Ask Angie: colour advice dark hair-fair skin/eyes

I’m one of those people who have a closet full of clothes (well, actually more like 3 closets…) but still feel like they have nothing to wear. I’m guessing the feeling comes from not having any structure or organisation in my wardrobe and I’d like to tackle this problem.

It seems like a logical start to center one’s wardrobe around one or a few central colours. However, this is exactly my problem. I have absolutely no clue which colours I should or could focus on.

I have quite strong/contrasting colouring in my face (very dark brown hair, very pale yellowish skin, blue/green eyes, strong black brows, and a quite dark red lip colour), and I always thought warm colours looked better on me (eg. dark red). But then according to a colour-website, I qualify as a ‘clear winter’ and should wear cooler colours instead. Should I listen to this advice ? Or should I for example just work with blues and reds to bring out my eyes/lips ? (just random thinking…)

I really don’t know where to start, and I’ve never seen colour advice for the dark hair-light eye type. How do I figure this out and start organising my wardrobe?

I know that’s a lot of questions at once, but any help and colour advice is greatly appreciated !

Here’s a few random things I did find out:
-darker colours tend to be better for me
-yellow has never looked good on me (because of the yellowish skin I presume ?), but I’ve gotten compliments on a certain sweater dress that’s olive green.
-both white and black work, but they work best with a little colour to not make it too harsh. I adore cream and this is even a bit better than white.

Not sure if that’s of any use, but who knows…

17 years ago

Sarah

(website)

Veteran

I'm not Angie (obviously!), but I have similar coloring as you do, Elika. I'm very pale with dark brown hair, lighter brown eyes, and strong brows.
My favorite colors to wear are navy blue and bright pink. I used to subscribe to the season colors theory, but eventually it just frustrated me because I couldn't figure out which season I was. I too can wear black and white near my face, as well as cream.
I held up a pink sheet and a peachy orange sheet of paper to my face (no makeup) in front of the mirror. I definitely favored the peachy orange, so I consider myself "warm". From there, I enlist friends or YLF members to cue me on what colors are my best.
So many things can be manipulated with hair color (I add gold highlights in the summer) and makeup. Best of luck!

Ana

I've found the best way to figure out whether you tend to wear warm colors or cool colors better is to just hold them up to your face, or try them on in a store when you see them and have a look in good lighting. Certain colors will really bring out your eyes and hair and make your skin look very glowy and more even. Don't try this with neutrals at first, because it's harder to figure out with those. Try it with very definite warm and cool colors. For instance, red, blue, and green both come in variations of "warm-red" and "cool-red" or "warm-blue" and "cool-blue" depending on their "base" color. Try the test with magenta/fuschia pink (almost always a cool color) and orange or bright yellow (almost always "warm"). Also, try it with silver and gold jewelry--which tends to look better on you? If you're more warm, gold will go better, or if you're mostly cool, silver will go.

Also, people vary on the spectrum as to how warm or cool they are. For instance, Tanya on this website is very cool, she essentially can't wear any warm colors, and I'm the opposite, I can wear very, very few cool colors (only some shades of blue, so far). I pretty much avoid them entirely. But Sarah (sarbear1121) above can wear certain shades of both, because I think she's more in the middle. You might be that way as well, so you will have to do a little more experimenting to figure out your best colors. Does that make sense? Sorry for the long explanation.

Elika

Active Member

Thank you for the advice Ana and Sarah!

I have tried to put different colours against my skin, but I can't seem to figure out a definite warm or cool tone.

Orange & yellow wash me out, but magenta seems much too 'harsh' for my skintone.
Warmer greentones are definitely better than cool green-tones, but on the other hand silver seems to work better than gold (but that might be because I never wear gold so am not used to that).

A bluish teal also worked nicely.

Unfortunately, I'm now still not quite sure how to interpret this.

Does this mean I'm more of a combination, as you mentioned, Ana? Or maybe I'm just totally going wrong in judging which colours are warm or cool?

Hmm....well, could you put a mirror near a window for natural light, and put different colors on and take photos? We could maybe help you out by telling you which colors we think look best on you?

That would be a lovely help, but unfortunately I don't have any moveable mirrors around (and it's also past dark here, so there's no natural light right now).

I could maybe try and think of a way to fix a few photos tomorrow or in the coming days perhaps. Thanks for thinking along with me

ChristineB

It can be really hard to figure out colors. Some advice I was given when my season was done was with trying lipstick - put some on your hand & rub some away. The wrong color will look like a bruise, but the right color will blend in easier.

To me, you sound more like me - a clear, vibrant spring. Orangy orange colors and pastels are generally not good for me, but corals and brighter colors are, such as grass & olive green, teal etc.

You could try reading what is here http://artisanssquare.com/sg/i.....060.0.html - I like that she has many different categories, making it easier to fit yourself into one rather than the 4 seasons, or just warm/cool.

Another bit of advice I heard somewhere is to wear the colors that naturally occur in your natural coloring, such as the color of your lips, colors found in your eyes (I've got hazel, which is why olive works well for me), etc.

One last bit of advice - rather than try to fit into a set of colors, wear what you feel good in, and you feel looks good on you. If yellow & orange are bad, don't wear them.

Good luck!

Thank you Christine, that's a great site! Reading that, it seems that you're right and I would fit more into the clear spring category.

Either way, those colour palettes make a lot of sense. It seems like I should look for:
-Black/greys
-Forest/olivy greens
-Dark pinks/rose-red
-Blues

The last two seem obvious because they work with my lip & eye colour respectively, and the green makes sense because I've been complimented while wearing that sort of colour.

Well, that's a start Now, should I experiment and then tone that down to one or two basecolours? Or should I work with base neutrals and use all of these as accent colours?

I'd be interested to learn if other people have a colour-organisation of their wardrobes!

tarzy

I definitely pay attention to color when I shop. I'd say after the style of the item, color is the next thing I consider.

It's still a bit of trial and error for me, since I don't know exactly what I am - I have very dark hair that gets natural red highlights in the sun, pinkish skin, and hazel eyes with warm golden flecks. I think I look better in the cool/winter colors.

It can definitely be confusing, but usually you just know when you hold something up to your face if it works or not. (I also tend to ask sales people and total strangers!)

I will not buy anything in a color that doesn't look good on me, even if i love the style or fit of the item. I just know that I won't feel good in it and it will be a waste of money. It's a little limiting, but in the end, it helps me end up with clothes I actually wear.

But I do think you have to be open, too. I usually avoid yellow like the plague. However - I just bought a scarf that has brown, which is a good color for me, with some bright yellow. I think it might work since the yellow is clear and bright, not a warm muddy yellow. I'm still not sure I love it, but I wanted something to add some oomph to my brown tops and it was only $10. I'll have to see how it "feels."

I'll be interested to see how you incorporate your new color knowledge!

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