Earthy shades for cool toned gals? - YouLookFab Forum

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Earthy shades for cool toned gals?

Liesbeth

Veteran

Following up on Angie’s post about trends for spring, I was wondering about your opinions on earthy neutrals, especially how you can wear them in a flattering way when you have a cool toned complexion (and wardrobe). I have steered clear from all shades of camel, toffee, beige for a very long time after analysing myself as a summer. But just like torontogirl, I dont’t feel comfortable with a strict interpretation of the seasonal color system. I have had lots of grey in my wardrobe as a key neutral for about ten years now and I’m not surprised that it’s becoming less trendy - I’m falling out of love with grey myself. And love the ‘new’ neutrals, especially toffee. But I’m so convinced they would look hideous on me that I have very cold feet trying them out. Any tips, ideas?

Dressing

20 replies

Latest reply was from Constance

jussie

Veteran

Olive is pretty easy to wear imho :).
I also find a very light cream to be ok too. Best of luck

rachylou

Veteran

I think one has to try actual items. Dyes vary. Some olives work for me and some don’t. There are cool reds and warm reds. Even black - there are different ways, different base colours, to get to black. So... what I’m saying is, there may be an ‘earth tone’ out there for you...

Cardiff girl

Veteran

Rachylou hits the nail on the head .You should try colours out and see what suits you as there are infinite variations of tone these days.I f you love a colour and it’s not so good near your face wear it as bottoms I e skirt or trousers or in a pattern mixed with one of your better colours.sometimes just wearing the colour with another colour can change the look of the colour sufficiently to make it more wearable.Hope this helps.

Sal

Veteran

I think chocolate brown, olive can definitely work. And burgundies and oxblood reds can skew cool too.

I really like rusty reds and cognacs with black, grey and navy too. Cognac or camel footwear or bags could be great.

I am best in warmer colours and toffee is good on me but Beige and stone are awful!!

Liesbeth

Veteran

You guys are right. I am such a wardrobe planner but I think in this case I better do some recon, trying things on, before I commit to a new neutral. Problem is I even need to take pictures - I often realize only after I've seen myself wearing something on a picture that a color did not work on me.
Olive can be 'fine' on me, depending on the tone, chocolate leaning cooler definitely works, blue toned burgundies too ... Wearing something together with a 'better' color or away from the face are good tips too.

kerry

Veteran

I’m cool toned too, probably with summer colouring as well. I try earthier colours in cooler tones. This works better with some than others. I also experiment with earthier colours on the bottom first that work with my cool toned tops.

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LaPed

Veteran

I like all of the suggestions above -- burgundies that lean blue, olives with a grey base, deep chocolate browns. I think light brown/tan family is tricky and takes a lot of experimentation for most people, warm or cool; I'd probably suggest starting with taupes and stone colours. You may also want to try truly warm shades as accent colours -- shoe, belt, bag. You could create a little "complement" of cognac or similar items and pair them with your existing wardrobe.

SarahD8

Veteran

Seconding La Ped -- I REALLY like cognac accessories with all sorts of cool tones. It looks rich, interesting, and fresh to me. Adding cognac riding boots this past fall has made a lot of my clothes feel new & refreshed.

Helena

Veteran

I agree with the 'away from the face' suggestion ... Good luck!

RobinF

Veteran

Definitely try some taupes, they have a gray undertone without being gray. And if you love toffee give it a try. Maybe a certain shade of it would work just fine.

unfrumped

Veteran

Absolutely! All of above.
Here are my somewhat random thoughts:
Forget about the exact “ in“ tones, but just that you want to try to include or skew toward some earthier tones in your palette. Or more of that feel- it can be subtle.
Retail Research is good for just imagining, trying some things in dressing room just for colors.
Generally avoid just awfully hard to wear colors( unless it’s a “ happy” color for you!).
Pants have more leeway. The olive colors are good examples. Say you found acceptable olive pants, wear them with a cool raspberry top or a print. That is already more “ earthy “ than wearing a pink top with black, gray and white.
I have generally cool coloring with some ability to skew neutral. I LIVE autumn colors but can’t wear yellow- based colors well at all.
Colts I look for include cool olives, cool rust— yes! sort of blue or get- based deep clay color,- teals- taupes, deep cool- based beige.
I also have more luck with some knit fabrications where the color is “ blackened” by a dark thread in the weave that cools down the color.
I think S/S can be more of a chalk because PALE earth tones to me are harder to wear with cool complexion.
So you have to improvise, such as earthtined jeans or chino, white top or blue denim for cool face- flattery, maybe some earthy natural materials in a necklace or handbag.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Actually, this isn't so hard, Liesbeth. You need to find earth tones with grey in them - not yellow. And burgundy is a slam dunk. But stay away from mustard.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

What everybody else has said.

Wear them as accessories. I love cognac and luggage tones and they work brilliantly as footwear, belts, bags, etc. -- harmonizing beautifully with greys and navy/ denim/ ink blues as well as black.

I'm as cool toned as they come and look hideous in mustards, oranges—really anything with a yellow undertone. But some "camels" or beiges actually have pink undertones. Look for those.

Christina F.

Veteran

For "olive," I try to look for greens that are actually closer to sage. I use them the same way I would olive, though.

I can't do yellow undertones either, but in my case it's because I have a yellow undertone to my skin. I'm 100% Portuguese, despite being pale, and my dad was rather swarthy.

The Cat

Veteran

I, too, have a (very) cool toned complexion and wardrobe. I recently realized that I am able to wear COOL browns (browns with grey or pink undertones). Cognac. recommended by several fabbers above, will be too warm for me. Some leopard prints, however, are cool/taupe and harmonize with the cool colours in my wardrobe.

Liesbeth

Veteran

And thanks some more for all the extra info. I will look for those elusive shades that both appeal to me and are flattering enough, with grey or pink undertones. It's not like there's any hurry to it.
Unfortunately, I feel very blah in taupe and stone like options. So I will also give thought to a small wardrobe complement consisting of bag, shoes and maybe some slacks, where I won't have to worry so much about the shade being flattering.

Laura (rhubarbgirl)

(website)

Veteran

Yep, cooler-toned olive, taupe (which includes a lot of items nominally named 'camel' but in reality more cool and less warm), and ivory/cream/off-white all work well for me, and mix and match well with the rest of my wardrobe. There's also a darker brown - like milk chocolate but less red-toned and more blue/gray - that I've found very occasionally in shoes/bags but almost never in fabric items. Gray, too, is on a continuum - not all of it is mega-cool-toned.

Jenava

(website)

Veteran

I am a soft summer. I have a couple pair of mustard colored pants and love how they look with my cool muted shades. I do the same with olive. I just avoid it near my face and always mix it with shades that flatter. I particularly love off-white, mustard and grey together!

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DonnaF

Veteran

Can you look to the various colors/shades in your brown hair for inspiration?

Constance

Many taupes are cool. I'm watching this post with interest as I have been analyzed as a winter, cool. And yet I love oranges and orange red. I do what others have suggested, use browns and cognac in shoes and accessories to go with navy.