Warm/Cool Colored Outfits

[SDFanatic]

Hello all,

I've been having an interesting conversation with some other people about warm and cool colors and how it looks on someone based on their skin tone and hair color.

I showed a picture to some people and my seamstress and they pretty much say the same thing, my outfit is too "cool" for my complextion. They say my blue outfits match much better. Usually however I am fairly light skinned, but I've been outside a lot this summer so I'm a bit darker then usuall. I know it's easy enough to change my leg color with different colored tights, but what about my fair and hair color then?

My preference is blue, I like deep blue's, but I also like greens, purples, and reds. Just pondering then if I see something I like, like this past one, that I should pass it up since it doesn't fit my skin tone.

Such simple questions with complex answeres!

Steven

[icenut84]

Originally posted by SDFanatic
I showed a picture to some people and my seamstress and they pretty much say the same thing, my outfit is too "cool" for my complextion. They say my blue outfits match much better.

I don't really understand what you mean by that. Blue is a "cool colour". Depending on shades:

Cool colours - blue, green, purple etc
Warm colours - red, orange, yellow, brown etc

How can they say blue suits you but your outfits are too "cool"? Doesn't make sense. :??

[Alexa]

Another thing to note about colors, is that though certain colors are considered cool or warm, there are variations within the colors that influence what looks good with your skin tone. For example, the color red--there are orangey reds and bluish reds. The orange based red would be considered a warm red and blue based a cool red.

So, you don't always have to limit a specific color, as there might be a certain shade of the color that works well for you. Plus the cool/warm thing is too broad of a rule to work anyway. For example, I am fair skinned/fair haired, but when it comes to make-up colors and some clothing colors, though I always test that I should wear cool colors, many of the warm colors work better on me.

Just observe how different colors look on you, as you will get a good feel of what works. I wouldn't completely eliminate a color without experimenting with different shades of the color.

[quarkiki2]

Originally posted by Alexa
Just observe how different colors look on you, as you will get a good feel of what works. I wouldn't completely eliminate a color without experimenting with different shades of the color.

I totally agree with this. I have auburn hair and very, very pale skin. What I've found is that the intensity of the color is more important to how I look than the actual color. Although I am technically an Autumn (wears warn fall-ish colors) I cannot wear a pastel color -- none of them, not even a pale peach (warm) -- I look all washed out. However, I can wear brighter colors -- vibrant hues, even bright purlpe and pink (cool colors).

I tend to prefer intense warm colors to intense cool colors, though I have a peacock blue coat that my husband thinks looks better on me than any color. I prefer emerald green myself, LOL! I tend to be a "bright color" person in everything else I do. Can't stand white walls or dull clothing or champaigne beige cars, LOL!

Please don't mistake this as Quarkiki walking around looking like a circus tent, though! :lol:

[SDFanatic]

Originally posted by icenut84
I don't really understand what you mean by that. Blue is a "cool colour". Depending on shades:

Cool colours - blue, green, purple etc
Warm colours - red, orange, yellow, brown etc

How can they say blue suits you but your outfits are too "cool"? Doesn't make sense. :??

Eeek!, Sorry about that, the outfit I was talking about is actually a hot pink tie dye with yellow contrasts, which I guess is too hot.

And now from some other comments and input, I see that depending on the tone, it also can change making it warm warm or cool. Course it goes along the line of someone else saying that balck can be warm or cool depending on it's undertone. Silly me thinking blue is blue!

Steven

[sk8er1964]

I am generally a cool colored person, because I have a light olive skin tone that picks up yellows -- which unfortunately give my skin a greenish tone. Reds with a yellow tone look horrible on me, but most other reds look good.

My son is blond, and I have seen very few colors that do not look good on him (even yellow is ok, because the olive is not as noticable in his skin).

My wedding party wore deep plum colored dresses (2 red heads and 4 blondes). One of my friends is a carrot-topped redhead who insisted the color would look awful on her. I thought it would look great -- and it did. After seeing herself in the dress, she added deep plum to her autumn-and-pastel wardrobe!

[SDFanatic]

I guess I have some more to play with yet, hopefully after labor day my designer has more free time available and we can play with more colors and tones.

Thanks everyone for their input so far!

Steven

[Andie]

I'm not sure what category I'd be considered (autumn, fall, spring or summer). I'm an in between.
My hair's reddish dark brown, my skin's pale/ivory and my eyes hazel. I seem to look best in medium purple, lilac, plum, royal blue, deep red, pale yellow, and rusty orange. Black looks good on me when there's a hint of other color or accent on it. White looks good on me too.

I can wear some shade of almost any color, except brown. Brown isn't too good on me.

So I don't understand the deal with these categories.