Choosing belt, bag and shoe colors for outfits?

I've been trying to work more on creating "outfits" instead of just tops and pants that go together. I'm struggling a bit with how to choose the right belt color, bag color and shoe color to go with my outfits. Most begin with jeans I must say. Sometimes dark wash, sometimes faded, and sometimes white. The only other color pants I really wear right now are a light taupe jean or olive green khakis.

To me, color is so important in creating a good outfit. But it also stumps me on how to mix the colors the right way. Most of my jewelry is smallish so it doesn't play a big role but I do have bracelets in tortoise brown, hot pink, black, silver and turquoise. And necklaces in several colors as well.

Most of my tops fit into these colors: navy, red, black, white, ruby or fuschia, rust, chocolate brown and deep purple. A couple of striped tops like in navy/hot pink or navy/white and a couple of plaids, one with raspberry hues one with deep navy and hot pink hues.

I don't get to wear jackets as much as I'd like but I do own them in navy, olive green, chocolate brown and jean jackets in both dark and light denim and in white.

Handbag colors:
python taupe/black/brown
navy
brown
red
camel

Belts:
brown with brass decorative studs
light taupe
red
navy

Shoes:
brown
tan
red
black

So when I grab a pair of faded denim jeans, add a red top and then move to the belt/bag/shoe choice I'm never feeling sure. I often end up just choosing brown belt, brown shoes and brown bag or python (boring). I must say the red, tan and navy belts are all quite new so I haven't had much time playing with them.

But if I choose a red belt to go with faded jeans and a red top - which belt, shoe and bag color would I reach for? Or would it be best to go with a navy belt with the jeans, red top and then maybe tan or brown belt - but then which bag color? Maybe red?
I'm just feeling color challenged!

Any advice on how you choose would be appreciated. Am I focusing too much on color and not on the style of the items? All fo my things seem to pretty classic, natural and casual styles.

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12 years ago

Anonymous

I'm liking snake print belts as some texture without a lot of pattern. They seem to go with everything. The outfit you describe could use leopard.

texstyle

(website)

Veteran

Joy, I did get a cheap leopard print belt this year but haven't worn it but once and forgot to even show it. It's not my favorite due to the quality but it "looks" nice so maybe I should wear it more and then choose to invest in a better one in this stye...

I guess that makes me wonder about how to style the less exciting belts and shoes that I have - I mean, is it possible to create a stylish look without pattern by just combining the colors and mild textures?

sarah

I generally use a few strategies.

1) mixing colors that I like. For example, I love black and white with a touch of color (red, purple, turquoise, yellow) - so I may use the bag or belt or shoes to add that touch of color.

2) mixing colors by the color wheel. I've gotten into doing things like mixing triangle colors or adjacent colors on the color wheel, and the bag/belt/shoes fits into that mix, adding a third color to the outfit.

3) using the bag/belt/shoes to bookend the color of my hair or to bookend something else in the outfit. For example, I love wearing my leopard belt with my cognac booties, since the booties bring out the color in the belt. Or, I'll wear my snakeskin belt with my creamy taupe booties, since the same thing happens.

Caro in Oz

I find putting possible combinations together on the bed helps me, then if I like the pieces together I'll try them on.

If you wear the red top & belt you could wear any shoes & bag. It's to do with weight & texture as well as colour imo.

Thanks Sarah! Since I paint for a hobby I do use the color wheel quite a lot but for some reason if feels different in fashion. Maybe because the hair color, skin tone, eye color, etc. all come into play.

I often see a great outfit and it has some unexpected combo and I just wonder how they thought of it. Like jeans, white top, teal belt, nude shoes and red bag and maybe a red bangle. I guess I have to decide what is a neutral in the outfit and what is not. And shop for a few more accessories to help pull it all together.

Beth Ann

tex: I've been amazed at some of the recent YLF challenges where people take inspiration from paintings, bloggers, and pinterest. Perhaps finding a grouping of colors you like in someone's outfit will help you see your items in a fresh way?

P.S. What about taking one frequent pant/top combo, and seeing if you can find two or three different ways to accerssorize? I do this sometimes at night, before I take an outfit off.

Aida

Tex, I have this long-standing theory that if we're buying colors that suite OUR coloring then they will, on some level, play nicely with each other because they've already got that one major thing in common. Since you paint, what about noting color combinations that grab your eye while painting and jot them down? Sometimes we can see those neat color combos in other settings, but then draw blanks when it comes to putting them together in outfits. I don't think there's really a "right" colorway here, this is where your own personal style can really come through. Also there's no need to match everything, but it's also fine to do so if that's your thing.

Just using your example of "faded denim jeans and a red top" and the list you provided, there's tons of fun combos you can do! Some examples, both with and without matching:
- taupe belt, red shoes, python handbag
- red belt, black shoes, navy handbag
- navy belt, brown shoes, camel handbag
- red belt, red shoes, red handbag
- brown belt, brown shoes, python handbag
- taupe belt, tan shoes, camel handbag

And of course if you wore a jacket you could add in another layer of color complexity if you wanted. Examples:
- faded denim jeans and a red top + navy jacket + taupe belt, red shoes, python handbag
- faded denim jeans and a red top + olive jacket + brown belt, brown shoes, navy handbag
- faded denim jeans and a red top + white jacket + red belt, tan shoes, camel handbag

Aida, Thank you for the suggestions! I copied and pasted your combo suggestions into a document I'm working on to list various color combos I should try.

I seldom match my bag to my outfit colors. I choose a bag that would go, rather than match. I also mismatch formality, I would pair a more casual bag to a more corporate outfit, so it prevents me from looking too staid. On the contrary, I would pair a super structured bag with a tee and jeans. I like the irony.

For dark denim, I usually go with more saturated colors for tops and accessories but I would not mind adding a cream or a lighter colored top. I bat for team low contrast.

However, or lighter denim, my preference is to select lighter colors for tops, belts and bags. The lighter denim might not look right with a saturated color, IMO.

There are colors, in accesories and bags that I think work universally and across seasons: Cream, Red, cognac and taupe. Black works for me too, because I wear lots of black.

About black, I think black is a tricky color to wear, because I think it works better on a person with a high contrast complexion. If not, black needs repetition somewhere else in the outfit to work.

I don't know, my answer feels erratic. I hope you get something useful out of it.

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