As You Were: Styling with the Sandwich Technique

I've noticed the Sandwich technique for dressing for awhile, and dismissed it as a typical fashion cycle between the poles of matchy-matchy and freestyle jumble, but now I have renewed respect, because I see how it saves time and energy.

It belongs in the "As You Were" corner of the Passage because most women over age 55 remember when matching, sometimes rigorously so, was a way of life. The Sandwich embraces the approach and explains why: for a cohesive, pulled-together look—even when you are rushed or exhausted.

The idea is straightforward: you match the colour on your bottom half (usually your footwear) to the one on your top (or sometimes bag), which creates visual cohesion. The two poles are the 'bread'; the 'filling' is a contrasting colour. 

Classic Sandwich

This is an Instagram post from British stylist Lydia Tomlinson, who kicked off the social media Sandwich tsunami. It shows the difference between a Sandwich (left) and not. The shot at left does look more, as Gen Z likes to say, intentional.

Photo: Lydia Tomlinson on Instagram

To make a Sandwich:

1. Start with the bottom. Select the trousers, skirt or dress you would like to wear.
2. Pair the bottom with a complementary or same-colour top. 
3. For the shoes, match the colour (or a hue) to the top. If wearing a jacket, match the jacket to the shoes. If the top is a print, pick up one of the colours to coordinate with the bottom to create a column-of-colour effect.
4. Accessories: The bag matches the shoes. If wearing a belt, it matches the shoes. Jewellery metal matches hardware on the bag.

Sandwiches are democratic; you can Sandwich anything along the spectrum from classic to avant-garde pieces:

 

Photo: Scott Schuman, The Sartorialist

A Sandwich fixes that feeling you get when you put on clothes you like, but sense the outfit is not quite right. And, like every useful visual idea, you can flex the rules to make a Semi-Sandwich. Here's an example; the boots and bag don't match the jacket; but they are all deep earth-tones:

The sprezzatura Sandwich 

At first you might think this isn't one, but notice the red socks echoed in the red sweater under the coat. (And that pink corsage!)

Photo: Scott Schuman, The Sartorialist

Though her shoes and coat are brown, the black bag relates to the skirt—this is a sophisticated Sandwich.

There's a bit more to it—some attention to the weights of the shoes and clothes—but it's basically an easy hack. And it's not a generational marker, like wearing crew socks with every sort of shoe and outfit; here's Helen Mirren in a print skirt:  

 Sandwich subtleties

1. For patterns, match the shoes to the top's liveliest colour. 

Photo: Arket

You could wear blue trainers to match the jacket, but red is punchier.

2. When the outfit is different shades of a colour, like this pale blue and navy, choose matching shoes and belt in a different colour. 

Photo: Aspesi

3. A white top does not require white shoes, what a relief.

Bone, beige, nude—anything in that family is just fine.

Photo: Boden

But that white, so crisply cool:

Photo: Scott Schuman, The Sartorialist

Critics say the Sandwich method is nothing new, and I say, fine. Like a real sandwich, a style Sandwich is there when you need it, delivering comfort regardless of your taste and budget.

Maybe the method recycles what we embraced when we began to dress ourselves (we called it "coordination") but no matter; I'm for anything that creates more ease and enjoyment.