Life in Colour - 7: 3 Simple Ways to Add Colour to a Neutral Wardrobe

Episode Date: December 10, 2024

Do you wear a wardrobe full of neutrals but craving a splash of colour? In this quick and practical episode, I’m sharing three simple ways to effortlessly add colour to your wardrobe without stepping too far out of your comfort zone. Plus, stick around for a bonus tip that could completely change how you approach your outfits! Here’s what I cover: Accessories: Think jewellery, scarves, and belts that instantly brighten your look. Tops and Tees: The easiest way to add a pop of colour to any outfit. Shoes and Handbags: Fun and functional ways to inject colour into your wardrobe staples. Bonus Tip: You’ll have to listen to find out! Whether you’re a colour newbie or a seasoned pro, this episode is packed with tips to make colour work for you. Want to learn more about seasonal colour analysis? Get my free Finding Your Colours Guide @ https://www.lovingcolour.au/findyourcolours Or want to know your perfect colour palette now? Purchase a Virtual Colour Analysis with me to find out exactly which colours light you up! Go to https://www.lovingcolour.au/colouranalysis Follow along on Instagram: https://instagram.com/lovingcolour__

Well, hello everybody and welcome to this week's episode of Life and Color. Gosh, whenever I say, well, hello everybody, it reminds me of it is the season of the National Lampoon's Christmas vacation movie, you know, with Aunt Bethany where she comes in and she's like, hello everybody. It just reminds me of that. We watched that a couple of weeks ago, so sorry about that. Already on attention, oh dear. But this week, I'm going to be talking to you and giving you some tips or three tips to be

precise. Three simple ways that you can add color to a neutral wardrobe. Now, I am all four people who prefer to wear neutrals. I am all about, as you know, I'm not about rules or anything. I am about you wearing things that you really enjoy wearing and colors that suit you and bring out the best in you. And I know for some people, they feel better in neutrals. However, there can be a few reasons why they feel better. Some just like, you know, Jerry Halliwell, who used to be the Spice Girl. used to be, oh my goodness, perimenopause brain kicking in. I can't think of which spice girl she was. Anyway, it'll come to me. You know the spice girl. She only wears white and cream. That's it. That's all she wears. Occasionally, she might wear like a caramel, like a tan. But if you look at

her Instagram page, you would just see that she just wears white and cream. The reason that she does that is because she prefers to make her life really easy. and that she knows pretty much like her whole wardrobe goes together, her whole wardrobe suits her, and that is what makes her life easy. Now, that's why some people like to wear neutrals because that's what they prefer. Others wear neutrals because they don't know what other colours suit them or how to wear those colours. So I am going to do a whole episode on neutrals. That will be coming up actually in the new year because I've got a few bits and pieces,

like some festive ones coming up, and then I've got another cracking interview for you just before. for the end of the year. So for now, I want to give you three ways that you can incorporate some colour into your wardrobe. So the first one is going to be accessories. Accessories are fantastic for a number of reasons. One, because generally, if you're wanting to test out some colour, accessories are a really inexpensive way of doing it. You don't have to spend a fortune in order to buy a really nice accessory. So if you are on a budget, for example, Target and KMA in Australia, which I know you've got Target and came out in the US as well, if you're listening in the US, they have a fantastic range of accessories that you can buy at a really,

really affordable price. If you're in the UK, you could try places like Marks and Spencers. Again, they're going to have some really fantastic accessories that you can get at a really great price. And also, I don't know if it's still around. in the UK, there was a fantastic shop literally called Accessorise. And oh my goodness, I used to love that shop. There used to be a tiny little kiosk at Liverpool Street Station, which is where I used to get off to go to see a client. And yeah, I used to love that place. Anyway, there are, depending on where you are in the world, there are so many places that you can go to if you're wanting to get some affordable accessories. The great thing about accessories is so many stores do them. And literally

they are everywhere and you can get them online as well. So what kind of accessories can you use? Right. Let's start with scarves. For those in the Southern Hemsman, I don't know whether you got that in the UK as well. There was a TV show and it had a fabulous character in it called Nina Proudman and she used to wear scarves so often in order to, it was called Offspring, in order to add colour to her wardrobe. She had quite sort of a bohemian kind of wardrobe. And so scarves were a really fantastic accessory for her. And I think for anybody, I know that people wear a lot of scarves in winter. So if you're in the Northern Hemisphere at the moment,

obviously scarves are absolutely perfect. If you're in the Southern Hemisphere, summer scarves, they're not around as much. However, I find if you go like to local markets, that's where you'll find them. or you might find them online like somebody on an Etsy store or like an Instagram kind of store, like a homemade. That's where you'll find kind of a lighter scarf.

And so not necessarily silk because I know silk can be really expensive. But you're wanting that really light weight kind of fabric because that can look lovely. You can put it and use it as a hair accessory. If you've got longer hair, if you've got shorter hair, obviously you can use it just as like a headband. So scarves are absolutely fantastic for adding colour. Now, if you are in the cooler seasons at the moment, obviously in the Northern Hemisphere, that's where a variety of scarves will help bring your neutral wardrobe, especially. Majority of us have a coat that is neutral when you're wearing it in the colder climates.

So having a lovely scarf, like I bought one that was checked. There's actually, if you want to go and have a look, there's actually some stories on my Instagram. I think I did like 10 ways with one scarf because it was checked and it had all different colors within my color palette. I wore that all winter. literally everywhere I went, I wore that. And so even if I was wearing navy in a pair of jeans or I was wearing white in a pair of jeans or grey, for example, so like neutrals like we're talking about today, that scarf just added that pop of colour that I needed to give that little bit of a lift and it was a really nice way to incorporate that colour. So scarves are absolutely fantastic.

Another one is earrings. Earrings, necklaces, bracelets, bangles, rings, all those kinds of jewelry and like costume jewelry, you can get some really funky colored beaded bracelets. I know that, you know, Beth, who I had on last week, she's got some fabulous colored bracelets in her store at the moment, and they're really, really pretty. And there are so many different colors that you can get in necklaces, in earrings, and in bracelets. And by adding that, it might just be a hint of color. So if you can imagine that you're in a neutral, for example, I'm going to take an autumn and you're in like, say, khaki and cream, and then you put like a rust bangle or like a mustard

kind of bangle or even like a purple in your season with that outfit, it's going to look absolutely amazing. So that is another way that you can add some color into your wardrobe by using those kinds of accessories. Now, the next one I'm going to talk about is more clothing. And the quickest and easiest way to test a color to see if you like it and really to see if it suits you is in a top. Now, again, it doesn't have to be a really expensive top. It can be just a t-shirt.

It doesn't have to be anything fancy. But that's a fantastic way of doing it. Now, if you are wanting, say, to try a little bit of red, you know, we're coming into Christmas into the festive holiday season. For example, if you're a cool toned, you could buy a navy top that's got a little bit of red on it, whether it's a red print or it's the neckline or around the sleeves that has some red. There are little ways that you can do it. So really start looking when you're in the stores to see, okay, that's one of my neutrals, but it's in a bit of a print or it's got a pattern on it or it's got a bit of a trim on it. It's like if you're

looking for a new pair of swimmers, for example, you could get a fabulous pair of black swimmers, but then the room of the swimmers or their edging of the swimmers could actually be in pink. So there are so many different ways that you can add in just a little hints of color without literally sort of covering yourself in it. Now, if you have a neutral wardrobe and if you know your colors, then you'll know which ones to go for. If you don't know your colors, then just have a little bit of a play like we've talked about before, think about whether you suit more muter colors or whether you suit more brighter colors

or whether you suit lighter colors, like pastures, or do you suit like really deep, dark and rich kind of colors? And then just have a play around and have a think about what kind of colors that you would like to incorporate, whether that might be a cobalt blue or like an emerald green, or like a really rich kind of magenta kind of color or a purple or even a lemon. There's quite a bit of yellow around at the moment. Reds are also coming through. And there's such a variety of reds. Like you can get a raspberry red, you can get a fire engine red, you can get a really tomato-based red, then you can get a rust red. There are so many different colours. So even buying just a basic tea or a couple of basic teas in those colours and then wearing

it with a pair of jeans and then obviously if you're in a cooler climate, you've got a cardigan over the top, if you're in the southern hemisphere where it's warm at the moment, wearing it with say like just a pair of denim shorts. That's a really great way just to dip your toe in to see what kind of colours that you like. Now what I would recommend is before you take the tags off, and I know you've heard me say this before, is just make sure that you've got a few outfits. I always say have at least three or four. So go through your wardrobe and try it with the neutrals that you've got. Like for example, my pastel colored tops are not going to go with an olive green, purely because olive green is not in my color palette.

So just make sure that you've actually got a few bits and pieces that actually can mix a match with those colors because you don't want to feel that you've suddenly invested in this. And you're like, yes, I'm going to try it. And then when you put it on, you're like, well, that didn't look like that in the store or that didn't look like that on the hanger. It just doesn't suit me. No, I'm not going to wear any color.

It's not about that. It's about the colors that you're putting it with. So really try and have a think of does this look like a cooler-based color or does this look like a warmer kind of color? So that would be my recommendations when you're wanting to try a color. I wouldn't necessarily go for like a jumper or even a cardigan or anything that is sort of like an investment piece yet until you know that you really enjoy wearing it. Like for example, I have never worn yellow. You know, I think I've mentioned before that when I was growing up. My sister's favorite color was always yellow and it was my mom's as well,

it is my mom's. And mine was pink. And so we were always known as she had yellow. I had pink. It was just the thing. And I still love pink even to this daylight. I'm literally looking at my pink drink bottle. And so I've only recently started to delve into wearing yellow. And so I tried a T-shirt. And I thought, you know what, I'm going to try a T-shirt. I did get it from Kama and I tried it and I love it. I really love it and I get so many comments when I wear this color. And so the other day I happened to be out and I've had this t-shirt, oh gosh, I must have bought it last summer in Australia, so what, earlier this year. And I was out shopping the other day with my daughter and I was in a shop for her and I was wearing the yellow t-shirt and I came

across this singlet because I've been wanting some more singlets and I held it up and I was like, oh my goodness, there's my yellow. And so I bought it. And that was purely because I tested the waters just to see whether I enjoyed wearing it. And I do. The more I wear it, the more I enjoy it. So don't be put off by colours that you have never worn before. If you have a neutral wardrobe, like I mentioned at the very beginning of this podcast, there's generally a reason. Either you just really prefer wearing those colours and they're your favourite colours, or you're maybe a little bit intimidated by colour because A, you don't necessarily know what suits you or. Secondly, there are just so many colours out there that it can get really overwhelming, which I totally

understand that because there are, there are so many colours. But that's where I would recommend starting when it comes to, when you're wanting to buy an item of clothing in a new colour that you've never worn before and just make sure that it goes for the neutrals within your wardrobe. For example, that yellow top goes with my denim, it goes with the white that I wear, it goes for the navy blue for me. They're the neutrals that I wear. Okay. Next we have shoes and handbags. Now, I've saved this one to last because I cannot tell you how much people underestimate the impact of literally just a colorful shoe. Like, it's amazing. And I think now more and more, you know how like with the new, well, not new, the Adidas range that has literally gone off in the last couple of years.

there are so many different coloured shoes and it's not necessarily just in heels, which it used to be, you know, used to be a lot of different colours in heels. It's in flats and so many women today I think wear flats. Like it's quite rare for me to wear a heel. But if you're wearing flats, like if you say you're wearing charcoal jeans and you're wearing a white tea because you're cool tone, so that's your outfit, imagine putting that with a pair of emerald green shoes or a pair of cobalt blue shoes or even some like hot pink shoes. It would look amazing. But you don't feel like you're covered in colour because they're on your feet. So the colour is a really big distance away from where it reflects obviously onto your face. But it just creates that statement and it looks

absolutely phenomenal. Like absolutely phenomenal. Again, if you're going into the office and you dress a little bit more conservatively and you prefer to wear. like your neutral colors, you prefer to wear your blacks, your navies, grays, whites, creams, olives, tans, car keys, all those kinds of colors. Just think about what you can do with your shoes. Like seriously, you could have a lovely spring who is wearing some tan and cream and then you could pop on like a really fantastic pair of red heels with that and it just gives it that pop of color. or you could use a belt as well to add that little pop of color. Sorry, should have included that in accessories.

But it's where you can add that color without feeling intimidated by it. And that's where I think shoes is a really fantastic way of doing that. Like I mentioned, don't just feel that you have it for heels for like an evening out. Use color in your shoes every day. Like there are some stores, Bowdo and do fantastic range. of colorful shoes. Marks and Spencers have had colorful shoes as well. They do ship internationally. I would say in Australia, I think we're more mainstream in the colors with shoes. So you do have to sort of go to the more individual boutiques. I know that there are, you know those Spanish sandals?

I'll put it in the show notes because I know somebody who sells like the Spanish Esprigal sandals and they have fantastic colors within their range. And it's not just your usual. It literally is they have a really wide variety of colours. And they're fantastic to wear with a casual outfit or if you're going to a barbecue. There are so many different ways that you can dress them up and dress them down. So shoes are a fantastic way to dip your toe into adding some colour into your neutral wardrobe. Last but not least, we have handbags. Now, handbags, there are such a variety out there.

Obviously, again, you have your traditional kind of. of colours but I'm trying to think of the different colours like when I was younger I remember saving up for and I don't wear red so I don't know why I chose this colour handbag I saved up for a red oraton handbag and I saved up for a really long time and I had that handbag for a really long time it's like a patent one I can still picture it and I loved that handbag and I used that all the time like literally all the time so I had that one and I have had like a raspberry red one. I've had a fantastic hot pink Kate Spade one. I've still got that one. And then like an aqua green one, my husband bought me that one. There are so many different ways that you can add color. And you might not

think that it makes an impact. You might be thinking, you know what? Yeah, yeah, yeah, but then I'm still wearing more newtrals. No, no. The impact that having a handbag, like even more if you've got matching handbag and shoes, just saying it, just putting it out there. For those that are a bit like me and you're happy to do that kind of bit matchy-matchy, and it doesn't have to be identical. You know, it can be monochromatic where it's sort of, you know, within the same family. But it creates such a statement.

If you think of somebody, take me, for example, wearing all white, I'm wearing a pair of white jeans, I'm wearing a white t-shirt or a white top, and I've literally got that hot pink handbag, and I'm walking down the street or I'm at the mall or wherever I am, I'm at lunch. that hot pick handbag is the statement piece of that outfit. So do not underestimate how much a fantastic handbag.

And like I mean, when I say fantastic, I'm not meaning expensive. You know, like I know I've mentioned expensive brands. They're ones that I saved up for. But I've also got a fantastic bag from Kmart. It's like a denim kind of blue. And what else have I got? There's a handbag that I had my eye on recently. and it's a really, really lovely kind of green color in my kind of palette.

And it's just so lovely. I really, really like it. So I've had my own that for a while. There are so many different places. So in Australia, there's a boutique called Jouche, and they do like gifts and homewares and things like that. They do brilliant handbags. Now, I have used their handbags for years.

They're about between 49 to, I think, over 100 for the big ones. They're brilliant. like I just love them and they have all different coloured straps. Really, really love them and they have so many different colors. Again, Beth McDonald's store Add to Cart, who I had on last week, she has a fantastic variety of handbags. I'm pretty sure she's got some like metallic ones on there at the moment. Like I think she's got like metallic pink and like a metallic kind of green.

I know that she's got the general metallics as well, like silver and gold. So there are so many different colors out there. that you can choose from. And the thing is it's not physically on you. Like you're not wearing it. So it's not reflecting colour onto you. So you can go to town when it comes to the colours that you choose for your handbags. But I promise you it makes such a statement.

And people will really notice and it would just look fantastic. Just trust me on this one. That's almost my favourite one to choose is like a handbag. Just because of the effect that it can have. I bought my mom one recently. I bought her a little mini red one. and it looks fantastic on her. Just, yeah, it looks brilliant.

So they are my three simple ways to add colour to your wardrobe if you have a neutral wardrobe that you don't have a huge amount of colour and you're not quite sure where to start. Now, just a little bonus, because this will be another episode. Just a little bonus for you today is a lipstick. If you wear a bolder color lipstick, that's another way of incorporating color. Now, I know not everybody likes to wear brighter color lipsticks.

You can get lip glosses. So I'm not saying you have to go bright and bold. But think of a lovely coral lipstick. Think of a brighter pink lipstick. Obviously, there's an array of different coloured reds that you can go for. But that's a really great way as well just to add a pop of colour. And it doesn't take a lot. honestly, that hint of colour can just make all the difference, not only to your outfit,

but also to how you're feeling. I know that the days that I wear a bold lipstick, I feel better in terms of confidence if I've got something that I need to do. So that's where I use that as like a confidence booster for me. But if you prefer to wear nude lipsticks, what you can always do is buy a lip liner in a brighter colour. And you use that just very lightly to colour in your lips. obviously in the color of a choice, whether that's like an orangey coral or whether it's a pink or

whether it's a red. There are so many different colors that you can go for and variations of shades that you can go for. Just color your lips in with that and then just pop a clear gloss over the top. And obviously you can color in as much as you like or you can make it really soft as well. So it just gives a hints of color on the lips. So you don't feel that you have to, if you swipe from a lipstick bullet, that's going to lay down the most amount of product.

and therefore it's going to get the most colour payoff. Whereas if you're using like a lip liner or a lipstick and you're just sort of dabbing it onto your lips, you're just going to get a hint of colour rather than using the full laydown, like the full punch of colour that you would get if you swipe the lipstick across your lips or the lip liner across your lips. So that's like a little bonus thing.

If you're not necessarily wanting to add colour in other ways, or you're feeling really brave and you're going to try one of the other things that I've mentioned and then you're going to want to pop a matching, lip with it. Now, that's even better. But I know it's baby steps for some of you, and I totally understand that, because colour can be really overwhelming, like I said. Now, I hope you have enjoyed today's podcast. I'm sorry if I forgot a couple of things. I still can't remember for the life of me, which Spice Girl, she was. You know, I'm actually going to have to look it up because

it's absolutely going to drive me. She's absolutely going to drive me insane unless I find out which one that she was. But yes, thank you for bearing with me today with my slightly forgetful perimenopausal memory, but also one of my children is having surgery today. So my brain is slightly preoccupied, but I wanted to make sure that you have a really good podcast episode for you for this week. Anyway, take care. Have a great week. If you want to get in touch with me, there are a couple of ways. Head to Instagram and go to at Loving Color double underscore. Now, colour has a U in it. It's the Australian spelling, so C-O-L-O-U-R.

Or you can send me an email to Ashley atlovingcolor.com. I am always up for a chat to do with anything, health, lifestyle, fashion, beauty, makeup, you know it, I'm there for it. So if you have any questions or you need any help, especially coming into this festive season, I know that it can get a bit tricky about what to wear to things. Just send me a DM and we can have a chat. Take care and I will see you next week. Okay, bye.