Anyone else on a black and white kick lately?

I normally buy a lot of colorful and patterned items but my last few purchases and wish list items have been black or black and white. I also noticed a lot of NAS favorites (chevron skirt, houndstooth blouse) are black and white, and I think Angie mentioned that her client Karen purchased a lot of black and white items for fall. It dawned on me that black and white might be a great way to ground some of the brighter items in my wardrobe (colored denim, jewel-toned sweaters) and perhaps sticking to purchasing only a few black and white items this season would be a good way to create some versatile capsules.

I was inspired by this realization to create a Polyvore set to see how the new and old items in my wardrobe would work as a capsule. http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/set?id=54617042 It's interesting how everything falls into place if I add a few basic black items.

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13 years ago

Anonymous

Have you seen my NAS selections??? Jeje... Also, I do ground most of my outfits with either cream, black or white. It feels really odd to me not to have either one of those three colors somewhere in my outfit.

Makrame

Veteran

I know, that's exactly what got me thinking about some YLF-wide black and white trend.

(website)

Yes, I have been buying some basics in these neutral colors. A few key pieces can really make all your other items work together so much better! Fun polyvore! I personally have been drawn to solids for the last year, while everyone else is in pattern mixing frenzy lol.

Diana

Yes, me! I have always loved and worn a LOT of black (my favorite neutral by far) but lately I've been buying more white too, although it's still a minority in my closet. I have been doing more b/w combos in my outfits. I am liking b/w prints too.

shiny

This is too funny... I had been on a white + black + small splash of color for about a year or so now. It's one of the reasons I hadn't been visiting the forum. I figured my pics would be too boring.

There's something so simple but elegant about this "formula." To do it right, you have to incorporate textures and details. That's where the style challenge comes in.

Lyn D.

You must be on to something here Makrame, because a weekend paper with a fashion section I was reading this morning featured Black and White outfits exclusively.
I find it a bit severe for my colouring but I like the crispness of white with a pop of colour as you are suggesting. Looking forward to seeing some pics of your outfits.

Deborah

Black and white has been a feature of my closet for years, so I am totally on board. I do d it's a crisp, fresh and modern combo.

Absolutely!!! That combo is one of my wardrobe mainstays. And I can vouch for our elegant heroine, Deborah, who posted a fab black-and-white combo here last week. It was brilliantly simple, which is exactly why it was also brilliantly elegant!!

I said on her thread, but I think it bears repeating (with apologies to those who've heard me banging on about it :-)): Jackie Kennedy, who was a tremendous influence on me as I grew up, (one of my first memories is of that famous official visit to Paris, when she STUNNED French women - and mesmerized President De Gaulle - with her elegance) wore black and white regularly. She made it her trade-mark in the post-Onassis years. BUT, she also had a golden rule about the combination: "ALWAYS wear black on the top half, white on the bottom, or you might be mistaken for a waitress!" LOL! I don't think anybody could have mistaken HER for a waitress, but for we lesser mortals, it's a great rule to remember. And who can forget all those paparazzi photos of her on the streets of New York practising what she preached?? A great black cashmere turtle-neck in winter, an elegant boat-neck black tee in summer, and a beautifully-fitting pair of white trousers, often linen palazzos or white jeans, with her trademark oversized sunnies, Chanel ballet flats, and, when necessary, a Burberry worn open. It was simple and uncluttered: the hallmark of true elegance!

I'm enjoying a little black and white myself recently, and I've found some ways to add black to make it not so harsh against my coloring. I'll never dress in head to toe black again (unless I'm in mourning) but I'm not sure I could achieve a truly chic wardrobe without *some* black.

I love your Polyvore, and I see the patterned B&W pieces adding a lot to your colored denim. I might have to go this route for fall, as the more earthy tones do nothing for me. I know! Black and white with the burgundy trend! Those burgundy jeans on the right look smashing with B&W.

Angie

Fashion Stylist

I'm always on a black and white kick

qfbrenda

I love black and white! I seem to be drawn to black and white prints lately.

Meredith1953

I have always loved black and white but I have to admit preferring black on my upper half and not the white unless is is combined in a pattern WITH black. I particularly love black tops with white pants!

Is it possible to survive without a backbone of black and white? ;o)

Although I like having a parallel line of clothing in tans and browns. It's usually a somewhat smaller capsule, but it adds a lot of dimension. And the whites play well with the browns, and the tans with the blacks, so it really multiplies possibilities.

Sylvie

Last week yes. Today I'm wearing Neapolitan ice cream colors - yellowish green, brown and pink.

Transcona Shannon

Black and white are always big players in my closet, especially once fall/winter rolls around.

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