Tonal dressing - do you find it challenging? - YouLookFab Forum

Category

Dressing

Welcome! Read about what to wear and how to wear it on the YLF Blog. Join the YLF Forum to ask specific questions or just chat about fashion and personal style. Or check out the curated list of things we love in YLF Finds.

Outfits Ensembles Trends Advice

Tonal dressing - do you find it challenging?

Irina

Veteran

I don’t wear tonal or monochrome outfits often. For me, some colors are easier to work with. Aside from black, I can do grey and caramel more or less successfully. But I struggled with putting together navy/ink tonal outfits. Somehow different shades of navy in one outfit don’t look great together to my eye. I wish I could be more creative, navy/ink is one of my main colors.
When putting together tonal outfits for colder months, I usually go for outwear in another color. Mostly I just don’t have a piece in the same color
What are your challenges in tonal dressing? Do you wear it often and what are your rules?

outfits below just an example of winter and spring tonal dressing. Sorry for quality of pictures and wrinkled clothes. I just grabbed some pieces from my closet.

pants - Club Monaco
turtleneck cashmere sweater - Joe Fresh
grey boots - Massimo Dutti
black coat - COS

Same pants
grey merino sweater - COS
grey sneakers - Cole Haan
olive trench - Massimo Dutti

This post has 4 photos. Photos uploaded by this member are only visible to other logged in members.

If you aren't a member, but would like to participate, please consider signing up. It only takes a minute and we'd love to have you.

Dressing

35 replies

Latest reply was from Bijou

Synne

Veteran

These look great to me! You have a truly aspirational style. Regarding navy. Trinny Woodall has some great videos on the topic on Youtube and Instagram. I believe she has one called "Closet Confession: Navy", that was very good.

Runcarla

Veteran

My closet contains more colour than yours. When I audition a new colour, I try to assemble a mini capsule of 4 items to give that colour a fair chance of mixing and matching with the other things in my closet. Since two of the 4 items are usually a top and a bottom, I can do a tonal look. I can dress tonally in: black, blue, red, brown, and green. Yesterday I was dressed in tonal brown (see finds).

Navy is tricky. I like navy with black - but that’s not tonal. I like your column of grey outfits, and your palette is calming. You do winter white, right?

nemosmom

Veteran

My tonal outfits usually happen by accident. I have a boatload of green in my wardrobe, and often end up just wearing all the green together.

To get it right (for me), I think there has to be a significant, visible shade difference in the pieces - like a petrol with a denim blue, or a caramel with chocolate. I don't like too matchy-matchy on myself.

Irina

Veteran

Runcarla, I so wish I wore winter whites but sadly no. Don’t know if I will ever find cream footwear that lasts more than one winter.
When you wear a tonal outfit, do you wear also a same color outwear?

Anonymous

When my wardrobe was larger and had more variety, I could dress tonally in navy and grey (in addition to black which was a given). I used to own a great navy CM puffer, had navy boots, a navy bag etc, and same with grey - had all of those pieces. But the only colour I can do head-to-toe now is black. I love how it looks, and would be up it, but searching for olive, navy and/or grey footwear has come up empty this winter.

You have great clothes.

slim cat

Veteran

Same as @lisa p - I can do black ( enough options because of work ) but like to mix patterned top with tonal black dressing. Navy seems to be challenging even though I have navy pieces - I don't feel I've got enough shade difference like @nemosmom mentioned.
Your outfits look sophisticated and sleek ( love the first one ).

Anonymous

I love tonal dressing-sometimes as far as shoes, or sometimes the shoes are black or cognac. I like having a long line in my outfits and it feels dressier. Plus my coloring is pretty low contrast.

The finds aren't in order but I do columns of olive, burgundy and rust. I also have a matching teal top and skort in my gear capsule- looks like a dress together.

At home I wear all black, though prefer black with cognac accessories out in the world.

View Info

Banana Republic

Metallic Sweater Tank

View Info

Top Pick

8

View Info

NYDJ Women's Basic Pull on Leggings

View Info

Top Pick

3

INC International Concepts INC Solid Scuba Pencil Skirt, Created for Macy's

View Info

Top Pick

2

View Info

Womens Winter Warm Gloves With Sensitive Touch Screen Texting Fingers, Fleece Lined Windproof Gloves

View Info

Top Pick

4

Liz

Veteran

I like doing this with dark neutrals like dark denim blue, charcoal, or black. I think an all-ivory outfit looks great, but is usually too pristine for my lifestyle. I'll also wear neutrals that are "next" to each other, like black and dark brown, or ivory and light gray.

I don't like tonal dressing with "color" colors -- plums, yellows, reds,
greens, etc. They make me feel distressingly matchy-matchy and
"done up."

I'll wear navy with adjacent colors like green or teal, but rarely with other navy items -- I find it really difficult to get different navy items to play well together.

slim cat

Veteran

For my take on tonal dressing that outfit was the most fun one. It’s technically not tonal - cardigan is navy with white but looks almost black and white.

This post has 1 photo. Photos uploaded by this member are only visible to other logged in members.

If you aren't a member, but would like to participate, please consider signing up. It only takes a minute and we'd love to have you.

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

I’m looking forward to this thread.

You always post the coolest looking ensembles all in non-contrasting tones.

As I’ve mentioned a couple places today, I’m realizing that my wardrobe includes capsules of things that are *exactly the same color* like the two brown things Carla posted. That’s fine for days I want to be matchy, and they can be a good backdrop to something of another color, or something patterned. But what I’d really like to develop is a series of looks with related tones, all on the same side of the color wheel. I have that with my cranberry/blackberry/raspberry/pink things. Now I want to develop other color groups like that. Have I come close to the original question? Can you tell I had wine with dinner?

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

#2 and #4 are my KILLER faves, Irina! LOVE the mix of neutrals with the navy and taupe. They add energy to the grey, and you wear these looks beautifully.

Slimcat, tonal your way rocks! Great look.

Irina, to answer your question: tonal my way is usually a column of COLOUR. See examples below. But when it's neutral, it's blue or white. I find it easy to create and wear tonal outfits. Although my wardrobe is very colourful, I am extremely deliberate about which colours go in and stay out. And the colours have to work together and match so that I can easily create outfits.

I want to create a column of citron next.

This post has 5 photos. Photos uploaded by this member are only visible to other logged in members.

If you aren't a member, but would like to participate, please consider signing up. It only takes a minute and we'd love to have you.

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

Angie’s look #3 is what I was trying to describe—everything matches tonally (instead of across the color wheel like in the first 2 pix) in colors that are connected but not all the same. That’s what I can do with my berries, and what I want to be able to do with different colors.

Jules

Veteran

I "read" the olive coat as tonal to the grey outfit, because it's all the same colour intensity (and it looks great btw!). Perhaps similarly, I see navy/ink and black outfits as a version of tonal (and probably easier than trying to do it with all navys and inks!). I do agree tonal is not particularly easy.

You're lucky your greys work together, I had a hard time with that when I wore more grey (I eventually decided it didn't suit me).

Irina

Veteran

Thanks, Angie. Your looks #1 & 2 are the kind of outfits I’m interested in but not able to achieve with the exception of black color. I stay away from column of olive or navy for now.

I’m debating if I should buy an outwear piece in grey next season. I don’t buy much in grey anymore but somehow over the years I collected a full capsule including a bag, scarves and shoes!

Sal

Veteran

I admire tonal dressing (Irina and Angie - yours are all stunning but so different and brilliant).

I don't do it a lot, I might wear camels and caramels but I would normally have blue jeans, white jeans or black pants with the sweater, coat, bag and shoes.

I agree navy can be a bit tricky - the undertones can be wrong. I do wear navy and navy, or navy and black. But I don't always feel I do it confidently or well.

Minaminu

Veteran

Irina, you have a beautiful style and that olive trench is a great neutral piece with personality!

Tonal dressing is very appealing to me, not only it is an understated look and it instantly makes me feel slimmer wihen I wear a tonal column in grey or navy.

Kate

Veteran

I love tonal dressing, and do it often. Like Runcarla, when I add a new neutral, I look to create a small capsule so I can I easily create a tonal look, or mix with my other neutrals.

Navy is very tricky. I prefer other neutrals, so I don't have a navy capsule, but I can imagine how difficult it would be. Rather than tonal dressing in navy, I mix my few pieces with black, brown or pale blue.

I dress tonally in olive, gray, brown, and mustard.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Sal, thank you.

Irina, maybe a darker grey topper, if that's more your cuppa? I can see it work well for you. Or light grey

I'm wearing a bright tonal outfit today, actually. Took dodgy pics outside while walking Sam to show you ....(Sam matches in his red coat). Wearing hosiery - those are not bare ankles!

Orange + Red + Shocking Pink = Bright Tonal Harmony, to my eye. Finds show it more clearly. Another type of column of colour, or form of monochromatic dressing.

This post has 2 photos. Photos uploaded by this member are only visible to other logged in members.

If you aren't a member, but would like to participate, please consider signing up. It only takes a minute and we'd love to have you.

View Info

Banana Republic

Washable Merino Ribbed Sweater

View Info

Top Pick

15

Banana Republic

Slim Wide-Leg Cropped Pant

View Info

Top Pick

16

View Info

View Info

Top Pick

11

View Info

Maria Comfort Sneakers

View Info

Top Pick

11

Irina

Veteran

Angie, what a burst of energy! There is truly no one like you!

cat2

Veteran

Hmm, I have similar issues with blue. The tone variance between two purportedly navy pieces even from the same vendor can be substantial enough that they don’t work together.

Anonymous

Very sleek! Love the style

LaPed

Veteran

You look beautiful in your calm grey ensembles, Irina!

Like others have mentioned, I struggle with blues feeling clashy, and rarely reach for blue tops with blue denim unless they’re very distinct from one another — navy top with pale bleached denim, or dark rinse denim and a pale top.

Some of my black jeans are faded enough to almost count as grey, and I happily pair those with both solid black and charcoal grey.

Other than black and blue, I don’t have a ton of overlap between top cours and bottom colors, at least not within a given season. In general, I want a pop of contrast somewhere. A light accent with a dark outfit, a warm accent with cool colors, etc. So I’d say I’m not a true tonal dresser; I feel a need to break up any large solid swath.

Irina

Veteran

Thank you all for your kind words. One day I will lean to take better pictures. Or will ask my DH, who is a professional photographer for some advice, although he doesn’t like selfies
The merino sweater in the picture #3 from COS is one of my favorite sweaters. I bought it in 2017 and enjoyed it since. I couldn’t photograph it well, so I include a stock photo of a short sleeve version (which I also have but in ink color).

As for tonal outfits, it seems that navy is not an easy color for many. So, it’s not just me.

This post has 1 photo. Photos uploaded by this member are only visible to other logged in members.

If you aren't a member, but would like to participate, please consider signing up. It only takes a minute and we'd love to have you.

Brooklyn

Veteran

I love tonal dressing and do it often. To me it’s much easier than colour mixing using contrasting colours. Maybe it depends on how much you enjoy contrast? At the moment I prefer low to medium contrast so I prefer to wear different tones of the same colour, or close colours on the colour wheel, rather than contrasting colours. But I tend to do outfits that layer similar colours, rather than a column of the same colour as shown in some of Angie’s photos. I note that when Angie does a column of colour she still includes lots of contrast (lots of white and light accents), which works well (very well actually!) and really increases the visual impact of the outfit. But it isn’t my style. I like the softness of similar shades. That’s why I like ombré so much.

As far as navy goes you could try searching “navy colour palette”. That might give you some ideas about what variations in blue you could use to put together a tonal outfit from your wardrobe or about what colours you could add to achieve a more satisfying result.

I searched and came up with this one, which appealed to me. It does include some gold for contrast but I would still describe it as medium contrast. Mostly tonal.

I don’t wear a lot of blue but when I do I pair it with other shades of blue, green, teal and black. As per the outfit in finds below.

Your outfits look great BTW!

This post has 1 photo. Photos uploaded by this member are only visible to other logged in members.

If you aren't a member, but would like to participate, please consider signing up. It only takes a minute and we'd love to have you.

Fuzzi Maxi Skirts

View Info

Top Pick

2

View Info

View Info

View Info

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

Irina your version of tonal outfits are beautiful. And you have exquisite taste in choosing items that suit you. I think you just need to trust your instincts if you want to branch out to other palettes.
My tonal looks are either black and grey because I have so many pieces, or a happy accident when I realize I have pieces that are similar colors. So no real advice there!

Liesbeth

Veteran

These outfits are great! I cannot wear all grey myself because it makes me feel so drab, but I admire it as subtle and classy on others. Interesting that you prefer exact matching outfits when the subtle color differences are actually what make a tonal outfit interesting to me, like in your outfit with the tan coat.
I agree that navy and ink are hard to (mis)match. I prefer these with marine blue, denim blue, aqua, seafoam etc myself for a tonal look.

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

Brooklyn and La Ped, that pop of something else always tempts me when I’m trying to do a tonally-matched outfit. But to my mind, “tonal matching” is what Brooklyn and Liesbeth describe, a very rich look that draws on the subtle differences in shade and texture. If everything is the very same color, then it’s not tonal—it’s mono. Also a nice thing, but not the same thing.
Irina, such a good discussion in this thread!

kkards

Veteran

Love your grey’s layered on grey...honestly i would never have thought of mixing and matching greys...blues, especially navy’s however are something that i do without even thinking....
especially with blue jeans, i wear navy shoes and or navy sweaters and shirts all the time...its been a long time since I’ve worn non denim navy pants, but even thought i did wear column of color and tonal navies...for me it works the same as black, and I find that it helps to have a mix of textures

Helena

Veteran

These outfits are gorgeous - minimalist chic for sure!

12