Photo of Alexa Chung courtesy of www.wardrobemag.wordpress.comWomen in New York City don black clothing like glamourous coats of armor. This is because they believe that wearing black instantly telegraphs a heady blend of seriousness mixed with sophistocation and perhaps a bit of mystery. (Plus, have you heard that black is slimming? Well, that's what I've heard and anyway why take your chances?) So why bother ever wearing any color other than black?
Because wearing black can get a little boring after a while, that's why. Plus it can be aging. We can call it "Dowager Chic". I imagine that dowagers always look slim, though, what with all the black that they wear.
Oh hell, who am I kidding? Black is the bomb. It
is glamourous. It
is sophistocated. It
is slimming. Oh yeah, and cost-effective--everything matches. There is no reason why you shouldn't have a closet bursting at the seams with nothing but a sea of black.
However, if you
are able to move beyond ubiquitous black and succeed, well then, people will be tripping over themselves to look at you.
Everyday Glamour Chick's, (
E.G.C.'s), know that wearing color is a secret trump card.
The idea is to wear colors that blend, coordinate, and harmonize with your own coloring. Your coloring includes the tones in you skin, hair, and eyes. Colors that harmonize with your personal coloring make you look as fresh as a daisy, as pretty as a picture, and as alert as a cheerleader on espresso. Colors that clash with your personal coloring cast shadows on your face and make you look like father time. And not in a good way. Also, and I can't stress this enough, but our personal coloring changes as we age and with the environment, (especially if that environment includes bleach and a chatty hairdresser named Kit.) Your eye color may lighten. Your skin color can change with the seasons. And your hair...well, I think I already covered that. So as our personal coloring changes, so do our most flattering wardrobe colors change. 'Nuff said.
Photo of Alexa Chung courtesy of www.MediaTumblr.comGo through your wardrobe and hold up your tops next to your face and gaze into the mirror. This must be done in natural lighting, so don't wait untill 10:00 at night to organize your closet. Just go to sleep instead. Purists would say hold up the tops next to your face without makeup on. If your makeup is wrong, then you'll be thrown off your game. And the name of this game is "What Colors Make Me Look Fresh as a Daisy?" Create piles.
Pile 1: Great color on me!
Pile 2: Good enough!
Pile 3: Eww, that's just nasty. Once you have created your piles you can eliminate
Pile 3 or you can box it away and save it for the next time you color your hair. Who knows? They might work then, right?
Take Pile 1 and Pile 2 and organize them in your closet. Season comes first, so whatever season you're in, that's what goes front and center. So if it's Spring, then don't worry about your obvious Fall/Winter pieces, put those out of sight. Organize your tops together and group like colors together. Same for your pants, skirts, dresses....you get the picture.
The main rule when combining colors in an outfit is to make sure you never perfectly match. Think about
blending colors instead. If you are having trouble with this, then think about combining a piece in a stand-out color with a piece in a neutral color. Neutrals are: White, Camel, Grey, Navy, Tan, Brown, Black, (hello black), Cream, Khaki, and Military green. Also of note is that your "neutral" colored clothing doesn't have to be solid--it can be a print. Think about pinstripes, tweed, herringbone, shearling, cable knits, and lacy bits as all being "neutral".
So I challenge you to step out and stretch yourself. Go beyond the black. Go ahead, live on the wild side, wear color!
Photo of Alexa Chung courtesy of www.Stylisti.com
Thursday, September 2, 2010 at 12:53AM 
Photo of Kate Moss courtesy of www.EatSleepStyle.blogspot.com
Photo courtesy of www.Sweetfuzz.comPhoto courtesy of www.FlightsofFabFashionFancy.com
Photo courtesy of www.FlightsofFabFashionFancy.com
