When it comes to color-coordinating clothes, many people just like to play it safe with black. It’s easy, simple, and it doesn’t require too much thought because many things go with black including the color itself—and not many other colors can do that well. However, black can get a tad boring if you’re wearing it day after day. These guidelines will make it easier to wear a variety of colors more frequently.
Color Matching Combinations for Clothing
- Baby pink: browns, tan, mint green, olive green, gray, turquoise
- Dark pink (fuschia): gray, tan, yellows, lime green, mint green, browns
- Tomato red: baby blue, mint green, creamy white, gray
- Cherry red: blues, gray, pale orange, pale yellow
- Light brown: pale yellow, creamy white, blues, greens, purples, reds
- Dark brown: lemon yellow, baby blue, mint green, baby purple, lime green
- Tan: baby pink, dark brown, blues, greens, purples
- Pale orange: gray, browns, forest green
- Dark orange: pale yellow, forest green, browns, cherry red
- Lemon yellow: cherry red, browns, blues, gray
- Pale yellow: fuschia, gray, browns, tan, reds, blues, purples
- Golden yellow: gray, browns, blues, reds, black
- Lime green: tan, browns, pinks, dark orange, navy blue, gray
- Forrest green: oranges, light brown, tan
- Olive green: tan, browns, grays, creamy white, black,
- Mint green: brown, gray, navy blue, reds, gray, tan
- Turquoise: fuschia, cherry red, tan, browns, creamy white, dark purple
- Electric blue: golden yellow, tan, light brown, gray or silver
- Baby blue: reds, gray, browns, dark orange
- Navy blue: baby purple, tan, brown, gray, yellows, oranges, greens, reds, pale colors
- Baby purple: dark orange, dark purple, olive green
- Dark purple: tan, pale yellow, gray, turquoise, mint green, pale orange
If you want a more elaborate color selection, Color Scheme Designer is an excellent online source that allows you to click and choose from a variety of schemes. You have the option of choosing a mono design, a triad design, a tetrad design (four colors) and more. Aside from black, navy blue has the most flexibility since it is the color of jeans, which are worn with mostly any color.
Color Combinations to Avoid
It’s best to avoid holiday colors such as red and green, orange and black, pink and red, along with certain shades of red and yellow combinations, which can bring to mind the hamburger chain with golden arches if not styled correctly. Steer away from wearing the same color on top and bottom unless it’s black. For instance, a red shirt with red pants can look tasteless and tacky.
Color Coordinating Your Closet
Set aside a day to color code your closet. It could save you valuable time in the morning and get you to your destination faster. Organize your reds together, oranges together, and so on. After this, subdivide each color section by style—short sleeves with short sleeves, tanks with tanks, etc. Print out the above color matching combinations and post it on your closet door to help you get dressed.
Color coordinating your clothes is not so difficult when you know the colors that harmonize well and have a closet that has an organized layout. A smattering of popping red or any other color on your outfit can add some flavor to your day, and it’s refreshing not only to you but also to onlookers.
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