Foundations for Colour

Last week I wrote about wearing black and came to the resounding conclusion that YES, everyone can wear it   …but why would you want to if it doesn’t flatter you!

A world without colour is unthinkable for most of us, and yet, walking down the high street, there is always an abundance of black, a heavy spattering of beige and usually a reasonable quantity of white available.  This is because they’re neutral colours which ideally form the backdrop to a wardrobe – the trick is to choose from the selection of neutrals that sit harmoniously in your colour palette to provide a supportive backdrop.

Back in the 1940s when colour film emerged on the scene the significance and impact of colour came to the fore.  The previously elegant and sophisticated actors/actresses somehow didn’t have the same effect – colour was recognised as the difference and the world of image consulting was born. 

In a previous blog  I’ve shown the screen test images of Julia Roberts as they made their colour choices for the 1990 Film, Pretty Woman.  I regularly cite this film as an excellent example of how we can change the way people perceive us simply by looking at the way we present ourselves. 

Choosing colours and styles that flatter you and honour your personality is an incredibly powerful way to help people to ‘get’ you –  giving them an idea of who you are, what you stand for, your values and ideals – not directly from what you wear but because what you’re wearing and how you construct your outfit will support and reinforce your verbal messages or undermine and conflict with them.  I’ve also talked about how, when you honour who you are with what you wear, you make it easy for your listener to hear you.

Liz Jones’ summary in The Daily Mail last week gives a few amusing takes on using colour: ‘You can wear any colour next summer as long as it’s white’ reminding me of the announcement I heard many years ago about ‘the Thursday club meeting on Tuesday to discuss what colour they were going to whitewash the walls of the village hall!’

While travelling in Asia a few years ago it was clear that white was a status symbol because it demonstrated that you could afford to keep up with the cleaning and maintenance.   As Liz astutely points out: ‘White hair to match is not compulsory… but expect your cleaning bills to soar’.  I love the white jacket I bought last year but don’t wear it as often as I might had I the time, money and staff to cover my cleaning requirements, including a Nanny to keep the children and their sticky fingers away!

I don’t however, agree with Liz’s statement that ‘You will not be able to avoid sheer next Spring…’  a confirmed classic that will be no hardship for me!  As for purchasing big pants, well, that’s entirely up to you but visible underwear is a faddy look and never for anyone serious about their image.  In this world of Personal Branding to gain competitive advantage, every little helps – or hinders!  

One of the most famous sheer looks on the planet (right) will clearly never be repeated  for that very reason – a far classier way to employ sheer is with the use of lace in a wedding dress (left).

 

See-through clothing reminds me of the Emperor’s New Clothes. It's interesting how some images protect his modesty with underwear whilst other interpretations have assumed the outfit to include the underwear.  Coming back to 2014/15, for me it’s another good excuse for the fashion industry to produce poor quality and justify it.  One golden rule to follow, the lighter the colour of your clothes, the higher the quality needs to be. 

All wardrobes, regardless of your season, need a foundation of neutrals which form the backdrop to a variety of outfits.  Adding colours to neutrals enables the full impact of the colours to be seen, excluding neutrals can provide an onslaught of colours which at best distracts your audience, at worst, causes them to look in the other direction.

With the release of our latest colour report, highlighting the colour trends for the Autumn/Winter Season, I thought it would make an interesting journey to explore how colour affects our lives over the next few weeks – including neutrals. 

Anyone Can Wear Black!

Of course anyone can ‘wear’ black, and on the right skin tone it can look stunning - elegant, sophisticated and lovely but why would you want to if it doesn't suit or flatter you? 

In the examples below, I suggest that black suits Victoria Beckham and American singer Keri Hilson but not Nicole Kidman, the best make-up artist in the world can't cover the gaunt look it gives her and the air of inauthenticity which doesn't exist in the other two photos.



Victoria Beckham

Nicole Kidman

Keri Hilson

I have friends from all seasons and the light that comes into people’s faces with colour, especially when they’re Spring, Summer or Autumn, is drained away when they put black on.  It’s as if someone has cut off their head, highlighted the dark rings around their eyes and prepared them for their own funeral!  Mary’s Halloween blog entry provided an entertaining view on the negative effects of black on a Spring! 

In all seriousness though, Clare Bumford provides a compelling article around why black is so important but where she says ‘why not?’ … I ask ‘why?’  There are many reasons, apart from funerals and black tie ‘dos’, that might cause people to choose black.  So let’s take a look:

It’s slimming! 

Is it?  Dark colours absorb the light making things seem smaller (slimmer), where light colours (e.g. white) reflect the light making something appear larger.  It’s an optical illusion property of all dark colours, not limited to black.  Far better to chose a dark colour which suits your complexion so that you look slimmer AND healthy!  Besides, there are other tricks to help you look slimmer - focus around wearing styles to suit your body shape and accentuating your assets/best features.

"The best colour in the whole world is the one that looks good on you"
Coco Chanel

It goes with everything!

Of course it does and, depending on your perspective, some people say, so does ketchup ! Black is a neutral colour and all outfits benefit from using neutrals to provide a supporting backdrop to the colours and patterns.  Neutrals from a complementary range of colours will enhance an outfit, but will diminish, even slightly, an outfit chosen from an alternative range to the neutral in question.  Choosing all your clothing  from the range of colours which complement you  provides you with neutrals that enhance you and you’ll find your neutrals do go with everything.

It’s easy!

If everything in your wardrobe is black then life is very easy!   Widely recognised in the energy world as an absorbative colour it could be seen as good for learning (absorbing everything, albeit it not selectively) but is more generally associated with depression due to absorbing everything.  It takes courage to know what suits you and wear it with confidence, but when you know WHICH colours are yours and WHY, choosing the colours which suit you from the full colour spectrum is easy.

It’s quality!

The quality and construction of a fabric is not easily visible on darker fabrics as they absorb the light.  We know that the lighter the colour, the more important it is to ensure quality is inherent in the garment construction, for example light coloured skirts and trousers need lining in order to be able to wear them away from the beach (see pictures). 

It’s available

It is and always will be, for all the reasons above, but you don’t have to rush into a purchase.  Knowing what suits us gives us the confidence to be more selective and wait for a great item of clothing to turn up in our style, size AND colour.  Supply and demand is my theory.  When people understand how to wear colours confidently they buy and wear them. 

Kettlewell affirm this by noting that House of Colour clients purchase more colours (than neutrals) than any other group.  They understand the amazing effect it has on our energy and and how we appear to others. 

 

In the following examples, I suggest that Victoria and Keri look sallow and inauthentic where Nicole, in her warm colour, looks healthy and naturally authentic. 



Nicole Kidman

Victoria Beckham

Keri Hilson

By selecting bright colours from their spectrums, to suit each individual, they all three look healthy, interesting, confident and authentic.

Nicole Kidman

Victoria Beckham



Keri Hilson

 



Give yourself permission and the freedom to use your best colours and not be bound by the inaccurate statement that everyone suits black!  Everyone can wear it, but it doesn't suit everyone!