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Analogous colors:
(also
known as adjacent colors, harmonious colors, and related colors),
are
Colors, which lie next to each other on the color wheel (contiguous
colors). They harmonize since they each contain some of the same color.
An example would be blue pants, a blue-green shirt and a purple
sweater.
Warm and Cool: 
Families
of analogous colors include warm colors (red, orange,
yellow) and cool colors (green, blue, violet). Designers often
build color schemes around two or three related colors.
Select two warm
colors with one cool or two cool with one warm to create dynamic harmony.
Examples: navy suit, light blue shirt and red tie, or a yellow shirt,
rust jacket and blue jeans.
Neutral:
shades of white, black, gray or tan.
Neutrals work well
with all colors or may be worn together. Khaki pants, white shirt and a
gray sweater worn together create an ensemble made up of all neutral
colors. Together, all neutrals may not be a dynamic look, but it is
sophisticated.
Black, White, Gray,
Tan, and Brown are not separate colors on the color wheel, but are made up
of different percentages of red, yellow and blue. To make neutral
colors mix either all three primary colors, or mix a primary and
secondary
color (secondary colors are made from mixing two primaries).
For example:
How to
make a brown?
Mix a
color with its
complementary
color. Add orange to blue, purple to yellow, or green to red. Each of
these combinations makes a different brown.
How to
make a grey?
Mix
some orange (or yellow and red) with a blue then add some white. You can
also mix blue with an earth color, such as raw umber or burnt sienna.
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CORE COLOR |
ACCENT COLORS |
|
Complementary |
Triad |
Analogous |
Neutral |
|
WHITE (neutral) |
All colors |
(Same for all colors)
White, black,
gray,
tan |
|
BLACK (neutral) |
All colors |
|
GRAY (neutral) |
Darker or
lighter gray, red, blue, yellow and green |
|
TAN (neutral) |
Blue, purple,
burgundy, cranberry, turquoise, brown, orange, green, |
|
BROWN |
Blue, green,
orange, yellow, |
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NAVY |
Orange, gold,
rust |
Yellow, red,
brown, tan |
Blue, green,
purple |
|
BURGUNDY/RED |
Green |
Blue, yellow |
Purple, orange |
|
YELLOW |
Purple |
Red, blue |
Orange, green |
|
PURPLE |
Yellow |
Orange, green |
Blue, red |
|
RUST/ORANGE |
Blue |
Green, purple |
Yellow, red,
brown |
|
GREEN/OLIVE |
Red |
Purple, orange |
Blue, yellow |
Caveat:
You must pay attention to tone (adding gray), tint (adding
white) and shade (adding black) of a hue (pure color). Green and
red are complementary colors, but if you match pure green and red you’ll
look very Christmassy! Which is fine for Christmas! But burgundy and
hunter green are quite stunning together.
You can also opt out
of mixing and matching color and go:
Monochromatic:
all one
color, but different shades, tones or tints. All blue attire could consist
of a Navy suit, light blue shirt, dark blue tie, blue pocket square, etc.
Add some contrast to this combination by using texture and pattern. Some
of your clothing items should be smooth; others rough in texture. Some
items could be patterned; others solid.
Putting the Core color and Accent color chart to specific practice:
These are Colors
that traditionally go well together, but
remember this is only a guide.
|
Jacket
Color |
Shirt
(and/or Pocket
Square*) |
Tie
(and/or Pocket
Square*)
|
Trousers
for
Sports Jackets |
Belt/Shoes
|
Navy
|
white, blue,
yellow, pink |
blue,
gold, yellow, burgundy, red, purple |
gray, tan
|
black, brown
or cordovan |
|
Gray |
white, gray,
yellow, pink, lavender, blue |
black, white,
gray, green, blue-green, burgundy, navy, any primary or pastel
colors |
gray, black,
navy |
black, brown
or cordovan |
|
Brown |
white, ecru,
blue, yellow |
tan, black,
brown, rust, orange, red, gold, yellow, green, burgundy |
tan, gray,
a different shade of brown. |
brown or
cordovan |
|
Tan |
blue, ecru,
white |
tan, brown,
rust, orange, red, navy, |
black, navy,
gray, brown, darker tan |
brown, black
or cordovan |
|
Olive |
white, ecru, gray, pale yellow, pale blue |
burgundy,
rust, green, tan, yellow |
gray,
tan, navy, brown |
brown or
cordovan |
Black
|
white, light
gray, yellow, blue |
black, white,
grey, blue, olive, burgundy, any primary
or pastel colors |
gray, tan |
black
|
*A note on Pocket
Square coordination:
Compliment, don’t
match, your shirt and/or tie with your pocket square. If you do have a
yen to match go for the shirt, never the tie. For a very conservative
look try plain white, even if it is a little stuffy. There was a brief
period such as the early 1940’s when men
did
match tie and pocket square, but thank goodness we’ve moved on.
There is some
school that believes that the tie or jacket and pocket square should
contrast in fabric. If you’re wearing a silk tie opt for a linen square,
or a tweed jacket is best worn with a heavier more casual square of wool
or cashmere. White linen would appear too formal. This theory has some
merit, but silk still looks great with any fabric.
Andy’s Tip
for matching trousers to sports jackets:
The bone buttons of
your jacket have a range of colors. You can choose trousers that match
any of the colors of the buttons and they will go perfectly.
Some
additional considerations:
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Seasonal Colors:
Some
colors are more appropriate at certain times of year than others. Like
the pastels of yellow, are usually associated with summer, while autumn
colors are rust, brown, green, and burgundy. Wearing rust in the
summer, or light yellow in the fall looks out of place.
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Think contrast.
Try one light element with two dark, or one dark with two lights, such
as a charcoal suit, white shirt and red tie, or tan suit with yellow
shirt and green tie. Or Khaki pants and a dark blue shirt.
|
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Color Value:
Dark
colors recede thus making you look thinner, and light colors project,
which tends to bulk you up. Dark colors are more formal than light. |
This is the stuff
artists, master gardeners, and interior decorators study, but now you can
use this knowledge to paint a picture with your clothes!
Now, go get
dressed!!
--
Andy Gilchrist
Have a color's name or want to know
what color a product really is with a certain color name?
Click on
NAME THAT COLOR
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