I recently got a new phone and while installing all the apps I suddenly realized something; I was organizing all my apps on the home screen according to colour. And then it hit me that I had done this with my previous phone as well, and the one before that.
I had never realized doing so, so this was definitely my subconsciousness taking control. But it wasn’t just colours that I ended up arranging on the home screen; I’m not a particularly tidy person, but when it came to my phone’s home screen, I didn’t want it to be too crowded. So, the apps that I use daily deserved a place on the first screen and the rest was moved to the “second page”. Neat and tidy.
Since realizing this I started paying attention to other things at my home as well. And one of the first things that hit my eye was my clothing rack in the bedroom; and it was colour coordinated from white to blue to brown to black. I found myself smiling. This is how it should be, balanced.
I’ve never considered myself as having any sort of OCD tendencies; my dishes can easily wait for washing for 2 or 3 weeks, the vacuum cleaner doesn’t exit the closet too often and my clothes are always spread on every surface of my home. I blindly trust that I turned the oven off when I walk out of my door, and I rarely check whether I have my keys with me or not.
But it seems some compulsive habits have sneaked their way into my life. Although, this is a nice habit to have, I think. Among all the chaos in my apartment there is, at least, some order.
But there is one thing I have consciously always been very specific about when it comes to colour coordination; my style. I’ve never understood why people would dress in all black outfits (even though one of my best friends has this as her no.1 style rule). There’s nothing fun about it, nothing that catches the eye… Perhaps that’s the whole point, though.
After all trends tend to look quite different from one continent to another, even though the world has become a much smaller place thanks to Internet. And the different perceptions of beauty make fashion and personal style something that we should definitely pay more attention to when traveling. Different interpretations of the same trends according to culture can be super inspiring.
I have been seen dressed in all black on couple occasions (that weren’t funerals) in the past few years but I’d always make sure to add a pop of colour into such a combo. The brighter the better. Colourful accessories are the easiest way to dress up any neutral or bland outfit.
And this year bright colours are in fashion so I am planning to (keep) embracing this wholeheartedly!
For those who are interested in colour coordinating their outfits, but aren’t quite sure how to go about it, I found a handy tip last year when writing about this same subject: Check out my advice on how to colour coordinate your outfits by using the colour wheel.
The point of the colour wheel is to easily show you which colours go well together with which colour. Basically you should always mix complimentary colours, which are next to each other on the wheel; for example pairing gold jewelry with red clothes is always going to be chic af.
The original colour wheel was invented by, no other, than Isaac Newton, and it has evolved to something that is widely accepted in technology as well as in fashion. Funnily, these “colour rules” are so strong and well known that all my life I’ve been told by parents, friends and fashion magazines how green should never be mixed with red or blue with orange. And I have steered away from such combos.
But times have changed and style rulesΒ have loosened up a bit. Like my mum always likes to remind me “these days you can pair anything with everything“. I don’t 100% agree with that because wearing (actual) pajama trousers with heels to the office just doesn’t fly. Even though I have stated that heels can make even a pajama look splendid.
Despite most often mixing a bright coloured top or bottom piece with a neutral (black or white) counterpart, my absolute favourite outfits are light blue skinny jeans paired with a bright pink top or going all monochrome with blue from top to bottom.
You know what else I noticed? The fast approaching Spring has completely changed a gear for me in regards to personal style. During dark and gloomy winter months my priority no.1 is to stay warm, so I drape myself in enormous wool jumpers and thick boots with not that much regard on how great I may or may not look. It’s all going to be covered with a thick jacket anyway.
But now I can move towards lighter jackets, I can dig out my skirts and shorts (with tights included to the mix, of course), and my HEELS, and can start thinking about interesting colour, texture and shape combos again. The amount of inspiration that a little bit of sunshine has brought me is indescribable. And I love it!
Personal style is something that has a huge impact on my well-being overall; when leaving home with the knowledge that I look great, I obviously feel that extra bit better.
Do you feel inspired by the arriving Spring? I’d love to know how you incorporate colour into your outfits or whether you prefer neutral tones in your personal style. xx