A Deep Dive Analysis of Hues Part 2: Color Within the Personal Wardrobe
Written by Brett Byers
As a kid, my closet consisted of a coalescence of neon, bright clothes. One of my go-to outfits was a safety orange shirt paired with vibrant green pants. Now that I’m older (and with a slightly improved color palette and passion for fashion), I recognize that the combination of those hues was an interesting pairing to say the least. However, it makes me wonder why people are drawn to certain colors over others. Further, I am curious about the analysis of color not only when one is creating an outfit, but within society as what we deem as “right” or “wrong.”
As explored in Part 1, seasonal hues play a big part in the broader concept of color within fashion. Yet it is also applied on a more personal level, when deciding what one’s favorite color scheme is when it comes to creating and styling an outfit for the day. The concept of seasonal hues was partially introduced by Carol Jackson’s book published in 1973 entitled, Color Me Beautiful, which establishes an idea that splits women into four seasons based on their clothing. These categories are a guide to splitting into her self-entitled “style personalities." Jackson enables individuals to use their season as a guide and study themselves in the mirror to see which personality fits them best. She also states that some people can wear several personalities depending on the occasion. One could compare it to the idea that your outfit reflects your personality for the day.
I decided to test this “style personality” proposition by interviewing a collection of fellow students here at UW-Madison who are passionate about fashion to determine what colors they gravitate towards and why. I am curious to dissect the personal aspect behind it, especially what color means to people in their individual wardrobe.
EMMA SKINNER
“Color within my style allows me to turn a casual outfit into something unique. I love wearing a casual outfit with a pop of color to stand out and have more ability to express myself.
I tend to gravitate towards red. I love red because it is so vibrant and it stands out so well in an outfit. I feel most confident when I am wearing red because it makes me feel fierce and fashionable. Also, it is in season all year round so it becomes a staple in my wardrobe.
When attending a formal event, I tend to gravitate towards neutral colors, especially black. However, in everyday life, I love exploring with colors. I love wearing a colorful pair of pants with a plain top, or vice versa.”
DAVID SIMEON
“Within the lens of fashion, color is critical to how I express my mood with others in a nonverbal way. I choose colors based on what I believe best represents my personality or how I feel that day. I usually wear darker tones such as black whether it’s for a casual day or a more formal event. Based on the occasion, I might step out of my comfort zone and try on more striking colors. When creating an outfit, I’ll either use even tones of dark colors or a statement piece such as a high contrast of green and use other similar tones to even it out. I’m definitely trying to experiment with more color, whether that’s statement pieces or just high contrasts of color. Playing around with different shades of the same color is a cool way to spice up a ‘basic’ outfit. Different textures bring out different shades of color which I think is really cool.”
LILLY MIRANDA
“Color to me within fashion and creating an outfit means feelings, emotions and expressions. Whether I want to feel happy or shy, subtle or mysterious, color definitely plays a huge role in throwing together my outfits. When creating an outfit, specific colors I’m drawn to depend on the occasion and how I’m feeling. If I’m going out I’m drawn to reds. If it’s summer time I like pinks, greens and blues. If it’s a regular day, my go-to color is black because it highlights my figure and I tend to like clothes that do that.”
MIA CHEN
“As an artist, I love to experiment and switch up the shades of complementary colors to wear together, and adding a pop of color on a specific part of my outfit to draw attention to it. The color I’m drawn to most when choosing an outfit is red. On a day-to-day basis, I tend to wear neutral colors since those are the easiest for me to mix and match. I find myself wearing lighter colors in spring and summer and darker colors during fall and winter. When I’m going out to dinner or doing photo shoots with friends, I like to reach for brighter colors like red.”
ELENA BUI
“Color in fashion is everything to me! When I’m curating an outfit, one of the things that I’m passionate about is how the colors harmonize and complement each other. My mood is instantly elevated when wearing an outfit with even the littlest pop of color. I’m always drawn to pink no matter the season! Whether it’s a pair of pink sambas or a pink leather jacket, I often reach for the color to make my outfit a little more exciting. When I’m going on vacation, I often have a color scheme for my outfits. If I’m going somewhere tropical, I’ll reach for brighter colors. If it’s somewhere more wintery, I’ll go for more neutrals. I love basing the colors and vibe of my outfit based on where I’m going and what I’m doing.”
Ultimately, there seems to be a common theme that many are attracted to certain colors that are reflective of their personality for the day. It allows those to express their mood and who they want to be that day, perfectly aligning with Carol Jackon’s notion that clothes and colors allow one to “wear a personality for the day.” Other factors in crafting an outfit include the season, highlighting individual features, and the occasion one is dressing up for. Nonetheless, Jackson’s concept of style personalities seems to still be relevant and a main factor in many when styling an outfit for the day. With this, it can be seen that colors are a massive influence in fashion within personal wardrobes.
Works Cited
May 28, et al. “Color Me Beautiful: 1980s Fashion Nightmare.” Style Syntax, 22 June 2014, stylesyntax.com/blog/2014/06/21/color-me-beautiful-1980s-fashion-nightmare/.
