孫佳慧

Surviving the fatal ‘how do I look question

怎樣得體而不失真誠地回答

“我穿這件衣服好看嗎”？

You are what you wear—or， as the ancient saying goes： “The clothes make the man， just like the saddle makes the horse.” People have always used fashion to signal their wealth， creativity， or taste， as much as covering up or keeping warm.

But how do you tell if an outfit looks good？ Some people turn to their friends， when they feel like they cant trust the mirror or a pushy salesperson. Such conversations， though， are studded with landmines. Anyone who has been asked the fateful question “How do I look in this？” knows the internal struggle—being truthful without causing offense， or complimenting without sounding insincere. Some language skills are necessary to come out of these conversations with your friendships intact.

Flatter cleverly

Positive feedback is usually pretty safe， but flattery is also a science. A vague compliment like “you look good” is meaningless， and may even raise suspicions that youre being less than truthful. Name specific features you like about the look：

A： How do I look in this dress？

W6 chu`n zh- ti1o q%nzi h2ok3n ma？

我穿這條裙子好看嗎？

B： You look great！ The length suits you， and you look very slim！

T-bi9 h2ok3n！ Ch1ngd& f8ich1ng h9sh#， h1i xi2n sh7u！

特別好看！長度非常合適，

還顯瘦！

Be careful， though： Someone insecure about their weight might interpret this to mean you think they normally look fat. If you arent close， or simply want a safer option， focus on the clothes rather than the body—any outfit has its good points：

A： What do you think of these jeans？

N@ ju9de zh- ti1o ni%z2ik& z0nmey3ng？

你覺得這條牛仔褲怎么樣？

B： They are perfect for this time of year！

Zh-ge j#ji9 zh-ngh2o chu`n！

這個季節(jié)正好穿！

If you really cant find anything good to say， try：

Its nice to see you try a different style！

N@ ch1ngsh# y！xia x～nf8ngg9 y0 t@ng h2o de！

你嘗試一下新風格也挺好的！

Let them down gently

If an outfit looks hideous， your friend would probably rather hear it from you than someone else. Its not easy to tell people their clothes dont suit them without hurting their feelings， but the basic rule still applies： Criticize the outfit， rather than the person.

The shape of this jacket is not very good; it makes people look bloated.

Zh- ji3n ji`k- b2nx！ng b% t3i h2o， xi2nde r9n ?y4ngzh6ng.

這件夾克版型不太好，顯得人

臃腫。

Or you can point to some external factors， like the season or match ：

A： These boots are so cool！

Zh- shu`ng xu8zi zh8n k&！

這雙靴子真酷！

B： Yes， but their color doesnt match most of your clothes. If you buy them， you will have to get a new coat， and maybe a new bag.

Sh# h0n k&. D3nsh# zh- y1ns- h9 n@ d3du4sh& y～fu d4u b& d`. R%gu6 n@ m2i le zh- shu`ng xu8zi， ji& d0i z3i m2i y！ ji3n w3it3o l1i p-i， sh-nzh# h1i x$y3o y！ g- x～n b`o.

是很酷。但是這顏色和你大多數(shù)衣服都不搭。如果你買了這雙靴子，就得再買一件外套來配，甚至還需要一個新包。

“Trends” are a good excuse to convince someone out of buying something—after all， the weight of opinions from fashion experts are behind you：

A：How do you like this skirt？

N@ ju9de zh- ti1o du2nq%n z0nmey3ng？

你覺得這條短裙怎么樣？

B：Its nice， but warm colors are in this year. Why dont you try that red one？

T@ng h2ok3n de， d3nsh# j～nni1n li%x！ng nu2ns-， y3obu n@ sh#shi n3 ji3n h5ngs- de？

挺好看的，但是今年流行暖色，

要不你試試那件紅色的？

Not everyone follows the latest fashions， though. In an era where even ordinary folks aspire to be celebrities， many prefer a unique style over a trendy one. The Chinese term 撞衫?（zhu3ngsh`n， “clash of clothing”） describes the feeling of embarrassment that supposedly results when two people show up to the same event in the same outfit. It can also be used to convince a friend not to blindly follow fashions that dont suit them：

A：I really like this sweater. Its all the rage these days.

W6 f8ich1ng x@huan zh- ji3n m1oy～， sh# zu#j#n de li%x！ngku2n.

我非常喜歡這件毛衣， 是最近的流行款。

B：Its popular， but Im afraid youll find it easy to clash with someone else.

Li%x！ng sh# li%x！ng. D3nsh# w6 d`nx～n k0n9ng f8ich1ng r5ngy# zhu3ngsh`n.

流行是流行。但是我擔心可能非常容易撞衫。

Suggest skillfully

Why do people consult friends before they buy clothes？ For many， its because they genuinely want a second opinion. In these cases， idle flattery wont cut it， so dont shy away from ?a definite yes or no—theyre going to make a choice anyway， so why not offer help？

However， many people who repeatedly ask whether they should buy something have already made up their mind; the only thing they really want is your support：

A： I like it very much. But its too expensive！

W6 h0n x@huan t`， d3nsh# du# w6 l1i shu4 t3i gu# le！

我很喜歡它，但是對我來說太貴了！

B： Its not easy to find something you love. Just go for it！

N1nd9 y&d3o zh-me h9 x～ny# de d4ngxi， y2oy1 m2i le ba！

難得遇到這么合心意的東西，咬牙買了吧！

Of course， TWOC doesnt promote excessive consumption. If you feel its really not a good idea to buy something， the term “性價比?（x#ngji3b@， quality-to-price ratio）” is a persuasive and wise-sounding argument against any purchase：

These high-heels look fabulous， but to be frank， there arent many occasions in a year when youd get to wear them. I think the quality-to-price ratio is pretty low.

Zh- shu`ng g`og8nxi9 k3nzhe h0n pi3oliang. D3nsh# shu4 sh！hu3， n@ y# ni1n y0 chu`n bu li2o j@ c#， w6 ju9de x#ngji3b@ t@ng d～ de.

這雙高跟鞋看著很漂亮。但是說實話，你一年也穿不了幾次，我覺得性價比挺低的。

To buy or not is one issue; to buy Item A or Item B is an even worse dilemma. For the latter， you can help by listing the strengths and weaknesses of each item：

A：Which do you prefer of these two coats？

Zh- li2ng ji3n d3y～ n@ g-ng x@huan n2 ji3n？

這兩件大衣你更喜歡哪件？

B：The red ones collar and sleeves look exquisite， but its too thin; you cant wear it in the winter. The white one is a classic， and looks warm， but itll dirty very easily and looks hard to clean.

H5ngs- zh- ji3n de l@ngk6u h9 xi&zi k3nzhe h0n j～ngzh#， d3nsh# mi3nli3o t3i b1o le， d4ngti`n chu`n bu li2o. B1is- n3 ji3n sh# j～ngdi2nku2n， y0 b2onu2n， d3nsh# r5ngy# z`ng， 9rqi0 k3nzhe h0n n1n q～ngx@.

紅色這件的領口和袖子看著很精致，但是面料太薄了， 冬天穿不了。白色那件是經(jīng)典款，也保暖，但是容易臟，而且看著很難清洗。

Comparing the price is also useful：

A：I like both of these shirts！ Which one should I choose？

Zh- li2ng ji3n ch-nsh`n w6 d4u x@huan， g`i xu2n n2 ji3n h2o ne？

這兩件襯衫我都喜歡，該選哪件

好呢？

B：They look the same to me. Why dont you go with the cheaper one？

W6 k3n t`men m9i sh9nme q$bi9. M2i pi1nyi de n3 ji3n ba！

我看它們沒什么區(qū)別。買便宜的那件吧！

Or， heres an even easier answer：

They are two completely different styles. If I were you， I would buy both.

Zh- li2ng ku2n w1nqu1n sh# b&t5ng f8ngg9. R%gu6 sh# w6 dehu3， ji& li2ng ji3n d4u m2i le.

這兩款完全是不同風格。如果是我的話，就兩件都買了。

And if by this point， youre tired of being dragged around the mall， and think theyre just going to buy whatever they want anyway， you can turn to flattery again to get yourself out of having to comment：

Anything is fine—a good-looking person looks good in everything.

N2 ji3n d4u h2o， zh2ngde h2ok3n de r9n chu`n sh9nme d4u h2ok3n.

哪件都好，長得好看的人穿什么都好看。