Since writing my last post about my personal style, I’ve been thinking about colours and how important it is that I know which work on me.
I researched colour theory online and ran into a bunch of useless stuff about which colours you should wear based on your hair colour (bogus), and complex colour theories based on seasons and whether your skin is yellow or blue and blah blah. You don’t need to learn all that to know what colours look best on you.
One important thing I picked up is that you are naturally drawn to the colours that suit you.
That’s all very well, but what if you like every colour? What if you like pastels just as much as autumn tones?
My answer to that is: you don’t.
There is a group of colours that makes you feel energised and at home. There is a group of colours that make you look healthy and great when you wear them. There’s also groups of colours that make you look dull, and if you’re anything like me, your closet has way too many of them in it.
You know what these colours are, deep down, but you’ve probably been influenced to ignore that. It’s so easy to pay more attention to the media and friends and people we see on the street. They’re all really, really convincing.
And the cool thing is that learning these colours isn’t just about clothes. It’s also about interiors and gifts and everything to do with your style.
Here’s what I did to get past all that smut.
First I had a play in Photoshop. I opened up a photo of me, cropped out my outfit and the other people in it, and filled the space using the paint bucket tool.
I started with the colours I recently discovered that I instinctively love – orange, green, medium blue. (I found this out because there’s a small space at home that’s filled with these colours, and it’s my favourite space in the house.) Then I compared how I looked ‘wearing’ those adored colours with colours I was a bit iffy about. Then I tried colours I don’t like at all.
After that, I went through every single piece in my clothes-for-reconstruction boxes, because I had a bajillion colours in there. Normal people can use the colours in their closets, and stuff from housemate’s closets as well, especially if they have different coloured clothes to you.
Do this in the daylight, next to a window with lots of light. Put your pile of clothes nearby, and hold up each against you.
You don’t want the colours you’re wearing underneath to get in the way of your judging the colour. And remember that one shade of a colour might not work, but another shade might.
What you’re looking for is:
- your face lighting up
- your skin looking better (colours that don’t suit will magnify your imperfections)
- your gut feeling or instinct saying ‘yes!’
I sorted the clothes into two piles: suits me & doesn’t suit me. When I was iffy, I put it in the ‘doesn’t suit’ pile.
It took me a while to be able to ‘see’ the colours correctly. They all looked the same on me to begin with, but after trying a bunch of colours, I started to see clear distinctions between what worked and what didn’t.
Can you tell which pile is the one that suits me? (The first two pictures are one pile, and the last two are the other pile.)
One other important thing I learnt is that you don’t have to ban a colour from your wardrobe if it clashes with you, just maybe try to wear it as a skirt or something, away from your face. Or wear it with one of your best colours.
After doing all this I’m confident in what will work for me and what won’t, and now I won’t even be tempted to buy colours that won’t work on me. And I get to get rid of the things from my recon box that don’t work! I love getting unwanted stuff out of the house.
Working out what to do with my black-filled wardrobe won’t be such a quick task, however. Expect pictures of reconstructions here on the blog as I replace the bad colours.
Please share in the comments if you try this out! Or if you’ve discovered which colours work for you in a different way.
We do this a lot with the fabrics at work (Tessuti Fabrics), on ourselves and with customers.
We have two full length mirrors and have customers stand in front while we drape fabrics over them, comparing colours together to see if they ‘go’ and checking how colours look against their skin. We’re honest with them and make suggestions for alternatives if they don’t suit.
This is a great post, it’s easy to pick colours that catch your eye, I do it all the time! but have leaned a lot about colour and fabrics over the past year and am trying to create a wardrobe which matches. Easier said than done though.
Yeah, it’s really a challenge.
It seems like such a simple thing – actually checking which colours go with you – but I have never thought to do it before now. I always judged colours based on the colour itself, rather than it’s compatibility with me.
It must be tempting working at Tessuti with the huge selection available!
hayley´s last blog ..which colours suit me?
I’m still working on this one myself. I figured out a while ago that bold colours look best on me, but then that stopped me experimenting with slightly duller versions or patterned fabrics. I generally gather a heap of ‘red stuff’ around me these days but was astounded to find a kind of salmon pink cardi at the op shop which really works.
Then there is the difference between what I like to wear, and the colours and fabrics I like to see around me in my life. I’m actually quite aesthetically confused I think in that department! But trying to listen and not ‘prejudge’, just as you are.
I’m enjoying these posts!
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Glad you’re enjoying these posts! I’m a bit obsessed with the topic so there will be more on it this coming week.
I think that ‘bold colours’ is a bit too broad, because there will inevitably be certain bold shades that won’t go with you and ones that won’t. Thinking I’ll do a post on this soon..
And apparently salmon is a colour that goes with everyone!
I used to think I had one style for clothing and one style for surroundings, but that was just the confusion talking. My surroundings were often more me than my wardrobe was, I just didn’t really think to apply those colour schemes to my closet.
hayley´s last blog ..which colours suit me?
I love red, but it looks absolutely crap on me. So I have red boots and a red patterned purse, instead. And, of course, lots of red things around the house.
I confess that I love black and have lots of it, but I mix it up with tans, browns, greens and greys and textures, tweeds, and such. Good greens are tough to find!
I really enjoy colours in the world around me – the sky, flowers, leaves – I just can’t wear a rainbow of them!
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I have only just discovered that different red hues can have different effects.
Red is a good colour on me but only deep, warm reds. Cool reds are horrible. Likewise that cool reds would look good on another person but warm reds would clash.
I agree that good greens are hard to find! I found the perfect one at a department store, but had to leave it because of my ethical clothing pledge. I’m on a mission to find the right shade of preloved green fabric!
hayley’s last blog ..which colours suit me?
This is interesting. I am definitely drawn to earthy colours, particularly brown, yet I rarely wear them out these days. I think I am going through a transitional period into adulthood where I want to move away from the “playtime” colours of my youth into the mature colours of an inner-city professional.
There are a lot of yellows! and pinks! and reds! in my wardrobe that need donating and replacing with greys and blacks and navys. But around home I am still most comfortable in my brown pants and ugg boots
That yellow floral fabric in the pile is very cute by the way. I hope you don’t toss that one!
I’m drawn to earthy colours, too. But I’ve tended to buy black over brown for some reason. Maybe the image of black is one I liked better?
I’m finding that greys and navys and monochromes don’t feel right to me. But those colours are seen as more business-y, right? It’s sad for the people who get washed out by those colours.
hayley’s last blog ..which colours suit me?
I think we are definately drawn to colours that suit us. I always loved wearing deep reds, grey blues, dusty pinks and black.
I hate wearing orange, yellow and forest green (this could be because it was my school uniform though) and white. I’ve tried to by clothes in these colours in the past but I just never wear them.
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Ahh, I had that same reaction to my school uniform colours! Sadly my school uniform was mostly in what I’ve now discovered are some of my best colours, so I’ve been avoiding them and missing out.
That’s a great point about not wearing colours in your closet that aren’t ‘you’. I think it’s one reason people open up their wardrobe and say they have nothing to wear.
hayley’s last blog ..which colours suit me?
I too am enjoying these posts Hayley. I think red suits me, some shades of deeper pink,bright green, yellows and oranges,but in order not to look like a kindergartener I don’t wear all these at once! i just think the above shades suit my skin tone. I would say blue generally doesn’t suit me, especially pale and also pale grey, but I do love dark navy and I have a fair amount of black in my wardrobe. I had always thought white suited me and made my face look less tired and sallow but the problem is I am such a klutz I always spill stuff down any white clothing I have.
I do think I may have to canvas opinion from friends though to see how accurate my opinion is. As part of participating in Me Made May over on flickr I have been taking lots of photos of my outfits and have been surprised by which photos show stuff that looks pretty awful in the picture when I had thought it was okay!
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I’m glad you’re enjoying these! I’m having lots of fun writing them.
It sounds like you’re pretty in touch with what works for you and what doesn’t – awesome!
It is funny how a different context like a picture can make you see it in a different light. I think I’m going to try that, actually, testing out different outfits and colours with photos instead of a mirror.
hayley’s last blog ..which colours suit me?
absolutely disagree with this ENTIRELY.
I adore green, I have not been coerced into thinking I like green, I like it of my own accord.
GREEN LOOKS HORRID ON ME.
Have you thought about different shades of green?
For example, green is my absolute best colour. But only yellow-hued warm greens like forest green and olive green match me, and for every shade that does match, there are ten that don’t.
I recently tried on a green that I thought was my colour, but it felt kind of wrong and I couldn’t understand why. I ended up realising that the hue was wrong. It was very similar to my favourite green, but more blue-hued than yellow-hued, which meant it wasn’t warm enough for me and felt too stark.
hayley’s last blog ..which colours suit me?
I really like these last two posts you’ve done, even though I feel like I’ve got a pretty good grasp on what my personal style (quirky, OOAK, minimal blacks) is and what colours (bright, bold, gemstone tones, no browns/beiges/earth tones) suit me best. ITA that we’re naturally drawn to the colours that suit us best, and I think the Photoshop idea is genius!
However, I do think that how I dress is tied very closely to my hair colour (golden blonde). A few years ago I dyed my hair a bright strawberry blonde, and found that nothing in my wardrobe went with my hair! Up to that point, I had no idea that I was making subconscious sartorial choices based on my colouring, not only on what I liked wearing. I took this as a good sign, that I was on the right track of developing my personal style.
Looking forward to reading more on this from you
–xo.
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That’s such an awesome point about dying hair. I completely agree.
And I’ve been thinking lately that learning this stuff is making me appreciate my natural colours more. I’m quite sure that I never want to dye my hair again.
It’s great that you’ve got a good grasp on this already. Figuring this out is making a huge difference to me.
hayley’s last blog ..which colours suit me?
I’m definitely going to try this out.
Although after doing my style statement I tossed so many of my clothes. I literally have about 15 pieces in my wardrobe. It was my way of motivating myself to make more DIYs and customisations.
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My clothes (and fabrics in my sewing stash) are EVERY colour under the sun. I really should try this… except I’m not sure I can put aside my love of all colours to be honest about which ones really suit me. Maybe I should take some pictures like yours and ask the internet to say which ones suit me… What I do know is that the pyjamas I’m wearing right now do make my skin light up in the way you describe (turquoise and pink!).
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I just found your blog, and I think these tips are great! I’m sorting my wardrobe right now – and the “doesn’t suit me”-pile is growing surprisingly big. I hope I’ll have some clothes left when I’m finished
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Hi Hayley,
Thanks for your posts, very helpful. I really like the fact that you reply to the comments. You don’t get to find that too often
Thanks