that she understood it wrong, or I would just say something additional to make it better, cause our teacher would collect those exercise books and then would evaluate it, so I would just give some tips how some things sound more reasonable and more intelligent. Plus I knew my teacher well, she was preparing me for competitions and I would usually know what she wants us to learn. Sadly that girl would always get into arguments with me, cause she would like to make different theories how things are not how they are…. Once I just told her, just stop asking me, because it makes no sense, cause you jest get irritated and you irritate me, also its time used for silly debates…
I don't understand why people would come watch these videos if they thought "anything goes". I find color theory interesting and I enjoy your perspective. And hey - if people don't wanna wear their best colors or be the best version of themselves, more power to them. I enjoy all the knowledge and applying it to my style! 💙
I wonder if you get a lot of hate because people don’t like to be confronted with the possibility of being uneducated about something they supposedly love. Maybe the very idea that they don’t know something about this thing (fashion, style) that they would like to believe they are good at is enough to attack you personally or get easily offended. I’m an artists and I’ve studied the fundamentals and had the privilege of having great teachers. Everything I know about art ties in perfectly to the style principles you talk about on your channel. Shapes, color, contrast, etc knowing these things makes you a better artist and a better stylist. It’s undeniable and anyone who argues otherwise is simply uneducated and ignorant.
Hi Merrium, I suspect thise struggling with rules which really are guidelines, is they are possibly 'Why' People. They do not respond to 'what' or ' how' and ' then what'- which comes after understanding 'why'. You are excellent and 'what' . You expresse some of the why, near the end of this episode. You may want to place an umbrella of 'Why' the guidelines, in a simple sentence near beginning of wach episode and even thumbnail another very basic video as to 'why' these guidelines are offered and have been studied for many years. Otherwise, just delete the comments. TH-cam will be offering them to a broad range of people not neccessarily interested in them. I learnt the WHY, WHAT, HOW, THEN WHAT, process of communicating information years ago during a speakers communication course. I was a fitness instructor at the time, and it was a guideline that helped me immensely. 'Why' people switch off immediately if they don't get told why they need to listen further. The other types are generally more willing to listen longer. I do enjoy your rants, though, and agree there are many adults that have clearly been given very little guidance on strategic thinking, or being a bit grown up.
Thanks for putting this one forward. I really like your work and have shared it. Not everyone is a feminine woman. Thanks for being one. And an intelligent and interesting one
It's the same phenomenon as with the bean soup video, where a person posted their recipe for bean soup and there were comments like "what if I don't like beans" then don't make the bean soup?? Rebal D made a great video making fun of this. People think things on their FY pages are actually directed at them, personally and specifically and it's bizzare.
if you are flamboyant gamine/mixed taught it is easier to get away with wearing colors that look separate from you/contrast with you in an unnatural way. I had a hell of a time finding my best colours bc of this
I would love if you could cover the different body types on athletes. You usually use models and actresses (I get it, there's a billion pictures available of them) but they're always SO thin. I feel like my muscle mass changes how my body type looks in certain lines. Or maybe it doesn't? I don't now, I just don't feel like I'll look the same in the recommendations when the pictures are always of these really thin celebrities.
I liked when you said you don’t have to follow the rules, but you will have the consequence. A little similar to how God says ‘I’ll forgive you your sin, if you ask, but you will still have the consequence’.
I agree. You know, I have seen this too. This entitled attitude is everywhere where people have no boundries and they think they can do and say what they want and they know better than teachers and people who have studied or have wisdom on a subject. The problem is people are so self focused and it creates an out of touch inflated ego. Humanity needs constructive criticism, structure, boundries, rules and knowledgeable people to learn and get advice from.
Unfortunately too many people believe that if you don’t say what they agree with you are simply wrong. Sorry you had to make this video, don’t stress about the stupid; you are clearly not stupid. Btw, I wear what I want, but I stay off the grass 😂
Unfortunately tradition and culture in general is changing. People are being socially conditioned to just be whatever they want, wear whatever they want, which is fine, but they take it to another level by then expecting to be praised by society although they behave and look ridiculous lol Social media use has normalized bullying which is turning adults into behaving like toddlers again. We’re not progressing, we’re regressing.
Personally i love colour theory and style analysis but i can also understand why some people don't care about any of that. Now i don't think such people should be watching these kind of channels and bashing the creators (that is like hating football, going for a game and then complaining the entire time). But saying that such people look "ridiculous" and presuming we are "better" than them because "oh we know how to harmonize our colours with our season" or whatever, could perhaps be a reason why SOME people take offence. At the end of the day it is literally clothes not a mission to Mars so it's not that deep and we shouldn't try acting like we are better than everyone else. Some people love football, some are indifferent and others hate it. It's fine.
I’ve gleaned much useful knowledge from your channel. I think at the end of the day people will comment and say things “under the disguise” of anonymity of online that they would NEVER say to anyone in person. Just my opinion.
It annoys me, too. You didn't knock on their door and invade their space to tell them this information. They sought you out. Or at least their algorithms showed them this content. Your other viewers are here to learn. To extrapolate on your art class analogy it's like them standing up in class and saying 'don't let the teacher force you to paint! Don't you know you can have whatever hobby you want? I don't paint. I prefer writing.' Don't enroll in an art class if you don't want to learn about art. Don't watch a style video if you don't want to learn about style. It's fine to not be particularly interested in style (though deep down i believe everyone wants to look good), but don't interrupt people who *are* interested in style whenever they try to talk about it. To be sympathetic though I think it's because style is so attached to body image issues and insecurities. A lot of people are very sensitive and defensive. And i do completely understand why. The world can be cruel and I've had lots of body image issues too - but blame giant corporations that capitalise on that, or men who have made sexist comments objectifying you. Don't unleash that rage on stylists who are trying to teach people how to enhance and celebrate their beauty.
I think that the people rejecting style & color systems may be accidentally doing something right without trying, for the examples you gave of being warm & delicate or an easy to dress body type, but I think that’s probably the minority of people and the majority are people who aren’t able to think about personal style. They probably can’t afford a new closet of clothes, don’t have the time to give to fitness to create their dream body, and lack the introspection required to realize they actually do have insecurities. Most people don’t think “I have insecurities so I’m going to confront those and do what I can to change what is in my power to change” most people just lash out at others as a result of their insecurities. The “I just wear whatever I want” people are trying to appear strong and not impacted by their lack of style when it really actually eats at them.
I think you’re actually being very generous here with the people who say they don’t follow any style rules. LOL. When I hear someone say this kind of thing, I don’t see them wearing things that actually look good. A lot of the time they only look decent because they are very young and for the moment they could get away with wearing a potato sack and not have it make them look tired and shapeless. Over time they will have to grow up when they wonder why they suddenly look horrible in everything, but they would look a lot better right now if they tried to maximize their appearance vs just trying to fit in with trends or show off their body with revealing clothes. A lot of very young people have the youthful vibrancy to their skin so even the colors don’t matter that much. By the time they are like 28 this will probably not be the case. On the other hand when older women have this attitude, it just explains why they have never looked very good in their life. So their loss.
THANK YOU!! It's like they believe they can live in a vacuum with zero external influence! Also, they say "you can wear whatever you want", yet they say "I don't wear it cause I don't like how it looks on me"... so which one is it? If you can wear whatever you want, then there's no looking good or bad. Admitting that something doesn't look good on you is admitting there are rules and logic to successful style!! Also, I hate when videos have a long *ss introduction with a list of disclaimers... adults won't need disclaimers such as "you can wear whatever you want" and "this is only my personal opinion"... it's obvious. It's common sense. If someone is offended, they shouldn't be on the internet in the first place...
Why do these people even search for these type of videos only to complain? I imagine if you broke down each body type or color analysis into %s in a population, those same complainers would gravitate to the rarest typing. They just want to be seen as special, like the sudden flood of INFJ personality types on dating apps a few years back. So immature.
As a professional artist, I think the analogy that works here is as follows. Pablo Picasso was a master at his craft. He broke rules to create something amazing, unique and groundbreaking. BUT he started out as a conventional artist, exploring the rules and determining for himself if those rules applied to his vision or not. If you are a beginner, exploring the rules is a healthy, and sometimes necessary, process. Some people explore those rules longer than others before settling into their own unique vision. Some people use more rules than others. The goal is always the same, however: bring your vision to life. Also, I don't agree that being a rebel is the same as being immature. A rebellious nature can sometimes lead to great creativity when harnessed in a positive way.
I love a lot of your content. I love that you are willing to speak out to things that you see going on, like in your recent just do your hair video. I have been a long- time follower, was an initial partaker of your club and you helped me immensely with dx-ing my Kibbe body-typing. We did not see the same on my coloring, I sensed a bit of defensiveness, not a problem because I do what I want. I say this very gently, the defensiveness is something to consider, people in here and elsewhere will always be hard on you guys, you're good, you don't need to be defensive, it's okay if someone disagrees, you're still good at what you do. Thank you for all your videos, I have learned a lot from you.
If you are going to shop, get hair cuts, wear makeup… might as well choose the items that suit you. Wearing what you “ want “ is just fine but it may not look good. Some will say “ I don’t care what others think “ that’s not true at all
The basis of it is never ever to say anything that might possibly upset someone because people are made of snow. This is paired with click bait that appeals to childish, petulant people, telling them whatever they want to hear and condoning their choices however poor.
I think is someone disagrees with the content of your channel they are free to stop watching and choose a different channel. I can't understand why people put other people down when they haven't got a notion what they are talking about. I have learned that in life you have to learn the rules before you break them.
Omg the story about your toddler lmao But yeah I don't understand why people are so adamant about wearing "whatever you want", it adds nothing to the conversation and it would be better to instead critique certain ideas they think could be tweaked and explain why. That I could respect. Another example is when people complain about the show What Not to Wear but don't think about any of the context about WHY the guests might need to tweak their wardrobe in certain situations. side rant- I am also sick of the people needing to be the exception to everything (i e. the "I'm so pale/olive/neutral), like, ok great, sounds like this content isn't really for you? Do you want a sticker for being neutral or pr olive or what? Just a pet peeve lol
Not to mention, if someone is very confident in their own style and style choices, then either they can take tips and learn from theory and still do what they choose, OR they would never even click on a video like this because it doesn't matter to them. Sounds like people are butt hurt to hear that someone may be judging them. Not very confident
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Feisty Merriam is the best Merriam.
People no longer possess the ability to critically think. If they took a moment to stop and ask themselves..."Is this harmful and I should speak out against this, or do I just not resonate with what this person is saying/doing?"
Too many people feel that their opinion is more important than others. At the end of the day it's not that deep but they thrive on being upset about almost anything in life.
Thinking is hard, that’s why most people judge
It reminds me of basically every recipe online. Without fail there is someone moaning that the recipe is excluding them because they can't eat or don't like XYZ key ingredient. Rather than pausing and thinking, hmm maybe this just isn't for me and MOVING ON, they decide it is best to complain at the creator. Very childish & indicative of main character syndrome!
@@mmmlextacy This!
Miranda’s monologue in Devil Wears Prada is iconic and so accurate. How even the choices you make are influenced by something that has lead you there.
To the people who say “I wear whatever I want” do you wear clothing seven sizes too big for you or shoes three sizes too small so they squeeze you and fall off your body? How about makeup that’s completely the wrong shade for you, like way too dark or too light for you. No you don’t… because you follow size guides. Those are rules and yet you follow them. You actually don’t wear whatever you want, you choose in a set of clothing that fits you the options that resonate. That’s the same as style theory. Make it make sense
They are not mature or aware enough to find it fascinating 😊
If what you said was true, we would all agree on what looks good and what looks bad and instinctively follow those rules. And we very clearly don’t. We apparently all need to be lectured for hours on “style rules” by “experts” and “professionals” in order to find out what ✨really✨ looks good on ourselves and others. 🙃
(Also, seven sizes too big would just be horribly impractical and uncomfortable, so on that basis alone people aren’t doing that 🙃)
The "rules" don't tell us what to wear or what colors to wear. They just tell us how certain things will look on us and that can help us achieve the look we want. It's incredibly childish to go around saying "I wear whatever I want" because that's a given. The point is to wear what you want with purpose instead of spending a lot of time and money trying to achieve a certain look only to end up looking nothing like what we wanted to.
Very true!
In any artistic endeavor, we must know the rules in order to break them successfully.
Why do you want to break rules? This feels repellent. People like to think of themselves as “rule breakers” but the truth is that having personal style means the opposite of that - you learn the rules then you use them in original ways. What rules did Grace Kelly “break”? And if you point to something like punk then I will say that punk is deliberately ugly - is that what you want? To be deliberately ugly? Or, do you think you are a fashion genius like Ralph Lauren or Coco Chanel? Please show us the fruits of your rule-breaking labours. 🙄
People want to feel they are exceptional, special, or “advanced”.
I was an art student for a while and I had multiple teachers/mentors say the same thing in different words. Here's my paraphrase: "if you actually want to break the rules and push boundaries, you have to actually learn what those rules and boundaries are and understand them and even follow them in practice at first" ... I think this definitely applies to style of course. I feel like these people who make negative comments need to understand this. Learning about style theory will only help you truly do what you want to do, whether or not you follow the rules or break them
Omg yes! This needed to be said. I have a friend that swears color theory isn’t real and you should just wear whatever you want smh. It’s literally an art form, I hate that stylists don’t get the respect they deserve.
A few years ago I asked myself, "why do clothes look so bad on me?" Then searched for videos that helped me with this. I learned about my lines and essentially learned what looks fabulous on me. Some of us want and need videos like these.
I love that you speak your truth without fear of upsetting that 1% who leave annoying comments. I have gained so much insight from your videos, never stop posting please!
The 'cerulean blue' scene. One of my favourites.
Merriam, no matter what other people say, I want you to know that you and others who helped me understand my body made me see myself differently and helped my body image so much! I know it’s hard to have a YT channel and deal with a lot of abuse in the comment section. But I want you to know you are helping people like me who couldn’t figure out why I hated myself in my clothes. I was just wearing the wrong lines, wrong colors, wrong essence. You and others like Thoughts by Rita and Elle Jean and the other Kibbe and personal style creators have helped me love my body. So please don’t stop creating content! You are helping people. We are just not as loud in the comments as the people with egos who can’t accept their true selves. The loudest people are the ones who are in denial about their lines or essence. I feel sorry for them. They judge others because they judge themselves. But I love your input and your perspective and it has helped me immensely so thank you!
I actually don’t even care what Merriam talks about because I love everything about her!
I wear whatever I want - respecting my lines and colours 😅
I’ve said something like that before, but to friends, not in video comments, and I meant it in the context of knowing what looks good on me in the first place - as in, “you have to first know the rules in order to break them effectively.” And your videos have helped me improve the skills to do that. I once had an art teacher who said: whatever you do, you have to make it look intentional, otherwise it looks like a mistake.
I was trying to explain the Kibbe style system to a friend and he reacted like I was talking about fairies and magic spells. I said, “This isn’t magic. It’s geometry.”
Same 🤣🤣🤣
That's hilarious. Alot of men will dismiss ideas/concepts/theories that women express interest in, no matter the topic. Not even to be intentionally obnoxious or dismissive, but out of a genuine subconscious notion that women make up baseless wivestale-type-hokum to, idk, occupy our time with delusional make-belief. Meanwhile, many of them are busy fantasizing about the alpha and omega-verse.
I got the same reaction just talking about color seasons.
@@Witchmee It’s always the people who think they’re open minded who aren’t. Of course I really am. 😆
@@wildeevolution so true 😂.
Some people are so arrogant and believe they need not learn anything from anyone. It must get exhausting dealing with all the stupid comments. Thank you for sharing your understanding of color and body typing so that we can all wear whatever we want in the best way possible. ❤
Lol. TH-camrs are subjected to all these crazy people who choose to watch and then critique. Every time they have to qualify their statements when we tune in precisely for that information.
Not easy to ignore I'm sure, but they're not going anywhere.
Love your content.
You said what I tried to say only you said it far more effectively.
I love the rebel teenager part🤣😂
Very well said. I loooove color analysis and the kibbe system 💕💖. They are so useful. I used to get sad when I looked horrible with opposite lines/colours.
🫢🤭 Well-said Merriam! Well some people always have to have everything explained, they sadly can't think independently.
I've used this analogy before so it really resonated with me and it was great to hear you express the same way of thinking about learning about style. Thanks Merriam.
Absolutely yes to all of this! Perfectly said.
These same kinds of people do this with personality systems (for example). They are what they are, but refuse to be put into a "box", while continuing to be what they are. Thanks for the logic & reason, we need more of this in the world rn. :)
yeah, the INFP’s 😂
i liked what you said around the 12:30 mark: your actions don’t have rules, they just have consequences, i.e. obvs wear whatever you want, just know that wearing clothes that go against your lines will come with the consequence of not looking native on you. 🙂🤷🏻♀️
Thank you for making this video, I've thought this way before and in my experience (that I've grown beyond) is from decades of people not explaining that the rules in art and other things are a way of looking at the world and organizing the brain, and instead are framed more like overly stifling dress codes in school that punish you for showing shoulders, or not being able to sit down at work. Especially in the U.S. a lot of people are used to having really weird rules forced on them and haven't been able to grow beyond being rebellious against all rules in all aspects of life. It's so important to realize that a lot of rules are designed to open your world and perspective instead of closing it. I hope more people are respectful towards you going forward, and mature into appreciating knowledge from people who have studied style, art, and other specialized fields.
Mic drop !
So sad people needing to hear this won't ever watch this video
To be fair, some style channels do tell people what to wear, and sometimes their "rules" are more subjective, rather than based on study. That's why it's still important to encourage creativity in people, especially if these rule followers take it to heart so much, and try to spread the message. It's better to give them a good message to spread.
So well said! Thank you for putting this into perspective for everyone 🙏 I think this all the time but haven't been able to articulate it this well. NO ONE IS IS TRYING TO TELL YOU WHAT TO DO lol 😅
Normally, people who does want to follow rules are the persons that needed the most...:) You give a guideline, that we choose to follow or not...Thanks for your values....
"I wear whatever I want"
"Yeah, I think I saw you in one of those Walmart customers compilations" 😂
💖 💖 💖 💖 💖 💖 💖
Honesty Merriam I hope you know how much you help people like me, how much I appreciate your advice. Even when I wear my work uniform, that is designed to make everyone look horrible I can use your advice to style it with as little as I am allowed to, tomake me more feminine and less like a drone.
I always appreciated how you're straight to the point rather than apologising every two minutes and throwing in a sentence to validate those insecure, immature people.
My fine artist husband would totally agree with you, Merriam! How can anyone be an artist or [fill in the blank] without skills? But it happens. Unfortunately, most of the artists claiming that title nowadays actually don't have many skills. The reason art looks so weird and disjointed today is that the 'artists' just plain can't draw, don't understand paint and varnish properties, etc., etc. They just pick up some tools and come up with a 'brand' of art and call it good. Thank you for offering principles.
I saw someone selling their art pieces and I’m sorry to say they all looked so badly done. I totally agree with you…
Thank you for making that great comparison in the start about the art class. I always found it so silly when people click on a how-to video, then take exception at that person giving them how to accomplish that certain thing advice!😂 It's especially rampant on the how to dress more classy videos. They'll leave comments like 'everybody should dress however they' please, and I'm thinking 'uh yeah' that's why I clicked on this video on how to dress classy...because I want to dress classy. I don't get the disconnect. Keep up the great work Merriam, it's been beneficial to alot of people's lives😘
This is very honest and really resonated with me. I’ve been studying style and color theory for years. Taking a deep dive into these over the last 2 years, especially. Information is key. Picasso reportedly said to learn the rules like an artist, so you can break them. The more I watch your videos the more your thoughts and messages resonate.
I love creativity and it’s always been my obsession… nothing better than a frame, some structure to create like crazy inside of it ! I really appreciate people who can offer a solid structure or frame, as it makes me feel more free and more confident to try and explore things ! Thanx for your work, Merriam ;)
I need more wisdom from Merriam☝🏻
Dear Merriam, I have learned so much from you about style in previous videos.
Glad to see you smile at the end 😊. You have such an eye for style!
Don't let them get under your skin. Some people are just annoying, trying to play devils advocates. Ugh! 1800 ignore! 😅 that's what I do! Getting trolls means your channel is growing! 🎉❤ your biggest fan! Teresa
There are lots of outfits that I really like that I would love to wear BUT I know they'd look like crap on me. Or some colors. Nobody really wants to wear things that are unflattering, and we all want to look good. Sure that can be subjective to a point, but optics are what they are and how certain types of clothes hang on your body just is what it is.
Please make a video on- why highlighter and glowy foundation doesn’t suit some?
Yes!!! I use this as a guideline not end all be all, and it’s helped me understand my body better especially after becoming a mother. Many influencers who mock this just do not get the general use of these types of analysis for those of us who are trying to understand our own bodies as it changes. Thank you Merriam! ❤
Merriam: if you wanna be beautiful hmu. Otherwise GTFO
😂😂😂 I was dying this whole video. Intentional or not it was so funny
Love your vid and agree! I think a lot of the frustration around style discourse is actually a frustration with the ever changing lens of fashion. Someone will have a nice wardrobe that they love, and after a few years, even if it perfectly suits their personal style, it may just not look “right”, or as classic as it may have seemed at first. It’s costly, out of one’s control, and if you don’t update somehow it’s like the world moves on without you. I worked in fashion for many years and many men an women expressed this frustration to me.
Why would a person like that, (who doens´t even like advises presented to them or others) would even come to these kind of channels. These advises could be really helpful to them, but yeah, it sounds very immature. I really appreciate that someone with this kind of education and knowledge that Merriam Style has, is giving they consultation for us! Really has helped me a lot!
Brava! Could listen to you every day for inspiration!
I love finding ways to organize my mind 😊
Lol this is giving intj telling someone off vibes. The random I do what I want protesting has bugged me for awhile. Glad someone discussed it.
That was nice and all but... I wear whatever I want (😂)! I frequently see comments like these on body typing and colour analysis channels. Not too long ago, I responded to a comment on a colour analysis channel that said something like "People don't need this, they can do whatever they want." I replied to the girl, saying, "It's ironic that people like you who always say that people can do whatever they want are the first to get upset under this type of videos because are choosing to follow these rules."
That makes me so bad when people think that someone is trying to "tell " them what to wear, it's like they are on constant alert to someone telling them what to do. What do they think that all the analisis or beauty helpers are trying to put them in a box that is very immature. Nobody is trying to put your personality into a box.
Mad
I have been seeing this everywhere and come to the same conclusions as you. I keep seeing, in particular, women who are professional painters, creative directors, personal stylists (who don't do color, beauty or fashion creators, talk about how people don't need these systems. One in particular made an entire video on how seasonal analysis is wrong or unnecessary but all you need to understand is contrast. The irony! Her profession tells me she understands color theory, and her appearance told me she's a muted color type, thus her obsession with contrast. They literally bash while observing their own characteristics and follow rules they bash! I'm not so sure why image professionals get so much disrespect.
I think I saw the video you mean! I guess I thought the same at first, because I was really actually confused about what seasonal colors are. But Merriam helped me understand it better and over time and reading about it I finally got it😅 And now I wear my best colors and I'm very happy.
@Su-krosLily It was a video with lots of views. Glad you were able to understand eventually and found a system that works for you!
Excellent video. I got so tired of people who thought they were "above rules" in writing classes. Typically they were the least talented who couldn't bother learning about techniques. Your channel is non-judgmental & helps us navigate our own personal style and vision. There is a great deal of flexibility. Clearly if I was going to Ascot or a picnic, I would approach each event differently.
*mic drop* 😅 brava!
Well said! Especially the art teacher analogy....Though the way things are going these days I wouldn't be surprised in the least if a teacher stood up there and made the typical disclaimer about just doing you! lol
I remember my school years 😂😂😂. I was really good in biology, like I knew and understood more things as on the school programme, also I was participating in competitions. Lots of my classmates would ask me to explain some things from the last lecture or how better to answer questions from homework. There was one schoolmate who was always asking me if she her answer is korrekt, and sometimes I would tell that she understood it wrong, or I would just say something additional to make it better, cause our teacher would collect those exercise books and then would evaluate it, so I would just give some tips how some things sound more reasonable and more intelligent. Plus I knew my teacher well, she was preparing me for competitions and I would usually know what she wants us to learn. Sadly that girl would always get into arguments with me, cause she would like to make different theories how things are not how they are…. Once I just told her, just stop asking me, because it makes no sense, cause you jest get irritated and you irritate me, also its time used for silly debates…
Miriam, I love you ❤😂
I don't understand why people would come watch these videos if they thought "anything goes". I find color theory interesting and I enjoy your perspective. And hey - if people don't wanna wear their best colors or be the best version of themselves, more power to them. I enjoy all the knowledge and applying it to my style! 💙
I love your approach!
So well said, I agree completely
Go Merriam, we needed this said!
The devil wears prada is my FAVORITE movie. Love you
I love this lol the grass sign was a perfect explanation.
I wonder if you get a lot of hate because people don’t like to be confronted with the possibility of being uneducated about something they supposedly love. Maybe the very idea that they don’t know something about this thing (fashion, style) that they would like to believe they are good at is enough to attack you personally or get easily offended. I’m an artists and I’ve studied the fundamentals and had the privilege of having great teachers. Everything I know about art ties in perfectly to the style principles you talk about on your channel. Shapes, color, contrast, etc knowing these things makes you a better artist and a better stylist. It’s undeniable and anyone who argues otherwise is simply uneducated and ignorant.
Hi Merrium, I suspect thise struggling with rules which really are guidelines, is they are possibly 'Why' People.
They do not respond to 'what' or ' how' and ' then what'- which comes after understanding 'why'.
You are excellent and 'what' .
You expresse some of the why, near the end of this episode.
You may want to place an umbrella of 'Why' the guidelines, in a simple sentence near beginning of wach episode and even thumbnail another very basic video as to 'why' these guidelines are offered and have been studied for many years.
Otherwise, just delete the comments. TH-cam will be offering them to a broad range of people not neccessarily interested in them.
I learnt the WHY, WHAT, HOW, THEN WHAT, process of communicating information years ago during a speakers communication course. I was a fitness instructor at the time, and it was a guideline that helped me immensely.
'Why' people switch off immediately if they don't get told why they need to listen further. The other types are generally more willing to listen longer.
I do enjoy your rants, though, and agree there are many adults that have clearly been given very little guidance on strategic thinking, or being a bit grown up.
Thanks for putting this one forward. I really like your work and have shared it. Not everyone is a feminine woman. Thanks for being one. And an intelligent and interesting one
Some people are so weird …
we love Merriam 💕
It's the same phenomenon as with the bean soup video, where a person posted their recipe for bean soup and there were comments like "what if I don't like beans" then don't make the bean soup?? Rebal D made a great video making fun of this. People think things on their FY pages are actually directed at them, personally and specifically and it's bizzare.
I am warm and delicate and I do not look good in every colour
She was just generalizing
if you are flamboyant gamine/mixed taught it is easier to get away with wearing colors that look separate from you/contrast with you in an unnatural way. I had a hell of a time finding my best colours bc of this
You're killing me smalls
I would love if you could cover the different body types on athletes. You usually use models and actresses (I get it, there's a billion pictures available of them) but they're always SO thin. I feel like my muscle mass changes how my body type looks in certain lines. Or maybe it doesn't? I don't now, I just don't feel like I'll look the same in the recommendations when the pictures are always of these really thin celebrities.
I liked when you said you don’t have to follow the rules, but you will have the consequence. A little similar to how God says ‘I’ll forgive you your sin, if you ask, but you will still have the consequence’.
I agree. You know, I have seen this too. This entitled attitude is everywhere where people have no boundries and they think they can do and say what they want and they know better than teachers and people who have studied or have wisdom on a subject.
The problem is people are so self focused and it creates an out of touch inflated ego. Humanity needs constructive criticism, structure, boundries, rules and knowledgeable people to learn and get advice from.
Unfortunately too many people believe that if you don’t say what they agree with you are simply wrong. Sorry you had to make this video, don’t stress about the stupid; you are clearly not stupid. Btw, I wear what I want, but I stay off the grass 😂
Unfortunately tradition and culture in general is changing. People are being socially conditioned to just be whatever they want, wear whatever they want, which is fine, but they take it to another level by then expecting to be praised by society although they behave and look ridiculous lol Social media use has normalized bullying which is turning adults into behaving like toddlers again. We’re not progressing, we’re regressing.
You hit the nail on the head
Personally i love colour theory and style analysis but i can also understand why some people don't care about any of that. Now i don't think such people should be watching these kind of channels and bashing the creators (that is like hating football, going for a game and then complaining the entire time). But saying that such people look "ridiculous" and presuming we are "better" than them because "oh we know how to harmonize our colours with our season" or whatever, could perhaps be a reason why SOME people take offence. At the end of the day it is literally clothes not a mission to Mars so it's not that deep and we shouldn't try acting like we are better than everyone else. Some people love football, some are indifferent and others hate it. It's fine.
@@Pinkychi305 exactly
I love it how you are unapologetically aggressive-aggressive 😊
I’ve gleaned much useful knowledge from your channel. I think at the end of the day people will comment and say things “under the disguise” of anonymity of online that they would NEVER say to anyone in person. Just my opinion.
It annoys me, too. You didn't knock on their door and invade their space to tell them this information. They sought you out. Or at least their algorithms showed them this content. Your other viewers are here to learn. To extrapolate on your art class analogy it's like them standing up in class and saying 'don't let the teacher force you to paint! Don't you know you can have whatever hobby you want? I don't paint. I prefer writing.' Don't enroll in an art class if you don't want to learn about art. Don't watch a style video if you don't want to learn about style. It's fine to not be particularly interested in style (though deep down i believe everyone wants to look good), but don't interrupt people who *are* interested in style whenever they try to talk about it.
To be sympathetic though I think it's because style is so attached to body image issues and insecurities. A lot of people are very sensitive and defensive. And i do completely understand why. The world can be cruel and I've had lots of body image issues too - but blame giant corporations that capitalise on that, or men who have made sexist comments objectifying you. Don't unleash that rage on stylists who are trying to teach people how to enhance and celebrate their beauty.
All these principles and systems are opt in too.
Also yes why is it expected to preface with "but you can do what suits you and I'm not judging you." Yea that (should) go without saying.
😂 Well I appreciate your videos very much. Thank you. 🙏
lol believe it or not their are people that come to art class and say “I draw what I want”😂 but I understand where you are coming from👍
I think that the people rejecting style & color systems may be accidentally doing something right without trying, for the examples you gave of being warm & delicate or an easy to dress body type, but I think that’s probably the minority of people and the majority are people who aren’t able to think about personal style. They probably can’t afford a new closet of clothes, don’t have the time to give to fitness to create their dream body, and lack the introspection required to realize they actually do have insecurities. Most people don’t think “I have insecurities so I’m going to confront those and do what I can to change what is in my power to change” most people just lash out at others as a result of their insecurities. The “I just wear whatever I want” people are trying to appear strong and not impacted by their lack of style when it really actually eats at them.
I think you’re actually being very generous here with the people who say they don’t follow any style rules. LOL. When I hear someone say this kind of thing, I don’t see them wearing things that actually look good. A lot of the time they only look decent because they are very young and for the moment they could get away with wearing a potato sack and not have it make them look tired and shapeless. Over time they will have to grow up when they wonder why they suddenly look horrible in everything, but they would look a lot better right now if they tried to maximize their appearance vs just trying to fit in with trends or show off their body with revealing clothes. A lot of very young people have the youthful vibrancy to their skin so even the colors don’t matter that much. By the time they are like 28 this will probably not be the case. On the other hand when older women have this attitude, it just explains why they have never looked very good in their life. So their loss.
THANK YOU!! It's like they believe they can live in a vacuum with zero external influence! Also, they say "you can wear whatever you want", yet they say "I don't wear it cause I don't like how it looks on me"... so which one is it? If you can wear whatever you want, then there's no looking good or bad. Admitting that something doesn't look good on you is admitting there are rules and logic to successful style!! Also, I hate when videos have a long *ss introduction with a list of disclaimers... adults won't need disclaimers such as "you can wear whatever you want" and "this is only my personal opinion"... it's obvious. It's common sense. If someone is offended, they shouldn't be on the internet in the first place...
Why do these people even search for these type of videos only to complain? I imagine if you broke down each body type or color analysis into %s in a population, those same complainers would gravitate to the rarest typing. They just want to be seen as special, like the sudden flood of INFJ personality types on dating apps a few years back. So immature.
Louder for the people in the back!! 😎🙌❤️💯👏
As a professional artist, I think the analogy that works here is as follows. Pablo Picasso was a master at his craft. He broke rules to create something amazing, unique and groundbreaking. BUT he started out as a conventional artist, exploring the rules and determining for himself if those rules applied to his vision or not. If you are a beginner, exploring the rules is a healthy, and sometimes necessary, process. Some people explore those rules longer than others before settling into their own unique vision. Some people use more rules than others. The goal is always the same, however: bring your vision to life.
Also, I don't agree that being a rebel is the same as being immature. A rebellious nature can sometimes lead to great creativity when harnessed in a positive way.
💯💯💯🎯🎯🎯👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼
I love a lot of your content. I love that you are willing to speak out to things that you see going on, like in your recent just do your hair video. I have been a long- time follower, was an initial partaker of your club and you helped me immensely with dx-ing my Kibbe body-typing. We did not see the same on my coloring, I sensed a bit of defensiveness, not a problem because I do what I want. I say this very gently, the defensiveness is something to consider, people in here and elsewhere will always be hard on you guys, you're good, you don't need to be defensive, it's okay if someone disagrees, you're still good at what you do. Thank you for all your videos, I have learned a lot from you.
❤❤❤
If you are going to shop, get hair cuts, wear makeup… might as well choose the items that suit you. Wearing what you “ want “ is just fine but it may not look good. Some will say “ I don’t care what others think “ that’s not true at all
The basis of it is never ever to say anything that might possibly upset someone because people are made of snow. This is paired with click bait that appeals to childish, petulant people, telling them whatever they want to hear and condoning their choices however poor.
I like how obvious it is that you are adressing a few specific individuals. Someone is definitely taking this personally haha
🔥 🔥 🔥
Haters watching this video
"I don't want to watch a water color flower video, I watch what I want!"
😂
I watched lots of style contents and the resurgence of 'don't follow style rules, wear whatever you want 🤪' is kinda irritating 😂
Sassy Merriam gentle parenting ✨
We know the scene your talking about 🎬
I think is someone disagrees with the content of your channel they are free to stop watching and choose a different channel. I can't understand why people put other people down when they haven't got a notion what they are talking about.
I have learned that in life you have to learn the rules before you break them.
Omg the story about your toddler lmao
But yeah I don't understand why people are so adamant about wearing "whatever you want", it adds nothing to the conversation and it would be better to instead critique certain ideas they think could be tweaked and explain why. That I could respect. Another example is when people complain about the show What Not to Wear but don't think about any of the context about WHY the guests might need to tweak their wardrobe in certain situations.
side rant- I am also sick of the people needing to be the exception to everything (i e. the "I'm so pale/olive/neutral), like, ok great, sounds like this content isn't really for you? Do you want a sticker for being neutral or pr olive or what? Just a pet peeve lol
Not to mention, if someone is very confident in their own style and style choices, then either they can take tips and learn from theory and still do what they choose, OR they would never even click on a video like this because it doesn't matter to them. Sounds like people are butt hurt to hear that someone may be judging them. Not very confident