YouLookFab Forum » Topic: Brown/beige as non neutrals?

YouLookFab Forum » Topic: Brown/beige as non neutrals? https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals Style Advice for Fashion Lovers en-US Mon, 27 Apr 2026 12:40:00 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 <![CDATA[Search]]> q https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/search.php Star (Lise) on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals/page/2#post-2214303 Fri, 06 Aug 2021 12:03:52 +0000 Star (Lise) 2214303@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Me too ST.  Blush and burgundy can pass as neutrals for me but never red.  Shevia I have blush sneakers that fully operate as a neutral. Anonymous on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals/page/2#post-2214296 Fri, 06 Aug 2021 11:35:51 +0000 Anonymous 2214296@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I can see blush as a neutral, since it's similar to fair skin. But red I can't get my head around. Burgundy yes, I use as a neutral a lot, but red is so...red...To me it's hard to pair with anything but neutrals or adjacent colors like hot pink or blush. Jaime on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals/page/2#post-2214272 Fri, 06 Aug 2021 08:54:24 +0000 Jaime 2214272@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Wow, another great and thought provoking thread. I am happy! Anyway, I am also tired, but I would say that for me fashion neutrals are the colors that don't stand out when I wear them. So black and white are not even exactly neutrals for me, but denim blue is. Olive, despite my skin color, looks dreadful next to my face unless it is very cool, so it is a color. On the other hand blush pink shoes are a neutral on my feet. Probably more confusing than clear! lyn67 on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals/page/2#post-2214269 Fri, 06 Aug 2021 08:45:27 +0000 lyn67 2214269@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Well, as Carla said, tan should be a neutral for me but  only use it sparingly and mostly for my summer  shoes and bags or in my prints. Do not really own clothing pieces in plain tan (but forgot my golden beige short  puffer - lemming Carla with this:-)) as a big dose of plain and matte tan washes me out---and this is why I didn't ever have a camel coat for me even if love it on others, including richer, more contrasted  blondes.  Then I have grey eyes, so a fadded blue should aslo be a neutral for me, but the same as above. Using it  in big doses  does nothing for me-say I wore a mid blue dress for my DB's wedding in my youth and hated myself in all the picties unfortunatelly. That beeing said I am wearing a fadded blue 3/4sleev linen top with a white denim skirt and tan slides&waistbag+tote at the moment to my office and feel fab! Now we can choose to interpret my today's outfit as a neutral with an accent color (but then, which is the neutral and which is the accent??:-)) or an all neutral....See if I can post a pictie if somebody inetersted. Irina on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals/page/2#post-2214042 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 14:48:51 +0000 Irina 2214042@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Nemosmom, I feel the same about navy. Admittedly, navy looks better on me than black but it doesn’t work well with my other colors and can’t replace black in my wardrobe. Aside from denim, I feel too colorful when pairing it with camel or olive. Angie on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals/page/2#post-2214038 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 14:45:06 +0000 Angie 2214038@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ You are all right :) In artistic colour theory terms: black, white and grey are the only neutrals. In fashion terms: we add denim blue, navy, browns, tans, taupes, sands beige, camel, khaki, olive.....you guys get it. We talk about it all the time! Personally, I'll go a step further: for my style, red and blush pink are neutrals too.  nemosmom on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals/page/2#post-2214024 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 14:08:37 +0000 nemosmom 2214024@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <div>Why is color so tricky?!  I remember back when I was told I was an "autumn" that black and optic white were absolute NO for me.  So, over time I replaced my black with warm navy -- and HATED how it paired with all the earthtones in my closet.  I replaced white with ivory and it looked TERRIBLE next to my face - I prefer more contrast. </div><div> </div><div>ST, I am with you on:</div><div>I've been preferring black with body adjacent colors- camel, cognac, and olive or alone</div><div> </div><div>I had the opinion that navy was MY black, but I just don't like it LOL. I need some way to anchor or ground my earthtones, and love black or deep charcoal best for that.  Even chocolate brown doesn't really do the job that black does for me, in this case. </div> Carla on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals/page/2#post-2214020 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 13:59:48 +0000 Carla 2214020@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Well, if Angie says….   Adding all the beige/taupe/brown will have an impact on my ratio of colour to neutrals. RobinF on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2214016 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 13:39:37 +0000 RobinF 2214016@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Hmm, I am definitely of the school that neutrals are determined by how I use them. I will wear "my" neutrals with a color or another neutral but I will not wear two colors together. For example blue - looks good on me, I have blue-gray eyes and works well that way - but I would never wear it with pink or gold or olive, just too colorful :)  But I would wear it with black, gray, white, taupe, camel. Depends on intensity too but that is a whole different thing! Anonymous on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213999 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 13:04:03 +0000 Anonymous 2213999@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I wear dark brown as I do black, with medium to dark colors usually, but it just softens the contrast a bit. My medium browns I wear with light, medium or dark colors- and of course cognac shoes as my nude. My beiges I usually wear with medium colors (I don't wear pastels). Yep Star- should probably update my profile too! I just need the quieter colors now to balance out...well my life at this stage. Star (Lise) on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213984 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 12:21:49 +0000 Star (Lise) 2213984@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ ST I am also finding myself migrating from Team Non-Neutral to Team Neutral lately.  I did not comment on that thread but would have for sure said Team Non-Neutral then.  My brighter colors and patterns are not making me very happy right now, but give me all the light grey.  WOW is this me?? :)  I will have to change my YLF profile. Also I believe that if you wear a Neutral color as an accent in your wardrobe that does not change the color being classified a neutral.  That is constant.  (As per Angie detailed above.) kkards on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213980 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 11:31:06 +0000 kkards 2213980@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Nodding along with Helena’s definition of fashion neutrals…which is why for me browns are a neutral if they are accessories, especially shoes or belts, but a color if they are clothing….i know, it makes no sense, but i can never figure out what to wear with brown clothing, and so I’d wear white/cream …actual I’ve solved the problem by not buying brown clothing, and even with in accessories, i limit my brown to a narrow range… Anonymous on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213979 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 11:14:35 +0000 Anonymous 2213979@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I put myself firmly on team non neutral then- lol- now I'm the opposite! No wonder I hate* most of my wardrobe now A lot happened since 2019... *not really hate, per se, but I want to at least pack most of it away for a while* N on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213977 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 10:29:36 +0000 N 2213977@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Navy my neutral. I don't have black, I have grey but actually I don't think grey suits me too much. I need like a balance of both warm and cool tones as I think I'm really neutral (or as near to neutral as you can get) colouring wise. Too cool looks bad and too warm looks bad but a cool tone of a warm colour or a warm tone of a cool colour looks good. I can pair navy with the colours that suit me. Star (Lise) on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213974 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 09:49:50 +0000 Star (Lise) 2213974@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ ST Do you remember this post from Angie?  It generated so many comments. <a rel="nofollow" href="https://youlookfab.com/2019/07/11/team-neutral-or-team-non-neutral/">Team Neutral or Team Non-Neutral - YLF (youlookfab.com)</a><a rel="nofollow" href="https://youlookfab.com/2019/07/11/team-neutral-or-team-non-neutral/"></a> So Angie firmly puts browns and tans in the neutral camp.  I recall another post where everyone had different ideas about which colors were neutrals but Angie had some firm rules.   Anonymous on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213973 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 09:17:04 +0000 Anonymous 2213973@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I think I get it! Our neutrals are how they function in our wardrobes, more than whether the color itself is achromatic (black, true grey, white), a color commonly used as neutral (navy, olive) or neutral to us (shades of brown- for me). I didn't really think of eye color as much, because eyes are a small body part, but my eyes are hazel and olive functions as neutral sometimes in my outfits. If I wear it with teal, its a neutral- but with brown, its a color. With black I'd have thought color, buuut black is not a body color. Hmm.... I've been preferring black with body adjacent colors- camel, cognac, and olive or alone. I wear a lot of black though. Anonymous on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213956 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 03:43:54 +0000 Anonymous 2213956@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ This is such a good question.  Right now I should think of browns as colors in my wardrobe as a have very few pieces, much more rust and even more grey.  I had hoped to add more browns this fall but still do not see much offered.  I’m afraid grey will have to fill in for brown as a neutral again this year.   Carla on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213952 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 02:09:26 +0000 Carla 2213952@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I’ve been procrastinating at answering this question because I listed beige as a ‘colour’ in my thread - even though it is a slam dunk match to my hair colour.  I guess it’s because I’ve never had a lot of it in my closet (see Finds below) and haven’t fully committed to it.  I’m on the horns of a dilemma regarding a winter coat - do I get the camel/beige colour or the black?  As my hair gets lighter/whiter will beige/camel be as versatile as black?   <div> </div><div>If I spring for the camel coat, I will accept beige is now a neutral for me.  If I go for the black version, well, then black will continue as my keystone neutral and beige will continue to be an accent, and thus a ‘colour’. </div> LaPed on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213951 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 01:28:35 +0000 LaPed 2213951@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I go back and forth on this. I totally get the idea of "body neutrals" and do tend to gravitate towards clothing colours that refer to my personal coloring in some way. So blues are easy (eyes), dark brown is pretty easy (hair), rust/cinnamon is easy (freckles and sun highlights), and olive and ochre are represented in my eye flecks. But I still treat all of those as colours. If I put on a cinnamon top and denim bottoms that is a *colorful* outfit to my eye. It's practically red and blue! Cinnamon top with black jeans -- that's a colour plus an achromatic. Achromatics are the closest to neutrals for me in the sense of goes-with-almost-everything. If I'm only packing one pair of jeans, you can bet it will be black and not blue.  So I do treat my browns like colours. Rust serves as my version of orange, ochre as my version of yellow. The cognac thing is interesting; I've always found most cognacs to be too bright and orange for me, especially next to blue denim. Like Sarah says, it's a complementary colour combination, and feels very bright and high impact. I'm always looking for lighter mid-browns that are softer and more muted than cognac, but not as pale as beige or tan. Walnut or toasted coconut... When I did try to treat brown as a neutral, I ended up purging it all, because I was expecting it to behave like black and it just wouldn't!  Anonymous on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213938 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 00:16:35 +0000 Anonymous 2213938@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Even though nemosmom claims not to know what she’s doing - I’m doing it right along with her . To me , neutrals are personal and subjective . Sure , every fashion editorial and expert proclaims neutrals to be black , navy , camel , grey etc - but I like to think we create our own list of neutrals based on what looks good on us and what works best . I certainly don’t use those colours as the basis for my wardrobe - but instead have picked a few that work with each other , my skin tone and my aesthetic preferences . I used to subscribe to the idea that I should own a bunch of navy grey and black , but I’ve almost completely weeded out the grey and navy . Black has to stay because it’s a work outfit requirement - but I’d be fine without it . Sal on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213934 Thu, 05 Aug 2021 00:05:20 +0000 Sal 2213934@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I tend to include browns as neutrals along with blues, greys, whites and blacks - and treat olive and blush like a neutral too. I don't wear all these colours with colours though - for example I don't like black and red much on me (too high contrast and bright) nor am I keen on navy with blush (skews too cool on me). I don't know that any neutral goes with all other colours, probably the closest for me would be denim, camel, ecru, olive and light grey - and these are the colours that are closer to my eyes (denim/olive/light grey), hair (camel) and ecru (skin).  I don't have black or white or navy or blush in my colouring so they are a bit trickier. This cami below is brown, but not so easy for me to incorporate as it is quite a bright brown.  I think of it as netural though. April on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213925 Wed, 04 Aug 2021 23:06:02 +0000 April 2213925@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ As always, just listen to Irina. Seriously. Also - like chewy, I too think of brown as a color. And I only wear the coolest chocolate browns, often with black. chewyspaghetti on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213923 Wed, 04 Aug 2021 23:00:39 +0000 chewyspaghetti 2213923@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I haven't read all the replies, but I wanted to chime in. Whether or not something is a neutral (to me) has to do with the way that I use it in outfits, rather than the color itself. I don't pair browns with other colors that I wear, only with neutrals...so, to me- it's a color. slim cat on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213922 Wed, 04 Aug 2021 22:55:57 +0000 slim cat 2213922@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ My skin/hair/eyes have ashy undertones or colors - soft grey is my “at home “, calming color without much energy. I don’t wear it outside the home - at makes me pale as a ghost- lol. Neutral color but without much use . Blue especially pale blue, aqua makes my skin brighter and energizes me - some specks in my eyes are soft green ( looks a bit blue to some ). That’s my examples for the some colors that I do have in my look. Brown, beige are the colors that I prefer not to have at all ( used to have some chocolate brown bottoms in the past - all gone now ). cat2 on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213921 Wed, 04 Aug 2021 22:52:46 +0000 cat2 2213921@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Hmm, I consider dark brown a neutral, it’s something you can use as a base for many combinations, just like black, navy, grey, etc. bj1111 on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213915 Wed, 04 Aug 2021 22:14:46 +0000 bj1111 2213915@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ what @rachy said--esp chocolate brown--this is a color.  camel may be a neutral or a color.  for me, if i want to match/repeat it elsewhere in the outfit, it's a color--that includes browns. rachylou on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213912 Wed, 04 Aug 2021 21:56:11 +0000 rachylou 2213912@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ As fashion neutrals go, I think almost black navy is a neutral and all other blues as colour. With brown, I feel a dark brown is colour and lighter browns are neutral. Generally speaking. Because you can get into dye undertones - most obvious when you try to match blacks and realise they don’t! Black may go with any colour except… another black! Lol DonnaF on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213911 Wed, 04 Aug 2021 21:53:47 +0000 DonnaF 2213911@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ I had my colors “done” in the ‘80s when it was a big thing. In that particular system, neutrals were colors that didn’t hold a lot of energy with my particular combo of skin color, eyes, and hair. I could wear them, but a single solid without any texture would look “blah”. A number of jewel tones are like that on me. Blues and olives can be particularly versatile and worn like a neutral for folks if they are in their eye color, even if little flecks. Maybe it sends a message on a subliminal level? nemosmom on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213909 Wed, 04 Aug 2021 21:46:52 +0000 nemosmom 2213909@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ Hmmm… I would like to count MY neutrals as any color I can mirror/bookend from my own natural coloring. So, cognac, camel, teal, olive, rust… But, black and grey goes (kinda) with all of them, and I consider it neutral… but I don’t have any black or grey in my eyes or hair (unless you look reaaallllly closely hehe) so it throws that theory out the window… also, interesting that some blues (like teal) would be neutral then, by my own rules, but not all blues (like denim). Clearly I have NO idea what I am doing LOL SarahD8 on "Brown/beige as non neutrals?" https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/brownbeige-as-non-neutrals#post-2213907 Wed, 04 Aug 2021 21:41:50 +0000 SarahD8 2213907@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ How interesting! Most shades of brown and beige, whether warm or cool, make me look like absolute death. So they are not colors I wear as neutrals. However, you've got me thinking about my penchant for cognac footwear -- which I have usually thought of as a neutral, BUT its warmth/orange-y tone has a complementary-color effect when paired with blue, which I do wear a lot. I also consider denim and navy neutrals in my wardrobe -- but denim + cognac is really a strong complementary color contrast! I have blue eyes that are quite a prominent feature and so blue is a "body color" for me. I wonder if people with blue eyes find it easier to wear navy or other shades of blue as a neutral? ETA: Fashintern I can think of one thing beige manifestly does not go with: my skin! haha