The Beginners Guide to Pet Fashion
This is a partnered post.
Fashion is about more than the self. Although we try to cultivate a strong visual identity through the clothes we wear, we no longer just have to focus on our own appearance to do so — we can extend it to our pets’ attire too!
Pet fashion is a large market, one that’s not easily ignored when you become a pet owner. Even if you’ve never been interested in dressing up your pets before, spotting a cute hoodie or a dashing bowtie can soon turn your head. If you’re new to the idea of accessorising your pets, it can be difficult to know where to begin, do you go all in straight away and get a tweed dog suit, or do you start small and opt for a dog tankie?
There’s no right or wrong way to explore pet fashion, however, for those who are looking for a starting point to work with, here are three handy tips to point you in the right direction.
Take the Lead
One of the easiest ways to dip your toes, and paws, into accessorising, is by opting for a combination of style and practicality, e.g. dog harnesses, collars, and leashes. These are all accessories that you need as a dog owner and so it shouldn’t be hard to look beyond their application and to how they look. Take the leash for example, commonly we walk our dogs using a plain leather leash, simply by exchanging that leather dog leash for a baby blue or pastel shade, you can really freshen up your dogs’ look without being overly extravagant. Think simple elegance.
After Walk Pampering
If you’re not quite ready to accessorise out in public, there’s ways to introduce fashion into your pets’ life without having to brave the outdoors: dressing gowns. After we’ve come out of the shower or bath, we don our fluffy robes to not only feel comforted but sometimes to help dry off — why not allow your pet the same experience? Bathrobes not only offer an extra means of drying your pets’ coat, which is especially useful for owners with long haired companions, but your dog can look good while they unwind after that big walk.
Brave the Bandana
So far we’ve taken a subtle approach to accessorising, but for those of you who are looking for more impact, a bandana is a fabulous choice. These stylish handkerchiefs allow you to be as bold or as minimal as you like, all while helping you to embrace your pets’ emerging fashion identity. Better still, if you have a fashion conscious pet with anxiety, a bandana can be used to signify this to other people; colour coded items have become a useful fashion accessory that alerts others to the mental and physical state of your pet.
Taking that first step into pet fashion doesn’t have to be hard. All it takes is a willingness to try, married together with a few choice accessories, and your pet will be rocking the latest trends in no time.