Preppy & Schoolgirl

Pleated skirts at or above the knee, blazers, knitwear over collared shirts, and knee socks, in navy, red, green and grey based setts. It draws on American collegiate and British school uniform imagery, which is why it reads bright and neat rather than muted.

Palette and mood. Preppy is bright, collegiate and optimistic, built on navy, red and white. Dark academia is muted, brown and green based, and deliberately severe. Both use pleated tartan skirts and blazers, for opposite effects.

Navy and red based setts, Black Watch for the darker end, and bright modern colourways generally. This is the one aesthetic where a strong red tartan is the correct choice rather than a bold one. Weathered and muted setts pull it towards a different style entirely.

A fitted knit or a collared shirt with a jumper over it, knee socks and loafers or plain trainers. A blazer over the top completes it. Everything except the skirt stays solid, in navy, white, cream or grey rather than a second pattern.

No, but the proportions decide how it reads. Taking the hem to the knee rather than above it, swapping knee socks for opaque tights, and using a structured blazer rather than a cropped one moves the same pieces from schoolgirl to smart without changing the tartan.

Take the hem to the knee rather than above it and swap knee socks for opaque tights. Same skirt and same sett, but the proportion moves the outfit from schoolgirl to smart entirely. For the muted version of the same shapes, see dark academia plaid skirts.