The Sandwich Rule Is My New Favorite Viral Styling Trick (& It’s So Easy)

Whether it’s transforming my T-shirt bras into backless ones, turning two bikini bottoms into one chic top or using hair ties to temporarily hem a pair of trousers, I love a good fashion hack. Especially if it comes with a fun name, like my latest styling obsession, The Sandwich Rule. No, this isn’t a guide for how to craft the perfect lunch, but instead a suggestion to think about building outfits in much the same way you think about building a sandwich.

What Is the Sandwich Rule?

I first learned this fun trick when Glamour UK reported on it, citing a viral video posted by stylist Lydia Tomlinson.

“If you think about a sandwich, it has the bread at the top, the bread at the bottom and something different in the middle,” Tomlinson explains in her first post. “This in turn creates a balanced effect. And, the same rules can be applied to your outfits.” Basically, her Sandwich Rule of Dressing entails balancing one piece on your bottom half with another on your top half and including something contrary in the middle.

How to Choose Your “Bread” and “Filling”

As Tomlinson demonstrates, this can be achieved with color, fabric weight or proportions. In her first example, she shows how chunky black boots worn with cream-colored jeans and a white sweater can look heavy on bottom. But with the simple addition of a black scarf or belt the outfit becomes much better balanced. “The key is to bring some of the color on your shoes through to the top of your outfit to create that balance. Another way to do this is through coats and jackets.”

Similarly, oversize tops in heavier materials, like Tomlinson’s plaid blazer, don’t mix well with slim-fitting jeans and dainty ballet flats. Instead, she suggests pairing them with a more substantial shoe, like a tall boot or exaggerated lug sole. In this instance, the bread is the blazer and boots, and the sandwich filling is the skinny jeans.

Lastly, Tomlinson talks about how to apply the Sandwich Rule when styling voluminous pieces. Sporting a sweater with padded shoulders, a black waist belt and black skinny jeans, she explains, “Skinny jeans make the [sweater] feel top heavy and detract from the flattering shape at the waist that we’ve created with the belt. In order to emphasis the shape at the waistline and balance out the padded shoulders, a slightly wider leg looks more flattering.” She goes into more detail on this in her second video, which specifically addresses the Sandwich Rule using proportions.

So, what does this look like IRL? Here are seven examples from some of my favorite street style stars.

As a fashion editor, I adore playing around with my clothes, accessories and shoes to create funky combos and unexpected pairings. But not everyone finds pulling outfits together to be quite so fun. I love any hack, trick or “rule” that can take the stress out of getting dressed, and the Sandwich Rule achieves exactly that, with the added bonus that it can be interpreted in so many different ways. It’s a phenomenal trick you can whip out if you’re in a rush getting dressed, aren’t quite sure what shoes to pick or simply want to try mixing and matching more items from your wardrobe. All told, it’s an outfit-building game-changer that I’ll continue to use time and time and time again.