The Best Way to Tie a Shirt Around Your Waist

Just like with our obsession with French style, we're always searching for ways to emulate our favorite models and their impeccable off-duty style. Specifically, we often find ourselves wondering how they make jeans and a T-shirt look so stylish and how they can wear leggings and still look polished. Today we're demystifying another staple styling move off-duty models love: tying a shirt around their waist.

Based on frequency alone, models Taylor Hill, Behati Prinsloo, and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley seem to love wearing button-down shirts tied around their waists for a low-key going-out look or even to the airport (it's genius for layering). It's effortless, it's laid-back, but one thing it's not is sloppy. The best way to pull off the casual look like a model is by tying a shirt around your waist with a pair of dark skinny jeans or, if you're traveling, black leggings. This is the number one styling trick for your shirt, as a dark, streamlined silhouette will balance out the printed shirt. Be sure to keep it simple up top as well with a plain T-shirt or tank top.

It's confirmed: This is the model-approved way to tie a shirt around your waist. Click through the gallery below to see how they're styling the trend, and then shop our favorite button-downs—from plaid to camo and denim—to try it for yourself.