Follow-up to Runcarla's question on neutrals vs. colors - YouLookFab Forum

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Follow-up to Runcarla's question on neutrals vs. colors

April

Veteran

Many of us have chimed in on RC's question about the proportion of neutrals to colors in our closets.

I am wondering about a sidecar question: do YLFers with the whole rainbow find it harder to get dressed than YLFers who skew neutral?

Curious if my favorite quote from Michael Kors is true or not:
"70% of the clothes you own should be meat and potatoes. 30% should be icing and fluff—that's color, pattern, shine, accessories. Too many women get the proportions the other way round, then can't figure out why they can't get dressed."

General

36 replies

Latest reply was from April

Anonymous

I have more color than neutral, but I mostly stick to my Dark Autumn palette, so most of my things can be worn together. I don't, however like every combination on me. I like the purples, teals, and forest greens on me, and I like black (not really in palette but it works). Together though, they skew too Dark Winter. This is worst for me in winter, since my skin doesn't balance it out.
If I wear the black with warmer colors though, it reads more as brown.

Ideally dark chocolate would be my dark neutral, to be accurate with my season, but it's just not consistently available.

Ginger

Veteran

I guessed at at least 60-70% colors, and I don't have trouble getting dressed. (If I do, it's because I'm craving variety.)

Colors make me happy. Neutrals do not. I use neutrals only to complete an outfit. My wardrobe is dress-heavy, and a dress is an outfit. A neutral dress does not make me happy, so my dresses are in pretty colors and prints. I usually wear neutral shoes, and if the weather requires, preferably a coordinating colored topper.

My outfits built on separates are usually 1 or 2 "foundation" colors and 1 "star" color. I rarely reach for true neutrals except for white. Last winter I mostly wore a navy corduroy skirt, and a quilted golden-brown skirt. Those "foundation" colors set off "star" colors wonderfully, or in combination. Like blush pink or middling blue top with navy, or butter yellow with golden brown. Tan or gray sweater tights with tan/cognac or navy footwear. Outfits with jeans or denim shorts are structured this way as well; blue jeans, plus a tee or sweater in a pretty color.

I'm hunting for the right dark green fabric to make another skirt. Dark green is another great "foundation" color. I think I would like a russet-colored one as well, darker than the golden-brown.

"Foundation" colors are not neutrals to me, at least it's not helpful for me to think of them that way. I have some less-foundational skirts (a "Christmas" green and a light gray-green tweed) that are fun to wear but have fewer tops that go very well.

Preppy Pear

Veteran

My wardrobe is mainly neutrals (and I am also a uniform dresser), and getting dressed most of the time is a snap. However, sometimes I find it hard to get dressed when I want to kick it up a notch because it can start to feel blah - a lot of my clothes look alike! I find it harder to add that 30.

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

Lol, color and pattern are extra? Excuse me, Mr Kors, but with all due respect, I disagree.

That doesn’t mean I have “the whole rainbow” in my wardrobe though. There are some colors that work for me, and some that don’t. I’m heavy on berry colors and blues, in hues that mix easily (Ginger’s “foundational colors” and the “meat & potatoes” of my wardrobe). My pinks, reds, and greens all play well with them, and the few orange/yellow shades I have generally contrast in the right way.

Figuring how to wear all neutrals would be a huge chore for me, and I don’t enjoy doing the expected, so all neutrals plus a pop of color would also be really difficult to make my own. I could do it if I had to (for example, if I was performing with a group that wore all one neutral), but it would take a lot more time and effort than I care to put in day to day.

missvee

Veteran

Once I figured out the right neutrals for me (white/off white and olive green), it was easy to incorporate many other colours. Most of them work with either neutral, but it’s not a dealbreaker if they don’t.

nemosmom

Veteran

Not sure about the accuracy of the quote, but it would make sense and seems similar to what Angie says about essentials - you have to have enough essential pieces (like basic, simple, core pieces) and not too many fun bits (scarves, glitter) if you want a cohesive wardrobe...

I don't dress in the rainbow, but like I mentioned in Carla's follow-up question, I have been in a cycle of adding all the green things. This makes it difficult to get dressed without becoming very bored over time.

Helena

Veteran

I agree and I disagree. For the average person who does not want to put lots of time and effort into getting dressed, he's probably right - neutrals and essentials (as nemosmom says) make getting dressed pretty easy, and they make it much easier to add the statements without getting too disorganized.

That said, a lot depends of how happy people are to mix bright colours, be more maximalist, etc. ... to the extent that we are all so different in this regard, his idea is limited (as most ideas are!)

Ginger

Veteran

I like how Helena put it. The quote can be a good basic principle, and a self-help check if one is struggling. It's not a rule that should be applied to everyone.

Joy

Veteran

I think color and patterns can take more time than wearing neutrals but I feel it I s worth the effort. Once outfits are put together, they can be repeated or tweaked just a bit and dressing is easy. Always wearing color or neutrals can get boring.

RobinF

Veteran

Hmm, now I want to look at my closet but I'm at work I am probably heavy on the neutrals but I do wear color most days, although what many consider a neutral I use as a color (navy, olive). I think I agree with MK, without my basic neutrals it would be hard to get dressed.

Irina

Veteran

My understanding of this quote is not exactly about colors, it is more about statements v essentials. I remember Angie saying that essentials heavy wardrobe might become boring and it might be difficult to put together everyday outfits in a statements heavy wardrobe.
Angie is a great example, her essentials are in bright colors and they work together beautifully in any combination without being challenging.
Hers is a bright palette but very disciplined one. I think the point is to choose your essential colors (whatever they are) and to have the bulk of your wardrobe in those colors and to add 30% statement clothes in colors or patterns, textures, unusual cuts.
I think it is easier to have essentials in neutral colors, it takes great skills to have them in color like Angie’s. That is the reason why neutral heavy wardrobes are so common especially among minimalists.

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

Helena, it takes you less time to dress this way? Wow! I look at Irina’s outfits and am blown away how she makes such plain colors seem interesting—for me, that’s difficult to do. The reason I’m irked that I can’t find a certain white shirt is that I’m pretty sure it is the one, out of maybe 10 white / cream / ivory tops in my wardrobe, that would work for a whiteout with a particular skirt. But then again, I suppose if one counts blue jeans as neutral, which I think you do, and one is also comfortable in jeans, then it’s simple to dress in that “neutral”, as you often do. SAs often suggest wearing a top with jeans when the customer can’t figure out what to do with it. Things I buy with that in mind tend not to get worn. The colors it’s easiest for me to pull on are not in the subset that’s been deemed “neutral”.

Irina, with your recasting, the guideline makes sense to me. As I described above, I have a pretty specific palette. It’s unfortunate that he used such specifics in his comment. Then again, the specific example of overdoing the accessories does make sense in my world. I don’t want the fussiness of earrings, and wear jewelry only occasionally. Scarves cost at least as much as tops, and are much harder to wear, because I move around a lot.

Bijou

Veteran

April, I have a large wardrobe, so having more colour vs neutral items does not mean that I won't have neutrals that work with other items in my closet. I steer towards light neutrals and my dark neutrals are black and navy - I find that these are relatively easy to co-ordinate with most colours.

SarahD8

Veteran

I have a fairly broad color palette and a high affinity for color mixing (and neutral mixing), and I do find it difficult to get dressed — but paradoxically, I think that is because my wardrobe contains a too-high proportion of neutrals.

It’s difficult for me to say precise numbers because my wardrobe is still pretty scattered/chaotic/inaccessible after our recent move, but in the past when I’ve looked at this I’ve found that my wardrobe is about 2/3 neutrals and 1/3 colors whereas my sense is that it should be at least 50-50.

I don’t usually feel right in “column of color” or “neutrals with a pop” outfit formulas. To create variety in the kind of subtly layered looks that I prefer requires a higher proportion of colorful pieces I think.

In particular I tend to accumulate too many dark neutrals. It’s not so much that I just keep buying endless pairs of black pants, it’s more that i can be looking for a black sweater, a forest green one, and a white one — the black sweater is easy to find but the other two are elusive, and then the black sweater wears out so I do in fact need a black sweater again, etc….

cat2

Veteran

I am with Ginger on this one. I have a solid base of neutrals, but every day add either color or a black and cream print. I would be deeply depressed by a wardrobe of solid neutrals.

LaPed

Veteran

I've slowly built my own version of the rainbow which goes: burgundy, rust, terra cotta, ochre, olive, sage, denim, navy, eggplant, plum, chocolate. I wear a lot of colours, but I wear them on my terms: dark, rich, subdued, murky, usually referencing my personal colouring in some way. Black/grey/white (true neutrals) help round things out and tie outfits together, along with a small collection of dusty pastels (mint, sky blue, lilac) that play well with my base colours. I still have a smattering of bright true red, but haven't added any new red pieces in the past year or two, and probably won't replace my red pieces when they wear out. Ditto turquoise and brighter berry colours.

I have a fair amount of texture and pattern, especially "blendy" ones like tweeds, heathers, and low-contrast stripes. I'm a minimalist when it comes to accessories, so it's rare that I go out the door feeling too "busy"; the "take off one thing before you leave the house" guideline never resonated with me. The MK quote makes sense to me if you've inherited a magpie gene, but I think that one skipped me. I'm a bit allergic to anything bright, shiny, or "extra" on myself, although I appreciate all those things on others.

Ginger

Veteran

LaPed, I love your spectrum! I should do that, too.

Helena

Veteran

Ooh LaPed, without wanting to take April's thread off-topic, I just have to try ... merlot, blush, spruce, teal, petrol, classic medium blue, soft deep burgundy/plum ... my rainbow is missing orange and yellow

Runcarla

Veteran

I’m 100% with Joy on this. Though I have more neutrals than colours in my closet atm, I love colour and pattern mixing in outfits. The outfit pictured below is one of my favourites from this year and daring fashion mixologists like Angie, Anchie, nuancedream, Roxanna, MsMary, Synne (and others as well) are inspirational!

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kkards

Veteran

Lol reading this made me realize I don’t have a rainbow, but I have the sky…lighter blue, darker blue, midnight blue, some black, clouds of optic white, creamy white and little bits of pink and red for the good sunrise/sunset days. And some metallic shiny stars Now just need to figure out how the olive green stuff fits in.

rachylou

Veteran

Well now it’s interesting. I love colour. I have very little, proportionally, in the neutrals. But I do, as Irina points out, have my select essentials and I wear them A LOT. That certainly makes a difference in terms of making things easy.

But still, I can see where having a lot of different colours might make it hard. You still have to choose what colour and what to put with it besides your essentials. I think that’s where Angie’s formulas and colour capsules come in. And also wardrobe organisation!

ophelia

Veteran

I have “the whole rainbow” & too many prints & heck yes I have a hard time putting together outfits.
I had to limit myself to buying mostly neutrals & learn to think about what an item would go with first. It has to be workable with at least 5 items already in my wardrobe.

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

Kkards, greens are the plants, obviously. You appear to be lying in a desert, looking up at the sky, past aloe & sage plants.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

(April, I HOPE we see your August wedding outfit )

To answer the questions, personally my own wardrobe is full of non-neutrals and patterns! Colours, Patterns and Shine ARE my "meat and potatoes", and what make my wardrobe versatile. The neutrals - which are shades of white and blue - are an excellent grounding component, but by no means make up 70% of my wardrobe. If that were the case, I'd find it hard to get dressed each day because it doesn't gel with my sartorial preferences.

That said, I am very disciplined about my colour palettes so that there is cohesion and maximum outfit possibility. Without the discipline, there would be chaos and clutter:

Items have to be exactly the right shade of a colour, therefore match or work well together
I make a point of creating colourful complements that pull looks together.
I very deliberately do not add colours that don't work for my style - like jewel tones, most earth tones, and muddy colours.
I stick to white and blue as neutrals - no black and grey.
I combine several colours and patterns in an outfit, which makes my colour-rich and pattern-rich wardrobe versatile.

Hope that makes sense!

Thanks for the shout outs Irina and Carla.

bj1111

Veteran

my entire closet is dessert. and that is why i have nothing to wear.

April

Veteran

Let us remember that this quote is from a man who long ago adopted a uniform of black tee, black jacket, jeans. So...

I love the quote because I often go heavy on statement pieces and this habit does not serve me well.

Angie, you will doubtless all get to see my wedding outfit. Starting tomorrow, I will be surrounded by young folk who love to snap a sneaky "here's what my mom is wearing" photo without telling me.

Not mentioning any names, but looking at you LITTLE MR. APRIL.

Sloper

Veteran

do YLFers with the whole rainbow find it harder to get dressed than YLFers who skew neutral?

I don't think so - I mean I don't know, but based on the forum content we all have challenging days and days when the parts come together easily.

Curious if my favorite quote from Michael Kors is true or not:
"70% of the clothes you own should be meat and potatoes. 30% should be icing and fluff—that's color, pattern, shine, accessories. Too many women get the proportions the other way round, then can't figure out why they can't get dressed."

Well, it's certainly true for Michael Kors and fans of his luxe/minimal style

Can anyone say it is not true - just that it doesn't apply to them.

I think for some people it certainly helps to have a strong foundation (meat and potatoes) upon which to build.

bj1111

Veteran

the narrower the wardrobe becomes, color/silhouette/pattern/texture, the more you find differences between each piece so what used to be meat and potatoes eventually become duck ala orange or flaming baked alaska.

i'm looking at you thin blue striped shirt in a white background and don't giggle medium blue striped shirt in a cream background.

Sloper

Veteran

Bj1111 - I like your thinking

Personally, I'll take my meat and potatoes as a petite filet and duchesse potatoes, with a side of creamed spinach.

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