Technically the new season may not quite be upon us, but if you walk into most stores today you’ll see a smattering of spring colours.
The key colours for the season will see a shift away from brights and pastels, and more towards muted hues of sage green, oatmeal, powder blue, blush pink and lavender.
LEFT Witchery linen blazer in powder blue
RIGHT Scanlan Theodore shirt dress in oatmeal
There are colours that we are either a drawn to like a moth to a flame, or that repel us like a good spray of Aeroguard! Trust your instincts when it comes to colour. If you’re instantly attracted to something, give it a go. If you try on a colour and love it, go for it.
For too long many of us have been limited in our colour choices thanks to some old-fashioned beliefs or rules about what colours we SHOULD wear. Instead ask yourself, what colours do you like to wear?
I’ve never subscribed to the autumn/summer, cool/warm colour theories, although it is a very common conversation had with clients. My ’rules’ and advice when it comes to colour have always been pretty simple. Hold something up to your face in the mirror and see how you feel.
Do you look fresh? Bright? Do you feel great, confident, beautiful?
Or do you look washed out, tired, old, sick? Do the bags under your eyes all of a sudden seem more obvious? Does redness in your skin look brighter?
If you answer the latter, then chances are that colour is not for you. Trust your instincts. If you don’t feel great in a colour, then it’s probably not YOUR colour.
Don’t get me wrong, colour should be a consideration. The colour we wear closest to our face is the most important. We want that colour to highlight and compliment our features (think eyes, skin tone, hair colour) not wash us out looking like we need a good sleep.
So many of our clients, particularly over the past 5 years, have made the switch from black to navy. Reason being, navy is generally more flattering worn close to the face. It’s softer and works better against our skin tone as we age.
That’s not to say I’m against black! But black can sometimes mean making a little more effort. Applying some lippie, blush to your cheeks or adding a statement earring, necklace or glasses can make a big difference when wearing black next to your face.
TRY THIS AT HOME:
- Choose your favourite colour in your wardrobe and hold it up to your face in a mirror in good light
- Take a selfie (in the mirror or reverse your camera)
- Now grab a colour from your wardrobe that you like, but don’t wear so much (this could be a scarf, a skirt, anything) and hold it up to your face
- Take a selfie
- Look at the photos and compare how both colours look on you
- Does one ‘sing’ to you more than the other?
- Does one look more complimentary against your face than the other?
- Try this with more than two colours, see how you feel
- Try wearing a new colour for the first time, see how many people comment (you’ll be surprised!)
TRUE STORY:
I never wore red until about 2 years ago. I didn’t dislike red, it just wasn’t a colour I was drawn to.
And then I wore it…
And then came the compliments…
And then I wore/bought it again.
Now I love red.. as you can see!
Category: Colours
