Whew lieing down & having a cuppa now!

I think this stuff is sort of like style rules: You can take what is useful and makes sense for you, and then try not to sweat the stuff that doesn't work at all! For me, I have a certain sense about what colors work with what other colors (and this is pretty subjective, of course), but I don't really buy into the whole "I can wear this particular shade of off-white, but not ivory" sort of thing--it just seems too limiting to me. I watched one of the video links (from insideoutstyle maybe?) and once she started talking about the particular whites of her eyes allowing her to wear certain whites, I must admit that *my* eyes started to glaze over a bit :).

Also, sometimes it's fun to sort of play around with different colors that aren't really "supposed" to work together, and see if you can get them to. Someone like Miuccia Prada, for example, will pair a cool icy mint with a warm rust, or do other somewhat unorthodox pairings. It's part of her whole ugly-beautiful thing and one of her signatures, and I think she makes it work wonderfully (examples, below, from her fall RTW 2003 collection, where she is riffing on different color combos that people might not typically pair together).

Oooh, I KNEW you all would have something to say about this! I am so glad to have the links and pictures here (Jonesy, Vix and others who clearly have a handle or viewpoint on this issue) and I would like to learn it myself, even if I don't always put it to use.

Glad to see I'm not the only one whose head is spinning!

I'm STILL confused!!

It really depends if you like complementary tones together (which harmonizes) or contrasting (which often makes the items stand out more against each other). I agree with Jonesy on the rules thing. SO much depends on lighting anyway!

I take colour seriously, but am not a fan of the whole "having your colours done" thing. It's just too limiting - AND, you cannot see colours in isolation. That's my biggest gripe with the whole concept.

However:

- It's a good starting point if you are clueless

- People definitely look best in certain shades of a colour so having a sense of what looks best is a great idea

Like Jonesy said, and I am so with her, you need to understand the concept - take from it what you can work with - ask someone if you don't know (like the forum) - and continue to have fun with fashion.

I see no point in never purchasing a colour that you love, that is supposedly not your best, because it will mess up your wardrobe capsules. Where is the fun in that? Buy the new colour and start building a capsule that works for you. For example, orange is not my best colour, but I like it! So I'm cautiously adding it into my wardrobe and wearing it with shades that are no brainers for my complexion.

Re those palette examples I posted: Cocolion -- hey, you're absolutely right about which ones have more clarity!

I actually find it's easy to mix warm and cool colors that have the same clarity, but tougher to do as anything but an accent if one color is much more "present," shall we say.

Colors absolutely shift depending on their context (other colors around them). However, while I believe there are no ugly colors I find (subjective, yes) there are some jarring combinations.

I also think that many, many people have skintones that look great in (relatively) balanced warm-cool shades..."neutral color-colors or neutral-neutrals."

Those of us whose skin reacts more strongly to warm or cool shades have to proceed with caution when wearing them near our skin if we're trying to go for optimal flattery.

Me, I need coooool shades that aren't too bright and aren't too deep/dark/blackened.

Have I successfully worn and loved warmer shades like bright olive, "camo green," cognac, and orange in pants/skirts or accessories? Yes. Do I think the shades looked awesome with many of my cool blues, purples, and browns? Yes. But I couldn't just wear *anything* from my "regular" closet o' cools.

If you'll indulge my non-fashion example --

* Have been living in a fixer-upper for 11 years. Original house colors all fairly muted cool-toned ones. Knew rainy climate meant I wanted to repaint in warmer shades.

* When trim paint needed extensive repairs in spots, started that process with marigold trim despite knowing it would look awful next to muted lavender-mauve body color but great next to other existing blueberry yogurt trim shade.

* Wasn't supposed to live with clash long -- but lived with it for years, hating it every time I saw it.

* Now have new body color on front that's a warm neutral (brownish-green, greenish-brown). It works well with very warm marigold and cooler blueberry. And I love walking up to it.

Fun fact: neighbors thought the blue paint was new -- because in CONTEXT against the greeney-brown it "pops" much more than it did against the mauve.

AG - I agree, this can be quite confusing! I totally agree with those who have said that it can be hard to see these things just looking at a color in isolation.

I find visuals help me, so I found this chart very helpful.

The top two rows are "cool" greys, the next two rows are "warm" greys. They are all grey, but have different undertones. I hope this helps a bit!

http://12blueprints.com/choosing-the-best-grey/

Thanks for the link, Tarz y. That was really interesting.

I also tried the test that Diana linked to and I scored 12 (pretty good). If you go further it shows you which colours you had the most trouble with and surprisingly all of mine were in the blues. Surprising to me because blue has always been "my" colour so you'd think I'd be best at those nuances.

I'm one who subscribes to the Colour Seasons theory but maybe for me it was really straightforward. I loved blue as a child then was seduced by the psychedelic oranges and yellows of the 60s and then the earth tones of the 70s even when my mirror said I looked better in old blue jeans and a white sweatshirt.

Once I read the book (in one sitting), it was all obvious. I get the most compliments in black, white, red, or royal blue. (Compliments include people assuming I am well rested.) Which makes me a Winter.

So guess what my closet now looks like.