.
.
In fashion magazine after fashion magazine you will read that essential in every woman’s wardrobe is a pair of black trousers and a Little Black Dress because both these garments are the most flattering and slimming you can find. They are of course aren’t they?
The answer is – only if black is a colour that suits you. How do you know if it suits? To start with we need to look at the properties of black – it is a DEEP, COOL and BRIGHT colour, so if you are WARM, LIGHT or MUTED in your colouring, you should avoid it.
This model can wear the black top as she is cooler in her colouring and has a deeper value with her darker hair – the look is harmonious.
And here she is in black, which is not harmonious with her skintone and does not blend with her colouring.
Now why is black considered so slimming? If light colours advance (make you look bigger) and dark colours recede (make you look smaller) then what is the most slimming colour? According to all those mags and fashion writers – it’s black as that logically seems to be the darkest colour, so it should recede the most. But if bright colours advance and muted (that is greyed down) colours recede then what is black? But black is actually a bright colour as it has no grey element so those ‘slimming’ black trousers will actually draw attention to you bum and make it look bigger, not smaller.
So what colour trousers should you buy to make your bum look smaller? Dark grey or very dark brown if you’ve got cool colouring, and if you’re warm chocolate brown or deep olive green will both be far more slimming than any black pants ever could be for you.
Related posts:
I am a pale red head and I have a wardrobe that is like the black sea. I have rows of black tops, trousers and countless LBD’s. So, I am a dyed in the wool black lover. I say that all as a disclaimer to my sense that the red head in the photos looks fine in black bottoms. I totally agree that she looks better in the coloured tops. Now, I feel sure you have a better eye for colour than I do. I hope someday you will come to L.A. and perhaps you can talk me out of my mostly black wardrobe.
This is a great and thought provoking post and I can assure you that this post will stay with me and I will come back again and again to think about if black is really flattering to me( I have men tell me that it is. But, maybe they were just hitting on me.;-)
La Belette,
This is how I do ‘black aversion therapy’ with my clients.
Get a black piece of fabric, and a brown or deep olive green piece and stand in front of a mirror with good lighting – Layer the pieces of clothing or fabric with the black on top. Look at your face, not the colour, and notice if you look like you have under eye bags, and double chins, the evenness of your skin tone, how healthy you appear.
Now drop the black piece and watch as the colour moves away from your face to the brown or olive, do it again with the next colour – you should see that your face look healthier with the brown and green, and your eyes become brighter with the brown and olive green, while the black will make you look more tired and appear stark against your skin.
Then hold up the black, with your ‘off white’ white, and watch your chin – see how double chins and shadowing around the mouth disappear when you wear a lighter colour next to your face?
You are amazing! I so appreciate the incredibly detailed response to my comment.
I will do this. But, I fear that I might lie to myself because if I gave up on black I would have nothing to wear. Well, I do have a few navy blue, red and purple pieces. There are slim pickings in the non-black category.
Seriously, you must come to L.A.! I really need your help.;-) Thanks so much, Imogen!
La Belette,
I never tell my clients to throw out all their black clothes, just as they replace them to look for more flattering colours that harmonise with their own colouring.
You can wear black more successfully at night as there are more shadows anyway, plus we tend to wear heavier makeup.
The sheerer the fabric, the easier it is to wear too.
You never know, I’m hoping to get to LA next year for the AICI (Image Consultants) conference in May.
Imogen, Since “meeting” you, I have weeded out so much black! I now see myself as a softer colored person, and I realize what black is doing to me. It is a “harsh” color! Luckily I don’t have too many black bottoms.But there is a nice linen pair that is hanging in my closet, freshly hemmed and ready to wear. Bummer!
I too, felt that the redhead looked fine in black pants with her colored tops. But I thought she looked okay in the white and black tops too.
I’m such an idiot. Last spring I bought a J.Crew cashmere tee shirt in black. It’s a crew neck, so it goes right under my chin. Bad idea. I will never buy inappropriate clothing again. Or things that don’t suit me.
In LA there is white. Is white just as harsh as black? I have white jeans, white linen trousers. I love them both.
You must come here in the Spring so we can jaunt around Disney with you!
I really hope you are able to come! I would love to do a consultation with you and perhaps some shopping. And, yeah, even Disneyland!!
So glad to hear that I don’t have to throw out all my black.
You explain it so well but my eyes can’t tell the difference between the “good” and “bad” outfits on the model — except for her expression. She looks (to me) more washed out with the good (autumnal colors) print because it is the same color as her skin and hair. Sigh, I just don’t get it.
P.S. I wear lots of black but am trying to wear navy this year.
Tessascoffs,
It sounds like you like more contrast – some people are low contrast people, others like a higher contrast.
La Belette,
I do hope I get there next year and meet you all – I could probably forgoe Disneyland for a shopping trip with you gals.
Karen,
You can wear white with your colouring. White is cool and you are cool (like a drink of a nice crisp white on a hot summers day).
Must go and do some paying work so that I can save up to bring the whole family out next year!
This post was so eye-opening for me, too!
I really never considered that maybe black wasn’t the color for me. When I was younger, I had my “colors” done and ended up being a winter. I remember the consultant telling me that black was good for me. But, as I’ve gotten older, I seem to have naturally turned away from black and moved more towards brown.
Would you consider brown a universally flattering color, regardless of skin tone?
Michelle,
Browns are great – there isn’t just one shade of brown, but many to choose from.
If you’re warmer, choose a more yellow brown. If you’ve got a cooler complexion go for a dark rose brown. In general think Milk Chocolate (warmer) vs Dark Chocolate (cooler).
If you have brown eyes, brown is a fantastic colour to wear – look for a brown that really makes your eyes pop.
This settles it! I need a new wardrobe!
Hi Imogen,
I totally get the ‘no black on top’ part, as a freckled red head with similar coloring to your model. I love the blue and green tops and try and find similar colors for myself for tops; however, what color pants would you wear those colors with, if not black? I don’t think either one would look good at all with olive green. Maybe brown or cream?
I love the fact that you include redheads in your colour descriptions and photos; thank you!!!!
Hi Imogen, hard work to figure out what pant colours to wear…Could you tell us what (dark?) color the red hair model could of wear more succesfully with each one of her tops? Thanks a lot.
Anonymous – I'd look for dark brown, deep olive green or denim to go with her tops.
Wow, this explains why I keep avoiding my black pair of dress pants and why I don’t look good in pics where I am wearing black shirts. And I own so much black!!
It’s so easy to get stuck in the black rut, particularly as shop assistants consistently push black on to us too! And we feel it’s so easy…. just a pity it’s not always flattering.