Colour clashing for beginners
There is something thoroughly modern about wearing clashing colours. Nothing says ‘creative’ as much as the bold and brave combination of clashing colours, it evokes freedom and rule breaking in its purest and most joyous of ways. The old ideas of colour combinations don’t hold much these days and all established rules can be broken. Neutrals on neutrals, black with blue are just some examples of combinations we simply would not have seen merely a few years back. But where do you start? If you have never been one to wear much colour, let alone clashing colours, here are some tips to get you started.
Figure out what colours work for you
Finding out your best colours, particularly the ones that work best against your face, is the foundation and the beginning of your style journey. You can probably easily tell if you have a cool or warm skin tone and, from here, it will become easier to know which colours enhance you and make you shine. If you have a cool skin tone, your best shades will be the ones with pink or blue undertones whereas if you have a warm skin tone you will look your best wearing shades with yellow or gold undertones. Once you figure them out, stick to a palette of either warm or cool shades.
Prepare your clash palette in advance
Particularly in the beginning, decide in advance what colour clash you will be wearing. This will avoid last minute decisions and potential regrettable combinations (beware of the yellow/black bee look!). A simple way to go about achieving colour harmony is to look at the colour wheel - any colours that are complementary (sit opposite each other on the wheel such as yellow/blue) or analogous (sit next to each other on the colour wheel such as purple/blue) are a good place to start.
Start small
If you are not quite ready to go out the door wearing clashing colours head to toe, start small. This means clash your colours on accessories (shoes, bags, jewellery) while keeping the rest of the outfit neutral. The colours will pop out without being overwhelming for you.
Wear muted shades
If the bold shades are simply too much you can start by having at least one muted shade as part of your combination. This will still give your outfit impact and create an interesting focal point without the intense clash of the more vibrant shades. You could for example combine a soft, muted lavender with a bold bright orange.
Keep experimenting!
This is fundamental and really the fun part. There is no other way to move you out of your comfort zone than through action. Keep trying different colour combinations, slowly begin to clash other pieces such as tops, trousers and even throw in some print. There is no limit to what you can do, be bold and creative!