A couple of months ago Angie posted on Solid Dark from Head to Toe. The forum was divided. Had I weighed in, it would have been a yay. Maybe it’s my closeted affinity for all things urban, or maybe it is simply that solid dark allows me a modicum of professionalism when suiting is not a must — whatever the reason, I’m a fan.

I love mixing navy and burgundy, olive and charcoal, and chocolate and medium gray. However, I have a poison eye for other dark solid combinations. I can trace this back to a conversation I had with a dear friend and law school classmate about 35 years ago, when I told her that I planned to wear a navy and black combo, and she replied, “I would never wear that. It would look like a bruise.”

To this day, I avoid wearing navy and black, navy and charcoal, or chocolate and black, as I have experienced all of these color combos in various bruises throughout my life.

Lately, I have been rethinking my poison eye. I love these color combos on others, and think they look sophisticated not at all bruise-like.

Today I broke free and wore a navy and charcoal combo. The lighting is not great in the photo. The cardigan is Maje in dark gray with rhinestone argyles. The shell is Vince, in charcoal heather. The navy pants are Lululemon, which is my secret weapon for work pants, and the navy patent Mary Jane’s are Labucq. The scarf is Hermes because, as I was running out the door, I had a little bit of bruise panic and needed a bridge piece to lower my poison eye anxiety.

Do you have dark solid color combos you enjoy wearing? Do you have a poison eye for any color combos? Do you hold on to any fashion “rules” you learned in your formative years that may or may not make sense now? I would love to change my poison eye as it pertains to “bruise” color combos, but it is proving to be a bit of a challenge.