All About Colour
Do you choose your clothes’ colours consciously? Are you drawn more to certain colours over others? Colours in styling play a huge role in conveying emotions, creating visual interest, and expressing your personal style. Different colours evoke different feelings and we use them (many times subconsciously) to portray how we feel or want to feel.
So, what are the most common colours and what do they convey?
Red - often associated with passion, lust, energy, and power. It can convey a sense of confidence and is one of the most attention-grabbing colours. Use it to make a statement! If you’re not in the habit of wearing red it can be a bit daunting at first – start with bold red lip and work your way up!
Blue - often associated with calmness, trust, and stability; however it can also be associated with sadness, hence the “feeling blue” phrase! Light blues are often seen as peaceful and calming, while darker blues such as navy are seen as bold and authoritative (how many dark blue or navy uniforms have you come across?!).
Yellow - a bright, cheerful colour associated with energy, positivity and summer. An attention grabbing colour which conveys a sense of happiness, although in some European countries it is also the colour of jealousy!
Green - usually associated with nature, growth, and freshness. It can represent balance and harmony. For the Irish, green is the colour of good luck, for the Americans, it’s literally the colour of money, whilst for the British, it portrays jealousy (hence the term “the green-eyed monster” from Shakespeare’s Othello).
Purple - often associated with royalty, luxury, and creativity and it was the Romans who made the colour a status symbol. Fun fact – the first purple was made from the mucus of sea snails (I know, yuk).
Orange - a vibrant and energetic colour that can represent enthusiasm and warmth. This colour transitions beautifully from summer (with bright orange) to winter (muted orange autumn tones of falling leaves).
Pink - often associated with femininity, love, and compassion. It can range from soft and delicate to bold and vibrant, we are spoiled for choice!
Black – ahh, black, my true love!! Black is a classic colour associated with sophistication, elegance and timelessness. It's often used for formal occasions. In the West it is often associated with mourning and loss, though traditionally brides in Spain wore a black gown on their happy day to signify their commitment to their groom “until death do us part”.
White – this colour evokes purity, innocence, simplicity, and cleanliness. It's a versatile colour that can be both casual and formal, and in many cultures it is of course also associated with weddings. This colour is very much associated with summer dressing and there are those in the US who still follow the unwritten rule of “no white clothes after Labour Day” (which is the first Monday in September). Fun fact – this “rule” is rumoured to date back to the late 19th/early 20th century and invented to separate those with money from those without. Wealthy Americans would leave the city at the end of summer and decamp to warmer vacation spots, bringing their white clothes with them. The rule was that you shouldn’t wear white if you don’t have the money to go on fall/winter vacations (so snobby!) and the rule lifts on Memorial Day (the last Monday of May) which is the official start of summer!
Brown - often represents earthiness and reliability and tends to be a colour we see more of in autumn/winter styling due to it’s darker tone.
Gray - Gray is a neutral colour associated with balance, sophistication, and practicality in the fashion world, and is often used in professional settings but can also be versatile in casual wear. However, in the West it is also associated with dullness, boredom and old age (hence the phrase “grey and old”). As it’s one of my favourite colours I think its’ reputation as a dull colour is unwarranted. It is so versatile and goes incredibly well with so many brighter hues.
So which of these is your favourite and which do you have most of in your wardrobe?
