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More colour navel gazing

Roxanna

Veteran

Reading all these colour posts made me think about another colour element that’s important to me - colour ‘texture.’

Some colours (usually warm, deep ones) I can wear when they are saturated - like a warm deep olive, warm deep navy, or rust. Others only work for me if they have some heathering or ‘texture’ - particularly pastels.

For example, a flat lavender doesn’t work for me - it makes my skin look Mottled and brings out my dark circles. But a heathered lavender is softer and has a photo effect on my skin, blending with my skin and ‘matching’ the heathered texture in my salt and pepper curly hair. Same is true for almost all pastels, dove grey and oatmeal - I like and wear these colours a lot, but only in heathered versions (or in a material - like leather - that has natural texture to it.)

I suspect this is true because I am on the lower contrast end of the spectrum, with lots of variation/tones in my hair and skin. These play well with colours that match that variability, instead of fighting with it. The same way I look better in organic florals than harsh stripes. I suspect the opposite is true for high contrast people.

Have you found any differences in flat vs. ‘textured’ colors on your colouring?

Dressing

23 replies

Latest reply was from Angie

Tanya

Veteran

I have never thought about this, but I think that you are on to something. I consider myself to have medium contrast (pale skin and eyes, medium hair), and find that textured/heathered fabrics work well. A couple of years ago I had a lot of very light highlights so my overall contrast was low, and found that some clear colors ( bot pastels and brights) looked better than usual.

Helena

Veteran

I think this is really interesting and something I need to experiment with ... I know a texture on a dark colour softens it a lot on me, and a bit of sheen makes a really muted colour look much better. Love this concept for balancing out colour qualities - thanks Roxanna!

slim cat

Veteran

I like textured/heathered fabrics - especially soft grey and oatmeal ( can't do true grey or beige - looks really awful on me ).
The heathered fabrics are very practical in light colors - don't show all the undergarments underneath ( almost transparent white or very light pastels are so revealing worn by themselves in hot summer time ).

Jonesy

Veteran

I love fabrics with a bit of textural interest (e.g., heathering, marled knits) but don't really think of them in terms of my coloring. But I can see how a heathered fabric would complement your salt and pepper hair, for sure!

LaPed

Veteran

I know exactly what you're talking about, yes! I have dark brown hair with greys coming in and lighter reddish highlights from sun exposure, a freckle-y light olive complexion, and blue eyes with warm olive/gold flecks. Colours that are too clear/saturated/single-note are really not good -- watermelon pink, cobalt blue, emerald green -- overwhelming!

A lot of my most versatile colours are heathered or marled. The two sweaters below receive a lot of compliments whenever I wear them. Like slim cat says, beige looks really weird on me, but oatmeal is okay. And I love faded/weathered blacks. Faded black denim works so much better than a flat, uniform black wash.

I do wear bolder more geometric patterns, like stripes and plaids, but I think that's more a Kibbe/body type thing than a personal colouring thing.

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rachylou

Veteran

That is a very interesting point. I have to think about this. I’m not sure if I have many heathered items, which maybe means I really am a winter, but I feel there’s maybe one colour I do like heathered... now I have to go look(!)

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

Interesting! My son and I have similar builds and similar undertones to our coloring, but he is mixed—half Asante, half German—he’s darker than I and his curly hair has much more texture than mine. He likes wearing heathered colors, in the actual colors he wears (blackberry, red, blue) but various shades of grey work for him either way. I really don’t care, in any color, or might have a slight preference not to.

Synne

Veteran

This is interesting. I knew I must stay away from very flat (polyester) fabrics near my face, but I thought it was a textural issue. Maybe also color comes into play here...

LaPed

Veteran

Synne, that’s a good point about synthetics. They tend to be very saturated; I find tops in poly or nylon often look a bit harsh even if the colour is a soft one because there’s typically no variation to the colour. I get very excited when I find gear pieces in heathered colours because they are rare.

always trying

Veteran

Interesting thoughts. To me it depends on the lighting and how the fabric reflex the lighting, or how it looks in different lighting.

Joy

Veteran

I especially appreciate marled colors in a topper for blending with whatever is worn with it, for example, a marled knit linen navy cardigan can be worn with any of my 4 or five ( if you count dark denim) navies successfully. That makes it a MVP. It can also be worn with faded denim and pale blues.
I suspect that as my skin ages, heathered colors and textured fabrics will be more forgiving than smooth or shiny ones.

Style Fan

Veteran

This is interesting. I tend to stay away from heathered fabrics. I don't particularly appreciate how they look against my skin.

Irina

Veteran

Hmmm, I don’t like heathered or marled colors on me. I think they look too light or somewhat too busy when I try them. I have a couple of old linen mix sweaters that I wear at home, both in my colors but marled. Nope, don’t work well for me. I haven’t try dark marled colors, maybe those will be better.

Sal

Veteran

Very interesting. I agree- especially with grey on me. Interesting and a great way to stretch a bit with colours.

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

Yes ! Well I have noticed that heathered grey is better on me than flat and I thought it might be the white bits parts brightening it up, but maybe it is the texture itself. I have definitely read that smooth vs. rough textures suit different people and prefer rough textures on me, which may relate to my rough hair. Will pay more attention.

Jessikams

(website)

Veteran

Yes yes yes! I am just like you. My hair is wavy and “rough,” my skin is yellow-toned and freckled, and I look way better in heathered, marled, space dyed, or weathered/garment dyed items.

Liesbeth

Veteran

Yes! For me I think it has to do with some ruddiness in my complexion. Also, heathering can definitely soften colors that don't otherwise suit us very well, just like a small scale print can. But I find it hard to draw clear lines around what works. Because sometimes heathered colors don't work at all :p. And shiny poly fabrics do.

Bijou

Veteran

Roxanna - I am sure you are onto something here. I suit clear colours, heathered colours generally don't look good on me unless it is in one of my best colours - and then the item would probably look better on me in the straight colour. I wear smooth and shiny well.

Anonymous

Yes! My beige pieces have either texture or sheen, I think it makes them read as darker (so less contrast on me).
Grey too, like charcoal, I prefer to be heathered and not flat texture.
Jewelry too- I often prefer brushed, hammered, twisted, or filigree instead of flat metal.
I'm low to medium contrast, depending on where my hair is in the color cycle Starts dark, but then fades to lighter brown.

Roxanna

Veteran

This is so interesting that others have experienced this too!

Sun tiger - I never thought about jewelry but you are right. High shine pieces rarely work on me (despite the type of metal) but softer, antiqued, hammered or filigreed work far better.

As some of you have commented, I think my colouring has softened with age, and so heathered tones suit me even more now, whereas the jeweled tones and saturated brights I used to prefer just look overwhelming.

I also never thought about it as type of fibre but that makes so much sense - flat but saturated colours found in fabrics like polyester do not suit me at all, which is maybe why I tend toward more natural fabrics.

Kate

Veteran

Like LaPed, I know exactly what you’re talking about.

Marled, heathered, weathered, and grayed are all color modifiers that perfectly suit my low contrast coloring. Jewel tones are too intense, and most pastels too deadening to my pale skin, blue-gray eyes, and silver gilt hair. While I’m very fond of plaid patterns, I only wear them on my bottom half.

nemosmom

Veteran

This is super-interesting... I definitely prefer texture and saturation, but I am not entirely sure why... great points above about fabric composition, too. I think it makes a huge difference.

I wonder if it's finish more than comp - natural fabric v. synthetic - for example, smooth sheens/shiny like polyester, satins, some tencels look incredibly harsh next to my face, but textured shine like velvet or faux fur works ok - but all are synthetic. Same goes for shine in natural fabrics, too - a polished leather jacket looks too bright/glaring next to my face, but a rough or distressed one is fine. Maybe it all boils down to actual texture for me...?

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Interesting! I can relate, Roxanna. I ALSO prefer the more saturated versions of colours - pastels and whites too - because my complexion is low contrast. Texture can add a lot of depth, as you mentioned.