Whilst highly anticipated and eagerly awaited, milestone events are typically accompanied by a long list of celebratory “to-do” checklist items. Organising a guestlist, booking in a hair appointment, purchasing a new pair of heels – and the list goes on.
Whilst this tailored catalogue of chores (if you were to consider them that) looks different for everyone, finding an outfit to perfectly complement a memorable event more often than not comes in as one of the: if not most integral items to check off of your list.
This is where individuals tend to gravitate towards an outfit that puts them in the limelight, as they bask in their celebrations.
However, have you ever stopped to question why this urge arises? How does this impact your mood and self-perception?
The science behind “dopamine dressing”
Originally established by fashion psychologist Dawn Karen, “Dopamine dressing” is the term behind this concept – which explains the direct impacts an individual’s clothing choices can have on their emotions, self-perception and confidence.
New South Wales based Psychotherapist Eugenie Pepper explains some of the psychological reasons behind this behaviour; emphasising the influence of positive reinforcement and confidence priming.
Pepper describes dopamine as a “neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and reward”, explaining “when you receive compliments or positive attention for your outfit choice, it can trigger a release of dopamine in the brain.”
“When you feel good about how you look and receive validation from others, it can reinforce your confidence and mood,” the psychotherapist said.
Paired with positive reinforcement, Pepper additionally referenced “confidence priming” as another key motivation behind individuals engaging in the dopamine dressing trend.
“By intentionally selecting an outfit that makes you feel confident and attractive, you are engaging in a form of psychological priming,” said Pepper. “This means that you are setting yourself up for a positive experience by creating a mindset of confidence and self-assurance before the event even begins.”
How does this intersect with self-celebration?
To delve further into the impact clothing choices can have on an individual’s emotions, I recently spoke to founder of the Australian Style Institute Lauren Di Bartolo, to discuss the correlations between dopamine dressing and self-celebration.
Di Bartolo noted that celebratory events are “intrinsically connected with our psychology”, emphasising some of the key motivations behind why an individual might gravitate towards an outfit that puts them in the spotlight.
“Getting ready in the morning is something we put a limited amount of time and energy into because it’s such a habitual process” said the stylist. “We get to suspend that when it comes to a celebratory event”.
In terms of dressing for a dopamine fix, Di Bartolo explained some of the underlying reasons behind this urge, explaining that this typically involves unconsciously searching for “an outfit or a piece that echoes or brings to life the story they’re looking to tell”.
“The story connects to an emotion. The emotion is what we want to feel. The feeling is what creates the dopamine hit – and we shop according to that.”
Maximalism and Experimentation
It’s not uncommon to drift left of your typical day-to-day attire when celebrating, which can sometimes begin to fall under the vast umbrella of maximalist dressing. However, Di Bartolo put forward the concept that this is typically influenced “by the company that you keep”, referencing the impact an event’s environment will have on the way you dress.
“We see that across the fashion weeks, where we see people wearing things that often they might not,” said Di Bartolo. “What it really is, is actually giving permission to people in an environment where they know it’s going to be safe to actually express that version of themselves”.
When dressing for a milestone event, Di Bartolo also noted the importance of maintaining individual flair, whilst fusing this with the “party version” of yourself.
“You could be in the happiest, shiniest, brightest outfit, but if you don’t believe that you can look great in that… then you probably won’t access that hit of dopamine that clothes are so good at giving us”.
One mistake the stylist pointed out individuals make whilst dressing to celebrate, is when they “put to the side all of the qualities that make up their style, in order to then become the party version of themselves.”
“The biggest dopamine hit is when it’s very much us, it’s just us for that event”, emphasised Di Bartolo.
How to implement this into your own practice?
In order to effectively dress for dopamine during a celebratory event, Di Bartolo explained the importance of challenging the ‘reticular activating system’: a part of the brain the stylist explained prompts individuals to lean towards outfits with familiar components, via the recollection of a past image or reference.
“When we shop for that, it can really limit us”, said Di Bartolo.
“It can be a really helpful exercise to first think about how you want to feel at the celebration or the event,” recommended the stylist.
From here, Di Bartolo suggested looking to social media creators, reaching out to a stylist, or building a pinterest board to creatively seek outfit inspiration.
“Clothes should make us feel good, but they can only do that when we even know what makes us feel good in the beginning”.
It’s clear the correlation dopamine dressing – or rather, dressing for dopamine holds with an individual’s outfit choices during celebratory events. The importance of tweaking your typical style and tapping into your creative side to showcase the “party version” of yourself is integral to enjoying a night (or two) of self-celebration.
Next milestone event, don’t be disheartened at the pressure of finding a celebration-worthy outfit. This should be an exciting time to experiment – don’t let it descend in your list of priorities on your special day.
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