Colour matching advice for clothing

When dressing, many people find it difficult to colour match their clothes and so seek fashion advice on colours that go. Some personal stylists base their advice on the colouring of the person being styled but So Stylist says that’s so boring! Why shouldn’t you wear the shades that you love, or that show your personality or how you’re feeling?

There are very few hard and fast fashion rules when it comes to choosing colours to combine in clothing – and many would say that such style rules are made to be broken, as fashion should be about expressing yourself as well as flattering your figure. However, this free fashion advice on colours that go together is here as a helping hand for those that seek it. If you’re clueless at colour matching clothes or never know what to wear together stick with So Stylist’s advice and you won’t go wrong.

First get to know the types of colours:

Neutral Colours

• Black
• White
• Grey

Cold Colours

• Blue
• Green
• Blue tones of purple e.g. lavender

Warm Colours

• Red
• Orange
• Yellow
• Pink
• Pink tones of purple e.g. plum

Warm Neutrals

• Cream
• Beige
• Tan
• Brown

Failsafe colour palettes for successful dressing>>

(Bear in mind combinations from the color wheel)

• 2 colours and 1 neutral e.g. green,
  yellow and white
• 1 colour and 1 neutral e.g. black and red
• 1 colour and 2 neutrals e.g. purple,
  black and grey
• 2 or 3 neutrals e.g. black and white

• 2 or 3 warm neutrals e.g. brown and cream
• 1 pattern and 1 or 2 plain neutrals
• 1 pattern and 1 plain colour from within the pattern
• 1 pattern, 1 neutral and 1 plain colour from within the pattern

General fashion advice on colours that go>>

If you’re wearing more than one item the same colour, make sure they are either exactly the same colour, or clearly different shades of the same colour. Nearly the same but not quite is not a good look as it looks like you’ve tried to match exactly and failed.

If you’re wearing all black don’t wear brown shoes. Black and brown can be tricky to wear together without looking mismatched so if you do, make sure you pull it together with accessories to make it into a real colour scheme rather than looking accidental.

Brown and ‘warm neutrals’ look lovely when combined together and make great fashion colours for fall or autumn. However, they do not mix well with warm tones such as red, pink and purple so instead team them with cool colours such as blue or green.

A small splash of a warm colour in a cool colour palette add interest without overdoing it e.g. a red tie on a blue shirt or yellow accessories with a green dress.

Lots of pastel colours together can look too sugary sweet. Try one pastel colour with a neutral (e.g. pale pink and grey) or a pastel with a deep version of the same colour instead (e.g. pale blue and dark blue)

Keep to one pattern only per outfit, even if the colours match.

Limit yourself to 3 colours (including neutrals) per outfit, unless the additional colours make up a pattern or print.

Don’t mix black and navy.

Don’t mix white and cream.

Don’t mix brown and grey.