How to Wear Colour or Neutrals – Which Group are you in?

My uniform until I started writing this blog has mostly been white, black, beige and brown. I always had the misconception that it was the most classy way to dress. Wealthy people wear a lot of white don’t they? So I always thought the more neutral my clothes were, the better and more expensive I looked (I’m quite sure this was all in my head).

But isn’t it true that you can wear the same black pants twice in the same week and no one would notice, but if they were red, people would be thinking “She’s wearing those red pants again!”.

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Early this spring I wrote a post about being Fashion Challenged. And I’m not saying I’ve become a fashion expert since then but I wanted to share what I’ve learned in the past few months since I’ve been focused on becoming more fashionable, especially in the realm of wearing colour.

Here’s my first and most important fashion tip. Subscribe now to Angie’s blog You Look Fab. Don’t ask questions, just do it. If you want to be fashionable starting today, this is the best way to learn how. One of my stylish readers sent me a link to her blog and I’m forever grateful!

The greatest thing about this stylist’s blog is all the examples of how to wear something you weren’t quite sure how and sometimes she’ll even make an appearance to show you in person. Her blog is 4 years old and chock full of amazing articles and if you still can’t see yourself wearing anything but black or neutrals, it’s all there too, like this post on 6 ways to make a black top pop!

Not only is she beautiful but generous too, click here to read the story of how her Forum readers got together to buy her dream Valentino bag (below). It actually moved me to tears it was so sweet.

I spent hours reading Angie’s blog the night before I drove to Seattle to shop for Spring and it was only then that I realized she actually lived in Seattle because I would have hired her for a few hours to help me!

But it was the first time I actually had a list of things to buy (just like when I shop with my clients for furniture and accessories—too obvious that this should translate to clothes shopping as well!) like white bottoms, which look good with a lot of colourful items in the summer as well as a colourful necklance like this one she recommended (it was sold out when I arrived at Nordstrom).

The other more expensive option

Here’s a post she wrote on how to wear silver-gray. White is important to pull it together, but who knew? Not me until I read this.

I really loved this post 4 ways to wear Bright Shoes. I added bright yellow pumps to my list when I read this one and have worn them many times since I bought them!

“Wear several brights of the same intensity. I’d limit an outfit to 3 brights at a time. A pair of jeans worn with an emerald tunic and cobalt blue handbag works with a pair of yellow shoes, if the brights are of the same intensity. Throw in a pair of baby pink shoes and you’ve lost the harmony.”

The above paragraph is a direct quote from this post and I thought it was great, first because it never occurred to me to wear colour that way (and I loved it) and second when I came across this living room I had to show you that it could translate to design as well.

Certainly when choosing colours for your home. If you start with bright, clean, fresh colour you should keep going, walking from a fresh turquoise room into a muddy greeny gray would be a little more jarring (and it’s your house in the end and you should do what makes you happy).

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The only thing that doesn’t work for me in this room (this is too much strong, bright colour for my taste but it’s one way to incorporate this much colour in your house) are that the drapes are not the same yellow as the chairs.

The other website I found for ideas on wearing colour is Kate Spade. Here are a few fun and happy looks from her site (I love the polka dots):

I loved this outfit too (below), but notice it looks so great because of the white bottoms! Bottom line, the easiest way to wear colour is to repeat it at least once. So if you wear a blue sweater, repeat it in a bag or shoes and you will look more classy and coordinated that way.

Citrus + Neon = Citron

Another way to incorporate colour into your wardrobe is to get a colourful bag and a matching scarf to go with it. This gives you instant colour and I do this a lot when I don’t have time to pull together a coordinated, colourful outfit.

What about you? Do you love to wear colour or do you still prefer all shades of neutral?

If you would like to transform the way you see colour, become a True Colour Expert.

Related posts:

White is a Snob

Colour vs. Neutral

When it comes to your Decor, your Friends are Polite

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