This fall I would like to complete several of my accessory complements, as a bunch of them seem to be missing an item or two. For the cold weather, the must have pieces are:

• At least one "outdoor" scarf, preferably more, a solid in the complement color and then some prints
• An outdoor hat, which for me means beret, as it is the only hat shape I do not hate on myself (some slouchier beanies are passable)
• Fall shoes: oxfords, booties, boots, high top sneakers - dressier types for work, more casual for other occasions
• Bags: zippered totes for work, small to medium cross-body bags otherwise

Optional pieces:

• Gloves - usually I do not include them in complements as I go for simple dark ones that blend with my coats
• Belts - optional because I do not wear them often these days
• Watches - they serve as my jewelry, in some cases I have ones that go with a complement, if not, I just use my simple silver one as universal watch

Since I am still WFH, I am focusing on my casual/non work versions this time. A good number of my complements is missing a beret, or a solid scarf, or both. I did some internet searching and realized that there are sellers on Etsy that sell wool berets and simple solid cashmere scarves in all sorts of colors, at reasonable prices, so I need to try some to check for the quality and later identify the right shades/tones of particular colors. Some complements are missing pricier items (like shoes and bags) but that is a separate issue.

Which brings me to my question - how closely do the colors need to match? What is your tolerance for mismatch? Ideally all the pieces should be a perfect match, but sometimes that is not possible, especially with rarer colors, where the complements are built over several years. Below is my light blue complement, a work in progress (need beret and solid scarf, would like some very casual shoes), which illustrates this situation. Some blues are lighter, some darker, some warmer, some dustier, some more saturated etc. I find that I prefer perfect match in items worn close (like hat and scarf), but am OK with some mismatch in items worn further away from each other (e.g. shoes and bag). Also, I am perfectly fine with lighter or darker version of the same tone, as long as has the same undertone/amount of warmth. However, I am really bothered by the pieces with different undertones - like warmer light blue and icier ones. Those clash to my eye and I do not like wearing them together.