Questions on mixing metals and metal/color combos - YouLookFab Forum

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Questions on mixing metals and metal/color combos

trekkiegirl

Veteran

How comfortable are you with mixing metals? For example, if the belt you are wearing has a silver buckle, would you decide against wearing black flats with gold studs on the heel? What about jewelry, do you mix metals with these?

It seems like silver is more versatile than gold. Both silver or gold can be worn with black, brown, and multiple colors in the spectrum, but when it comes to color combos I feel that silver often works better. Gold with black, ok. With black and white - tricky, or with gray - even trickier. Silver with most colors like blue, red, or green looks modern, but gold with any of these colors can easily look dated unless it is a very modern looking piece of jewelry.

What are your thoughts?

Dressing

18 replies

Latest reply was from AM

Anonymous

I agree completely. I don't mind mixing metals in jewellery - intentionally and with some thought as to the look though. But I don't go for mixing with shoe/bag/belt/coat zipper hardware. And you're right - silver is a little easier to work with more colours, but gold is really trending right now in jewellery. I think to make gold look current with traditional colours, it's a good idea to mix in some leather (for example, and my favourite right now) in the jewellery .

approprio

(website)

Veteran

I mix them all the time. I agree with lisap that it has to look intentional though, so I try to be consistent in the aesthetic. For instance, my watch is silver but the hardware on my most used handbag is gold. But both are square and black and shiny, so at least they match in my universe.

Summer

Veteran

It's a very personal choice, I think. This is another case of an old "rule" being thrown out of the window.

Personally, I am very picky about choosing only silver hardware on bags, belts and shoes as I don't like to mix the two, and I only wear silver jewellery (except for my wedding ring).

Diana

Veteran

I mix metals all the time. Honestly I don't think I even consider it most of the time. I think about it mostly only if I'm wearing some really large metallic pieces (like gold shoes and silver purse, or something like that); I hardly ever consider it when it's just hardware/jewelry.

ETA: Also a lot of my metallic leather items are kind of "off" metallics that could read as either gold or silver. Like slightly warm toned silver, or really pale, almost silvery gold.

UmmLila (Lisa)

Veteran

I'm not a fan of mixing metals in my jewelry. I usually do either gold or silver. I try to make bag and belt hardware, shoes and zippers all match. That is not always easy. I do ease up for dark metal zippers as it's the clash between bright gold and bright silver that I don't like.

Aida

Veteran

I mix all my metals. Jewelry, hardware, everything. My skin is good with all metals, and my default jewelry is mixed to begin with; at minimum I have a gold wedding ring, silver studs as my second earring pair, and a rose gold watch. I'm less concerned with metals in jewelry/hardware "matching" in an outfit and more with how the shades "go" as a whole and in each of their little areas in relation to what's immediately surrounding them. And I generally am OK mixing any metal with any color. I think you can go either way really. Mixing is fine, matching is fine.

Marley

Veteran

Hmmm . . . I mix all of my metals with each other and with all colors. If I decided that I needed to match up the metals in my oufits I would drive myself crazy!
Why do you say that gold looks dated with red, blue, or green? I've never heard that before.

texstyle

(website)

Veteran

I mix all of mine but I tend to do it with some thought and just general intuition - like I have a 3 metal mixed bracelet set that helps me blend a silver hardware belt with gold hardware on my handbag. I also have several in between items that are not really silver or gold so these work with a lot of things. My wedding ring is gold band but the little diamonds read "silver" so that makes it feel mixed already. I also wear a lot of neutrals in the silver/charcoal/tan family so that helps. If I was going to wear all silver hardware on belt, handbag and shoes, but wanted to add a bracelet, I'd probably not add a bold gold only singular bracelet - I would likely wear two or three bracelets that mixed it up.

Sara L.

Veteran

I try to match metals if it's easy. I prefer that things match. That's just my personality. But if the only belt that goes with my outfit has gold hardware and everything else is silver, I don't stress about.

citygirldc

(website)

Veteran

I'll occasionally wear both gold and silver together , but wear more silver by itself. I think it's a personal thing though. Had you asked me 30 years ago, I would have never worn gold.

Style Fan

Veteran

I mix metals all the time. My weddings bands are gold, my watch is stainless steel with gold and I usually wear a wide silver cuff with yellow and rose gold accents. Most of my earrings are silver. I wear a lot of amber and that is usually done with silver. I don't notice belts, shoes, boots, purses, etc. It could be anything. I do have some jewelry that is leather and silver.

Thistle

Veteran

I mix metals all of the time. I guess I don't even think about it, especially where my wedding ring is concerned.

Anonymous

I DO NOT like mixing metals. However, I have a lot of jewelry that was gifted to me and many times the gift reflects the person that gave it to me.

So while I may love sterling silver and pearls, I have a lot of gold. Really nice gold. If I am going to wear the gifts I received through the years, I had to make peace with mixing metals. I mix metals now. Is it ideal? No. But it is better to wear my jewelry than let it sit in a box.

carter

Veteran

I mix metals all the time. And while I've been silver-leaning for the past few years, I am loving gold right now. Gold with gray is my new favorite combo.

trekkiegirl

Veteran

I definitely don't pay attention to the hardware on my purse, as I rarely change bags and I see it as a functional necessity not an accessory. A zipper on footwear doesn't get much thought either, but if the shoes have distinctive details that are metallic, I feel the need to match my jewelry to it. I don't wear belts super frequently so I feel the same need for cohesiveness there. Curiously I am fine with mixing metals when it comes to my rings, but that could be because I'm so used to always wearing so many of them whereas I have a lot more necklaces and earrings than I used to and am still developing that aspect of my style.

rachylou

Veteran

I used to only wear gold jewelry because I have metal allergies, and I was against mixing metals (like on belts and stuff). But now I've completely switched to silver jewelry, having discovered all silver is not equal, and now I don't care about mixing metals. I think I consider silver jewelry more relaxed.

deb

Veteran

I have a ring with both white and yellow gold. But normally I do not wear white gold because yellow looks better on me, IMO.

AM

Veteran

I'm a NO mixing metals kinda gal. I have a diver watch that has silver/gold tones and that is the only exception -- and then I can wear all gold or all platinum/white tone jewelry. I'm pretty fussy about this but I have huge control freak disease.