2020 Winter Style Guide, Part II: Let Color Inspire You!
With the short days, dreary skies, and, well, cold temps that convince us to stay inside until warmer days return, it’s pretty expected that we face a mood shift during the winter months. And for those of us who deal with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), winter seemingly lasts longer than it should. So naturally, our energy and motivation for certain activities or goals during the colder months may take a hit. Yet, have you ever thought about how this may also affect how we dress, and the mood we reflect by the colors (or lack thereof) that we choose?
If you’re like me, you crave warmth, color, sunshine, and vibrancy 24/7/365. I tend to thrive and am my most productive when those factors are present in my life! So, in part two of our Winter Style Guide, I’m going to share how we can ditch the neutral-dominant wardrobe we traditionally stick to and show how to dress against those gray skies, allowing color to pick us up on the days when we’re just not feeling it!
Go bright!
Try a nice, cobalt blue, true orange, or marigold (my favorite color to wear atm). And again, rather than only sticking to neutrals during winter, we can combine any of these colors with neutrals like khaki, olive green, and camel to bring together a solid look.
Bonus tip: if you’re in need of a real mood booster, why not add in a layer of neon? Just like the brighter hued colors, neons can be easily paired with any neutral to give you the balance you need for your fit.
Keep it rich.
If bright and bold isn’t your jam, maybe opting for a pop of slate blue, berry, burnt orange/copper, or mustard is more fitting. These are the moodier yet captivating jewel tones that give your look an elevated feel and presence.
Colors that Aliven our Mood
If I’ve not mentioned this before, Color Psychology has always been one of my favorite studies! So, to give you even more ideas of mood-by-color you can incorporate into your winter looks, here’s a short list of colors that are specifically tied to motivation and productivity.
Yellow - Optimism & Happiness - and how cool is it that one of the 2021 Pantone Colors of the Year is a shade of yellow called, Illuminating!
Blue - Stability & Trustworthiness
Orange - Energy & Joy
Green - Health & Prosperity
Red - Passion & Invigoration
By combining the tips from both parts of the series, Layering Patterns & Textures, and now throwing in a bit of color, you’ll continue curating your signature style while introducing the personality and positivity that makes you as awesome as you are . . . not only in winter, yet all year long!
In the comments below, let me know what style topic you’d like me to cover next!
