Made in the Shade: Navigating Color this Season
I had a mani-pedi the other day and chose one of the darkest hues for my toes. The nail technician looked a bit surprised and responded, “Going dark. I haven’t had any clients choose this yet.” Then I come home to my daughter also commented, “Gee mom, aren’t you rushing into things? I mean, it’s still August.” Such is the timetable of a stylist. We jump feet first into the next season to start priming others into a new direction.
For the record, I chose from the new OPI Washington D.C. Collection, “Shh…It’s Top Secret” for my toes and “Pale to the Chief” for my fingernails.
My point in sharing is to give you an idea of what colors are in store for Fall ‘16. Nail trends are an easy way to guide you toward what to add to your wardrobe this season. Many of my clients want to know how to incorporate each season’s new palette into their oftentimes already established wardrobe. Below are a few tips on how to assess your relationship with a new color story.
Bag, The Shoe Hive from Isabel Ingall; Shoe, The Shoe Hive from Butter; Dress, Kiskadee from Julie Brown NY; Bag, The Shoe Hive from Isabel Ingall.
Pants, The Hive from Veronica Beard (sneak peek!); Bootie, The Shoe Hive from Rachel Zoe; Shirt, TSALT from FRAME; Boot, The Shoe Hive from Stuart Weitzman.
Shoe, The Shoe Hive from FS NY; Bag, The Shoe Hive from Tory Burch; Sunglasses, The Shoe Hive from Tory Burch; Fur Jacket, TSALT from Private TSALT Label Collection.
First, determine whether the season’s colors are your colors. This fall’s palette has very deep, saturated jewel tones. When I work with clients, one of the first thing I look at is their eye color. It’s my first guide to what colors I will try and incorporate in their wardrobe. The colors featured above are great for redheads, brunettes and women with darker skin tones — not the best for delicate blondes. Does that mean if you’re a blue eyed blonde you’re out of luck? Not at all. It means you need to consider how to orchestrate this color palette to your benefit.
Understanding some of the key properties of colors can help you manipulate any palette to your advantage…whether you like the Fall ’16 story or not. Here are some of the terminologies utilized around color theory.
Hue defines pure color and mixtures of two pure colors. In layman’s terms, the most basic way to define color, i.e., blue, green, magenta.
Tint. Imagine adding white to any color and you now have a tint. This is a lighter version of a color
Shade. Imagine adding black to any color and you now have a shade. A shade is darker than the original color.
Tone. Mix a pure color with any neutral or grayscale. All “tints” and “shades” are tones. One example is mixing gray into a pure color for a tone. It is softer than the original color.
Value is essentially the brightness. The more value, the brighter the color.
Saturation defines a range from the purest (100 percent) to gray (0 percent). A pure color is fully saturated. When you manipulate the saturation, the color becomes dull, softer, washed out. Luminosity is another term for saturation.
As a stylist (and artist) I work with clients to help them understand why certain colors in their wardrobe are not working for them. Learning to eliminate those obvious missteps helps them purchase wisely going forward. Some women need to utilize a softer palette — thus you take the season’s colors and imagine adding white or grey to each hue. Other women are immediately washed out in soft colors and need the intensity of pure saturation in their wardrobe.
And just to keep things interesting, everything changes as we age. We all lose pigment in our hair color, eye color, and skin tone as we get older. Thus, the colors that used to work for you may have changed over the years.
Here are a few tips on how to navigate color this fall.
If this season’s harvest of hues is not your cup of tea, you can dabble in the less pricey ways.
- Nail color
- A pair of slip-on sneakers
- An easy and affordable clutch or backpack
- A belt, which can add just a touch of accent without dominating
- A pair of sunglasses in a classic frame — not oversized, think subtle
If this collection of hues feeds your soul and yes, brings you the most ultimate joy…go deep! Look for the most amazing coat, a high-end bag, or the suede over-the-knee boots. This is your year and take full advantage of it by investing in something that may last you 3-5 years. Even when the palette changes in fashion, these colors will always work for you.
- Choose a great statement bag in a bold color.
- Indulge yourself in a pair of booties or chunky heel in a berry or blue.
- Look for a solid sheath dress that fits like a glove to use as a base with scarves and your neutral coats.
- Find the ultimate coat in your favorite color this season. A bold coat can dress up a look instantly. Again, keep it on the classic side, avoiding elements that can date it such as ruffles, asymmetric elements, exposed zippers, pocket placement, and hardware.
- If you love leather and/or fur, purchasing in a color may seem too risky. You may be thinking, “How long will I be able to wear it?” However, choosing a super dark “shade” of color that is near black or a whisper of a “tint” color can offer great interest to a look.
If you want to play around with color this season, start with what’s in your closet. Arrange everything by color and then take some time to explore what is working for you and what isn’t. It helps to be somewhere with a full length mirror in natural daylight. If you are finding that the softer more muted colors flatter you, keep this in mind as you shop this fall. Accentuate that muted color story with the deeper accents in your bag, belts, gloves, and other details such as your nails. Lastly, anyone who has worked with me knows, rules are meant to be broken, but you must learn to walk before you can run.
