Adding some color to a neutral wardrobe...

[LadyLoba]

Hi everyone...just wanted to get some ideas from other people. As I've mentioned on here before...I've lost weight in the past year and needed to replace everything in my wardrobe except for some dress shirts and shoes. I'm also working with a very low income, so I took all that "build a basic wardrobe" advice and bought a bunch of white pieces then chose two coordinating neutrals...brown and black.

I've got a very nice basic wardrobe coming together.. and it really did save money...I don't need casual wear jackets because both my dress "shells" and shirts and my casual shirts are in black, white, and brown, so I can wear my suit jackets with jeans and casual shirts, all my dress shirts can be worn with all my dress pants. That advice is very good.

The only problem: I do want to add some color. I was thinking with all those neutrals I could add 2 or 3 colors in accessories, an extra shirt or two, a cocktail dress, and eventually...my belly dance outfits.

I'm just not sure what colors would look good on me.

There is a pic of me on my profile, with just the basic makeup for a professional photo plus some brown eyeliner, eyeshadow, and orange lipstick on top of that....that very peachy gold is what my skin actually looks like...and I have very dark brown eyes and auburn hair. The color in my pic is "almost but not quite" my natural color....my hair is naturally auburn, but I had a semi permanent color rinse from a salon on top of it that left it a bit redder and a couple shades darker than it looks to me right now.

What colors would everyone suggest for me for accessories, extra every day pieces, and eventually belly dance costumes?

I know I asked about plain, neutral colored belly dance outfits...but I thought it would be a better idea to go ahead and study/practice in the plain black yoga pants and white fitted T-shirts I'd use for any other type of exercise....though I do still need a hip scarf.....and then get something a bit more special for a costume..

 

[Eshta]

Phew!

Tried to answer, and it just came out as FAIL. Sorry! I realised all the colours I was thinking of were my favourite colours, so probably no use to you!

But I know with myself, my favourite costume colours and "everyday" colours flow through. I don't know which one influences which to be honest!

 

[Farasha Hanem]

Carol Jackson and "Color Me Beautiful"

Let me give you a link to a site that I think will prove most helpful to you when it comes to choosing color:

Find Your Season-Would You Say Your Hair Is Light or Dark Color Me Beautiful

Take the test to find out what "season" you are, based on your hair color, eye color, and complexion. It should take you to a color chart in your season's palette---these colors will be the ones that are most flattering for you. It will help make shopping for clothes, accessories, and makeup less confusing! ^^

Based on your profile pic, you look like you would be an Autumn, but I can't tell for sure unless I actually saw you. Give the site a try, and let me know how it goes!

 

[Shanazel]

Autumn was my guess, too, which is why I didn't recommend any colors. I see color with a Summer's prejudice.

 

[jenc]

That site goes entirely by hair colour. I chose light hair, cos I have silver hair and it mentioned pepper and salt, then it made me a summer. I do look quite good in rose, but I get compliments in royal blue and red, also deep purple.

But then I always thought it went on original hair colour and also skin tone

 

[Shanazel]

I tried the site, too, and ended up spring because I have gold highlights in my hair. Well, in Wyoming it is hard to tell the difference between the seasons sometimes. Everything but the Fouth of July tends to look a lot like winter.

 

[jenc]

It used to be a bit more complicated than that - after asll everyone knows someone who has dyed her hair and it doesn't suit her skin tone. Surely you don't need to change your wardrobe if you get highlights!!

 

[Shanazel]

My gold highlights are natural- dimmer than they were in my long ago youth, but still discernable. The color class I attended many moons ago was quite complex and took into account complexion, eye color, and having a person hold different colored fabric next to one's face while other attendees gave thumbs up or thumbs down on the effect. I'm pretty sure I was a summer because I look like hell in things my golden skinned pale golden blonde daughter looks gorgeous in.

 

[jenc]

Apologies - I didn't mean to question your highlights!!!. I was just questionning following hair colour alone. Royal blue has always been the colour for me - but it has never looked quite so stunning as now with silver hair.

On the other hand, I have always looked washed out in black and white, (winter colours) even when I had dark hair. When I was 16 I travelled 30 miles to buy clothes and bought a white dress for my mother to alter for me. She refused on the grounds that it made me look dead!!

I look good in turquoise (summer), brown (autumn) most strong colours, except yellows - also suits strong personality.

I strongly question any system that moves me to the "serenity palate" just because I have white hair, I am not a little old lady

 

[jenc]

Back to Lady Loba - go down to somewhere that sells scarves and accessories. Hold them up next to your face and see what they do for you, preferrably in daylight as shoplighting is designed to flatter.

 

[Aniseteph]

I agree with jenc - go somewhere that has a lot of coloured things and experiment!

Sometimes you get people who are good at these things and tell you to try on something in an unlikely colour and it works, but I am totally clueless apart from a suspicion that pastels are not my friend and strong colours are better.

:shok: that site seems to work, spring... go bright colours! (although not so helpful that as soon as you click on the "light" hair you enter Blonde Country... and everyone seems to be highlighted within an inch of their lives).

 

[walladah]

LadyLoba,

1) From the picture on your profile, i would say that you would better opt for royal colours:

royal red, blue, green, yellow, brown, purple, orange, pink. This is not that low-profile colours do not fit you, quite the opposite. But i think you have the perfect complex (hair, skin colour, eyes) for dramatic colours.

2) Dramatic colours are very handy, for they do not need to be on a large surface to show themselves and to adorn flat colours. Quite the opposite: dramatic/royal colours can just be like a hint of accessory and they have same impact.

3) To turn your wardrobe into something with colours without destroying your 2011 budget, you need to be inventive:
a) buy stuff that can be used in several occasions, not one specific only.
b) when buying, opt for pieces (tops, skirts, belts, trousers) instead of overall clothing, like dresses. Pieces give you more options and dressing looks.
c) when buying clothing stuff in dramatic colours and you really cannot decide between several options, you opt for easily-matched colours - red and green and blue (in this order) are the best options.
d) maybe you should start considering altering stuff you do not use anymore by painting on the clothe with clothe paints. Even simple patterns or just "mess of colours" will make a boring grey top on a colourful masterpiece.
e) You may also consider creating your own stuff by sewing or by altering (cutting, adding pads/decorations, etc) clothes. I would say that every bellydancer does this anyway, so in case you do not, it is a nice pretext to learn a typical bellydancer skill. It will help for both non-bellydance and bellydance clothes.

I hope this helps.

 

[Greek Bonfire]

I figured you for an autumn too - a lot of celery green, butter yellow, bright orange, burnt sienna. But I think that chart would be a good start though, however, a lot of people are not exactly one "season" so sometimes you can wear other colors from other "seasons" as well, probably more summery colors.

 

[LadyLoba]

Wyoming Seasons..

LOL...SO true! I lived in Wyoming for much of my childhood....if I hadn't previously lived in Pennsylvania, I'm not sure I would have understood the actual seasons (never mind people's seasonal coloring) were different.

Honestly, Wyoming is a beautiful state...but winters are long and harsh and you can have a windstorm pretty much any time.

 

[jenc]

I would not say blue for you nor probably true red. Russet, greens , yellow, orange. I

 

[LadyLoba]

Definitely an autumn

I did it and I am definitely an autumn...and royal colors are a great idea!

I've read that the colors you gravitate to naturally are the ones that suit you, and those are always the colors I go to. I like light greens and light yellows as well as emerald, pine, turquoise, and topaz..but in every other color I always like the richer, royal, jewel tones...love Saphire blue (though blue isn't really my color) but the one really nice shirt I have that I want to give away is a pale blue that I just don't care for..and the few times I wore it I looked like I had a cold...and I like deep ruby and garnet reds better than softer or brighter reds...amethyst and royal purple but not a fan of lavendar or violet, etc.

Very good point on royal colors being ones that can be used in smaller touches...I never thought of that, but it is very true.

I think your coloring changes a bit when your hair color changes...but only with really drastic changes. Think of Senator John Kerry (regardles of what you think of his politics). If you remember when they were showing pics of him when he ran for Pres in '04...in his pics before his hair grayed, he had a sort of chesnut brown shade that would have clashed horribly with some of his bright pink and orange ties he's known to wear..but now that his hair is gray...they look very nice on him. Just getting highlights woven through the same base color wouldn't have that effect.

 

[Greek Bonfire]

At one time I had caramel highlight in my hair. Usually I am a strong winter but with those warmer highlights, I was able to cross over a little bit into autumn, which when I have my own hair color, I can never do because they make me look sallow <blah>