Can I Dress Both Conservatively and Stylishly as a Young Person?

Our fashion critic offers a young reader debating whether modesty is compatible with current trends advice on navigating personal style preferences.

It’s true that “conservative,” at least when it comes to style, is often treated as something of a code word, or even a synonym, for “boring.” And the naked look has proved astonishingly resilient, not just on the red carpet and during award show after-parties, but also during urban summers everywhere, for a variety of reasons. And that tends to get a lot of attention because — shocking! (At this point, not really.)

But it’s also true that we live in an era in which all trends exist at all times, and it is more than possible to be covered and chic and contemporary all at once. And not just thanks to “modest fashion,” the giant market segment that officially emerged in the early part of the 21st century.

That’s when labels like Alessandra Rich and etail sites like the Modist were born. Though modest fashion is often associated with religious dictums, it is so much a part of life that it barely gets broken out as “modest” any more. After all, a great trouser suit has you covered as well as any caftan. Even TikTok, which can seems like the home of the dress that looks like a handkerchief, has almost 800,000 posts devoted to the hashtag.

If you are looking for a role model, however, consider Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, the style-setting wife of John F. Kennedy Jr. Before her tragic death in 1999, she often wore high-neck, long-sleeve, below-the-knee outfits (albeit by Yohji Yamamoto) and pretty much exemplified the allure of keeping things private. Or, for that matter, Catherine, Princess of Wales, who — thanks to the dress codes that still govern the behavior of the royal family — rarely shows much skin, yet manages to be highly stylish.

Or, for more inspiration, “try looking outside the U.S.,” said Sarah Miyazawa LaFleur, a founder of the M.M. LaFleur label. “You’ll rarely see a bare shoulder in my native city of Tokyo, even when it’s 100 degrees out, but Japanese women always find a way to have fun with fashion.”