Coordinate the colors in your wardrobe

When it comes to fashion, colors can be your best friend or your worst enemy. Depending on how you choose to coordinate them, your hues can either showcase an ensemble of cheerful energy—or overwhelm onlookers with a battle of clashing colors. But if you know how to effectively balance tones and shades that suit each other, matching colors will be a cinch. Here are a few go-to tips when it comes to essential color coordination:

Know your primaries

Red, green and blue are the standardized primary colors, and should often be utilized as the main shade of your outfit. All other colors stem from a combination of these essential three, but that doesn’t necessarily mean all tones will work with these primary colors. What’s nice about red, green or blue is that they’re the best colors to be utilized for a monochromatic look, which is styling an outfit out of entirely one color.

Spin the wheel

The color wheel may be familiar to those who remember art class. It’s also a strategic tool when it comes to determining what colors can work together in your outfit. Adjacent colors tend to match well. For example, yellow and chartreuse, red and vermilion, and indigo and blue follow this formula. Colors directly across from each other work together as well, such as blue and orange, red and green, or yellow and violet. Using the wheel in these ways is an easy trick when you can’t decide if certain shades complement one another.

Specific Colors

Yellow:  Go from lemon yellow to more of a custard to brighten up any cloudy day and compliment your complexion. Think you can’t wear yellow? Think again when it’s in a print!

Blue: From a Scuba Blue to a classic cobalt, blues are a very calming color that remind us of the beautiful colors of the Mediterranean. Blues are also a perfect color for all skintones.

Red: Bold pops of Red turn your everyday look into a traffic stopper. Red is a great color when worn with classic whites, blacks and navy’s. Try teaming up red with a soft shade of pink to give it a sophisticated, but not overly sweet look.

Accent Colors: If monochromatic dressing is more your style, try adding pops of color to accessories like purses, shoes, hats, or jewelry.

Keep it simple

As a rule of thumb, it’s generally not advised to go overboard when it comes to colors in your attire. You should try to keep the amount of colors you use in your outfit around two, never exceeding three. You don’t want to be a vigorous blur when you’re out and about. Matching a primary or secondary colored top with a solid colored bottom, or vice versa, is usually a safe bet. You can always resort to black or white when it comes to having a solid color for your outfit, as both hues work well with just about any other shade. If you’re running out of color coordinating ideas, try to match your bottoms with the same colored jacket, and wear a top underneath that’s a complementary tone.

Don’t forget skin and hair

Sometimes successfully coordinating colors also means recognizing what goes best with your own skin complexion and hair color. If you have darker skin, you can tend to get away with wearing more eye-popping color combinations, such as red and black, pink and orange, or green and beige. Women with lighter skin should try to stick to more subdued color arrangements, such as brown and yellow or navy and beige. For blondes, clothes with shades that complement your radiant hair tone include teal, vermilion or lavender. Darker haired ladies should think of more autumn-esque colors, such as brown, orange or a rich red dress.

So start observing what colors you like on yourself or others, and have fun creating and energizing a whole new colorful you!