Love or Loathe: Bright Colors

I am sure we have all come across women who are always bright and colorful and then there are some, who dress in shades of black and white only. Where should we draw a line? Should we be bold or play a little conservative? Let’s find out…

 

Why loathe

– Black is my favorite color. I wear black all the time.

– Bright colors don’t go with my personality.

– Black feels safe and I don’t want to get out of my comfort zone.

– I feel colors draw too much attention and I don’t like to be in the limelight.

 

Why love

– Bright colors are an instant pick-me-up.

– I feel cheerful and confident.

– An outfit without colors is dull and boring.

– I feel depressed if my outfit doesn’t have any bright color in it.

 

My take

Variety is the spice of life and everyone needs to spice up their wardrobe a bit too. All bright colors or all black and white doesn’t reflect good fashion sense. If you are always in a mixture of bright colors, you risk not being taken seriously. Remember Elle (Reese Witherspoon) in Legally Blonde? Go for only B&W and you will soon find people not inviting you to any fun activity – you are considered boring! A fashionable wardrobe is always a mix of colors and neutrals. Here’s how you can achieve it:

 

The safest bet is accessories

If you are an absolute novice to colors, start with introducing colors in your accessories. Your whole outfit isn’t bright but there is enough accent to make your look interesting. Black, white and anything in-between would be neutral. So you can pretty much wear any bright colored accessory to go with the outfit. Think turquoise earrings or mustard bag or red shoes. You can even try two of them simultaneously – just don’t do it all together! The idea is to add some visual interest to your outfit – some pop of color.

 

Wear non-Black and White neutrals

Invest in skirts, trousers and jackets that are not plain black or white. Consider neutrals like chocolate brown, khaki, navy, gray, tan (great for leather jackets!) and so on. Even non B&W neutrals bring some life to an outfit and the best part is, it won’t seem like you are taking a huge leap.

 

Mix colors with neutrals

Once you are more used to the idea of bright colors in your outfit, start buying blouses or tops in bright solids and prints. You can pair this with any neutral skirt or trouser. Again if you think you don’t want too much of a bright color next to your face, you can always wear another neutral cardigan or jacket to tone down a little. But try to keep an open mind and feel confident about your look. You will soon start enjoying it.

 

Wear colors by themselves

After you start receiving tons of compliments for your colorful outfits and how you seem to carry them off so well, it would be time to buy dresses in bright colors. A lemon yellow summer dress in cotton, a red shift dress in wool, a purple evening gown in satin – the choices are endless! But make sure your accessories including your shoes and bag recede in the background as you don’t want too many things calling for attention. Your dress should be the focal point of your outfit.

 

A small note to those who dress only in bright colors

Just make sure you mix them with neutrals every once in a while. The best way to ensure this would be to limit the number of bright colors to 3 per outfit. Please don’t match your accessories to your outfits if you are wearing bright colors especially a dress. Use contrasting colors or stick to neutrals. For instance a pink dress with pink bag and pink shoes will only make you look like a Barbie doll in a candy store!!

 

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