https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many Style Advice for Fashion Lovers en-US Sat, 04 Apr 2026 20:40:54 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 q https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/search.php https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many/page/2#post-1415107 Wed, 24 Dec 2014 10:33:52 +0000 Style Fan 1415107@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I love neutrals.&nbsp; When I was working I needed more clothes and more variety than I do now.&nbsp; I am semi retired (3 years) and adjusting my wardrobe accordingly.&nbsp; I also love earth tones.&nbsp; I have found shopping very difficult since brown disappeared because I am a very warm toned person.&nbsp; I dislike gray (on me).&nbsp; </p> <p>I found the Vivienne Files very helpful in organizing my shopping and wardrobe.&nbsp; I wear lots of brown (seem to find it hidden in stores), denim (yes it is a neutral), cognac, camel, olive green, golden yellow.&nbsp; The golden yellow is not a neutral but an accent.&nbsp; I never get bored with these colours.&nbsp; </p> <p>I think brown is making a comeback.&nbsp; Some high end clothes are appearing in brown.&nbsp; Yeah!!!!</p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many/page/2#post-1415026 Wed, 24 Dec 2014 03:10:50 +0000 Dimity 1415026@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Angie, your wardrobe colours reflect your style perfectly, and I love seeing what new things you present on the blog each day. There's always something I'd never have thought of doing, which expands the possibilities of my existing wardrobe.</p> <p>Approprio, thanks for the link. IntoMind has a great blog with lots of info to delve into.</p> <p>It's interesting how many neutrals everyone is using, way more than I thought would be the norm. The consensus seems to be that they're really flexible, so why not use several, and I think I'll adopt that approach too. I've been in a rut and this new approach will liven things up for me. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many/page/2#post-1414986 Tue, 23 Dec 2014 23:08:29 +0000 approprio 1414986@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have a complicated relationship with neutrals. I once went several seasons thinking aubergine was a neutral, on account of a particularly nice coat and a pair of lovely corduroy pants I had&nbsp;in that colour. I'm somewhat inclined to consider mossy green and metallics as neutrals for much the same reason. And I don't see why red or even leopard print can't be a neutral in somebody's universe.&nbsp;But there's always a part of me that wishes that everything in my wardrobe was black, white or navy blue.&nbsp;</p> <p>I really like the colour guides over at Into Mind, which helped me look objectively at the colours I wear and why I like them. She's also very good on seasonal&nbsp;colour analysis.&nbsp;<br /><a rel="nofollow" href="http://into-mind.com/2014/08/25/how-to-choose-a-versatile-colour-palette-for-your-wardrobe-incl-36-sample-colour-palettes/">http://into-mind.com/2014/08/2.....-incl-36-s</a></p> <p> </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many/page/2#post-1414974 Tue, 23 Dec 2014 22:04:34 +0000 Marley 1414974@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Three dark neutrals for me: black, gray, and navy. One light neutral: white/cream. Brown is one of my accent colors - not to be mistaken with my "main" colors - which are berries/pinks, light gray, medium blues, and white. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many/page/2#post-1414962 Tue, 23 Dec 2014 21:36:09 +0000 Aida 1414962@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Another who has a lot of different neutrals. While I love color, I'm primarily a neutrals gal. I have two tiers of neutrals: core (black, grays, whites/creams/stones, gold/silver, denim blue) and secondary (taupe, camel, cognac, navy/ink, olive, brown leather). The core shades are predominant and I have the most variety of items in those shades, while the secondary items are much more limited. That all said, I don't really treat my neutrals as "neutrals" -- I tend to treat ALL of my clothing shades, neutral and colored alike, as actual colors. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414830 Tue, 23 Dec 2014 15:43:43 +0000 Angie 1414830@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have lots of neutrals in my wardrobe: All shades of white (which includes stone and oatmeal), gold, silver, black, ink blue, navy,&nbsp;and cognac.&nbsp;</p> <p>I do not wear grey unless it is covered in cognac patches like my Smythe equestrian jacket.&nbsp;</p> <p>I have lots of colour too: citron, apple green, tomato red, turquoise, coral,&nbsp;shocking pink, blush pink, light blue and French blue.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414686 Tue, 23 Dec 2014 03:20:28 +0000 Dimity 1414686@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Suz, I love the colours in your wardrobe. Sounds beautiful. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414677 Tue, 23 Dec 2014 03:03:50 +0000 Suz 1414677@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I am with Caro -- most of my wardrobe is neutral. Ink, navy, denims (from dark to faded chambray), greys (from charcoal to silvery dove), taupe, winter white &amp; ivory (plus some optic white as accent).&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>I also have a fair bit of black, but this is used more like an accent colour in my wardrobe.&nbsp;</p> <p>And then I have my colours. Claret, cranberry and raspberry reds, soft fuchsia and orchids, plums and periwinkles, blues (all of them -- and yes, blue is both a neutral and a colour in my world), the odd bit of blush, teal and forest greens.&nbsp;</p> <p> </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414665 Tue, 23 Dec 2014 02:49:45 +0000 Dimity 1414665@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>E, that strategy makes a lot of sense.<br />Deborah, except for green, those are my wardrobe colours too! They work really well for me too.<br />Thistle and UmmLilla I got rid of brown a few years ago too but now I'm thinking of bringing a little back in.&nbsp;<br />Meredith, that's the exact post that made me want to bring in some brown! I love those outfits, they look so warm and interesting and such a change from the 'black with a pop of colour' that I've been wearing. It's worked well for me but&nbsp;I just felt like exploring something new for a change.<br />Laura, I think you're right about the neutral rebirth. They really did have connotations of frumpy years ago.<br />Jeweled, Sterling, Unfrumped, and others,&nbsp;I love how self-aware and considered your wardrobes are. It makes so much more sense to have a plan and the discipline to stick to it (while still having fun, of course!)<br />Joy, I think I might experience this sort of neutrals-expanding wardrobe too!<br />Shiny, your closet sounds beautifully organised. It's always easier to get dressed when you can see what you've got and know where everything is.<br />Caro, I'm finding I don't reach for colours as much as I used to. Suddenly it seems as though they are screaming at me. Funny how perceptions change. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414614 Tue, 23 Dec 2014 01:26:33 +0000 Caro in Oz 1414614@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Most of my wardrobe is made up of neutrals, mainly ink, denims, warmish greys,beige &amp; off white &amp; a little black. I also use light olive &amp; teal&nbsp;as neutrals - I love them with grey &amp; denim blue. I tend to limit colours more than I limit neutrals because I know I don't reach for them as often. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414582 Tue, 23 Dec 2014 00:48:29 +0000 shiny 1414582@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I like what Joy said!&nbsp;</p> <p>The Vivienne Files says two neutrals then add an expansion capsule, which is a mix of the two neutrals. Then a capsule of accent colors. From there you can add more neutrals, and more expansion items mixing the neutrals.&nbsp;</p> <p>I reorganized my closet accordingly this past fall. I have (from left to right) camel/olive (very small amount of space -- not my best neutrals but sometimes I want to wear these colors regardless); black (lots and lots); grey (2nd biggest category --&nbsp;from charcoal to light grey); cream/white; expansion section (items that&nbsp;mix back + grey, or black + cream/white); then accents (plum, cranberry, fuchsia, blush, french blue, navy blue, cobalt&nbsp;teal, emerald). &nbsp;</p> <p>So about 3/4 of my wardrobe (not counting scarves)&nbsp;are neutrals. And yes, navy is an accent, not a neutral. I am not including denim -- that is a neutral.</p> <p>If you want to know when brown was last on trend, check out how long I've been a YLF member. I remember having lots of chocolate brown -- as much as I had black -- and Angie weaning me away from it! If it comes back on trend again (and I bet it will too) I may bite, but will keep in under control. The problem with brown is when I pair it with orange-based accents. Does not work for me. I'm better in blue-based/cool accents, or true&nbsp;neutrals.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414558 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 23:32:45 +0000 Carla 1414558@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>My wardrobe is predominantly neutrals: black, grey, navy, Jean , white and cognac ( to 'bookend' my hair). They all mix and match. Then I pick a seasonal colour to play with and invest in a few (4?) pieces.</p> <p>Sometimes the colour stays ( cobalt, red) or goes ( blush) or gets phased out over time (purple). </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414544 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 22:56:00 +0000 Echo 1414544@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I love outfits built entirely around neutrals, so I think it is worth investing in several. However, as far as dark neutrals go, I generally stick to black. I simply have too much of it to allow very much brown or navy to play well in my closet. But as far as charcoal, light grey, pearl, white, taupe, etc. I find they all coordinate brilliantly with any dark neutral, and so they can all be easily incorporated. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414542 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 22:53:53 +0000 Anonymous 1414542@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Oh, and summer wanted navy as a dark neutral. I also like navy in the spring. My seasonal closet switches often feature different neutrals. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414539 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 22:50:28 +0000 Anonymous 1414539@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I am a failure at limiting neutrals. I started with darks of black and charcoal, and white for a light neutral. Then my whites expanded to include ivory, stone, Pearl, etc. Then I found that a pale silvery grey was a great color for me so started getting a few pieces of that. It lead to metallics in silver and pewter. Fall came and I craved browns, especially chocolate. Late winter needed a taupe fix. Then spring screamed that corals and mint wanted to be paired with camel. I probably have every neutral now and am not sorry, but travel capsules allow just a couple...plus denim </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414477 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 20:40:02 +0000 unfrumped 1414477@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>more neutrals are great IF they work together or unless you have some separate but overlapping capsules where you just want to feature a certain neutral.</p> <p>I still think the devil is in the details--so that navy can go with black and black with brown and so on , no rules against, but sometimes one combination is pleasing and another one is not. Texture and cut and fabric and tone--light or dark--all affect how I feel about the end result.&nbsp; But sometimes a different neutral works better than the same neutral--take grays for example, which can be hard to blend together, whereas each one works as a neutral with something else.</p> <p>And once you include denim, it is kind of the great neutralizer( &nbsp;!) /bridging item. An outfit with denim can tolerate more disparate neutrals, IMO.</p> <p>To me the neutrals with neutrals kick opens up lots of possibilities, but still requires I "test drive" the item.<br />Once I figured that out, that I can't&nbsp; &nbsp;just&nbsp;accumulate things&nbsp;randomly &nbsp;because&nbsp;they "ought" to go together, but needed to be sure the &nbsp;item really worked with other pieces, I started getting to a place of more versatility. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414470 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 20:18:34 +0000 Anonymous 1414470@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>My color palette&nbsp;is based on my coloring. &nbsp;It consists of&nbsp;two base-dominant colors (black and white because I love both these colors for different reasons). &nbsp;I add in olive and stone for interest. &nbsp;Then I complete it with three accent colors (chambray, medium pink, and vibrant red). &nbsp;My wardrobe revolves around seven basic colors. &nbsp;This&nbsp;system has worked well for me and I am extremely satisfied with it. &nbsp;</p> <p>I have only in the last month started to experiment with grey. &nbsp;I have hopes that grey might become a third base color in 2015. &nbsp;I like grey a lot, but I personally find it hard to wear. &nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414467 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 20:09:28 +0000 Jeweled 1414467@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Hi Dimity, I think it's valuable to have more than just one dark neutral and one light neutral in your wardrobe. &nbsp;Instead, you might have those two&nbsp;as your main ones, and then add some others to expand the variety of your outfits.</p> <p>But you don't necessarily need to build out other neutrals beyond one or two pieces, if you don't want to.</p> <p>For example, my dark neutrals are taupe, olive,&nbsp;and denim blue. &nbsp;My light neutrals are light khaki-tan and white. &nbsp;I have several items in each of these 5&nbsp;neutrals.</p> <p>I also have a few&nbsp;lone additional neutrals here and there in my wardrobe - a dark brown pair of jeans, a silvery-sage nylon windbreaker, etc. - and they work nicely in my wardrobe without any feeling of needing more pieces in those stray neutrals.</p> <p>This works well for me, and I love the variety these extra "lone neutrals" add to my wardrobe -&nbsp;without feeling a commitment&nbsp;to build out any of them beyond that one piece. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414464 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 20:01:53 +0000 Gigi 1414464@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I agree that sticking with only one neutral is limiting, especially when your natural coloring works very well with neutrals. If you have an extremely small wardrobe, I think the idea is a good one, but if you have a moderate or large wardrobe, I do think that boredom sets in. The tactic would work well for creating a minicapsule, though, like for travel (as you pointed out) or for a shadow persona.&nbsp;</p> <p>I have all kinds of neutrals in my closet. My main&nbsp;ones are black, dark gray, white, cream, and navy. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414441 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 18:36:42 +0000 texstyle 1414441@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Most of my wardrobe is neutral - taupe, navy, denim, black, white, ivory, charcoal, deep brown with some burgundy, plum and deep emerald green thrown in for interest. I do have cognac booties and a cognac bag that I sometimes also use as "color." I currently only have one red item (plaid flannel shirt) that works for F/W but would consider adding something red for S/S. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414414 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 17:09:30 +0000 Laura (rhubarbgirl) 1414414@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I think we've had a renaissance of neutrals in fashion in recent years. It used to be much less common to wear an outfit of only neutrals, and different neutrals together - would have been considered frumpy or boring. Monochromatic, or neutral plus bright, were much more common.</p> <p>I think it's Janice at The Vivienne Files that often talks about a light neutral, a dark neutral, and a color or two. Her color schemes are some of the best I've seen, in blogs or in fashion books, as far as where you should start if you're looking to build a mix and match wardrobe or need to figure out where your holes are.</p> <p>I personally have black, gray, navy, denim - and off white, if that counts. I used to have a lot more black - if I wasn't wearing denim I was wearing black - but have backed off it a lot because it felt boring and not so flattering. It's so useful, though, that I doubt I'd ever get rid of all of my black. I've never really loved brown and it doesn't really suit my coloring; the only items I have in brown are shoes, no clothes. I also have several pieces in olive, which depending on the shade can really act like a neutral.</p> <p>(I think we're due for a rebirth of brown, actually, in fashion; it's been years since its been the trendy color. Recently navies and grays have been the neutrals in stores, seems like.) </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414400 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 16:30:25 +0000 Elly 1414400@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I love neutrals! They are some of the main colors in my wardrobe and I often mix them. I especially like dark neutrals, and after being inspired by a post Angie did on mixing navy or ink blue with black and charcoal and cognac brown I've given myself carte blanc. I have a lot of navy, black, charcoal, and olive green in my wardrobe and I wear them all together with accents of lighter grey, cream, pink, red, orange, purple, and blue. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414389 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 15:52:32 +0000 Windchime 1414389@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Pre YLF, my neutrals were black and grey. They are both good colors on me, but I'm glad to report that I now wear navy and, most recently, white as additional neutrals. Like others have mentioned, I too crave a variety of colors in my wardrobe. Defining my best neutrals has helped a lot as I build a wardrobe. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414388 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 15:52:16 +0000 milehighstyle (Linda) 1414388@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>All the neutrals for me, both in clothing and footwear.&nbsp; But I'm definitely not a minimalist. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414383 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 15:41:29 +0000 Susie 1414383@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Like the others have mentioned, I don't have brown in my wardrobe. I have a caramel satchel and a pair of booties that mix well with my other neutrals but no brown clothing at all. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414381 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 15:37:20 +0000 Meredith 1414381@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have a core mix and match capsule of essentials, mostly in gray, black, and white. I expect most of these items to work together in outfits. But I round out my closet with item-specific capsules (e.g. Pants) and I don't hesitate to add other neutrals as long as they won't be orphans.<br /> Have you seen this Angie post? Might be from before you joined ylf.<br /> <a href="http://youlookfab.com/2014/07/25/ensemble-ink-brown-grey-and-black/" rel="nofollow">http://youlookfab.com/2014/07/.....and-black/</a> </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414355 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 14:39:27 +0000 UmmLila (Lisa) 1414355@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I'm with Thistle on the selection of neutrals, but I include white as well. And I also got rid of brown a couple of years ago for the same reasons. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414354 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 14:34:20 +0000 Thistle 1414354@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have three neutrals: grey, black and ink. These ground my outfits, usually as bottoms. I then add color with tops. </p> <p>I recently cut brown out as I didn't like it mixed with the other neutrals. And I felt like it needed special footwear. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414333 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 12:27:45 +0000 Deborah 1414333@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>As you know I have mostly black, but I also have navy, grey and white. For colours I have a couple of cobalt tops, a red top, a green sweater and green satin blouse and an orange draped dress! I don't get tired of black so as you know I pretty much wear it daily, but my other neutrals all work with my black and I have a little punch of colour when I feel like it. I generally prefer myself in neutrals:). And my red top seems to function as a neutral also. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/one-neutral-or-many#post-1414332 Mon, 22 Dec 2014 12:19:32 +0000 Susie 1414332@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have a few- black, gray and white- that work well together. I also have some navy but I think I consider it more as one of my colors than a neutral, if that makes sense. And I also count denim as a neutral. </p>