It’s time to go big or go home, to create an outfit so intentional it couldn’t be an accident. Read on to learn how to go bold with a monochromatic look.
Find Your Color
Going monochromatic is more than just spinning a color wheel and going all out, you’ve got to get to the root of the color theory first to find what works for you.
All Black: Let’s start with the easiest monochrome look to pull off, the tried-and-true all black. The beautiful cross section of fashionistas, beatniks, goths, and backstage crew. It’s the kind of look that almost always works, but it can be a little bit boring once you realize your fashionista potential.
All White: The other end of the spectrum isn’t so easy. It takes confidence and the right pieces to pull off the all white outfit. And you’ve got to be diligently dodging any spills and scrapes to stay put together. But it’s a blindingly bright look when done right.
Your Favorite Color: It’s one of those questions we all know the answer to, so what’s your favorite color? Take that color you love so much and wear it proudly. Find shades that work together to create separation and depth to your outfit. A color you’re already familiar with — and likely have pieces of in your closet — is a perfect place to start when you get off the black-and-white palette.
The Color You’re Afraid Of: Your guilty pleasure, the color you see others rock and think “I could never pull that off…” The burnt orange or the hot pink or the mustard yellow. Well the secret is, you probably can pull it off; it’s all about your confidence.
Sure some colors don’t work as well for certain people, but if you can find someone who looks like you who can rock a hue, then you can too!
Key Pieces
So where do you start when putting together a monochromatic outfit? Key pieces.
Find the beautifully colored dress or sweater or leather jacket or socks — the one that makes you feel all the feels that you’ve just GOT TO have and wear — and coordinate around that.
You’ve got to wear it, instead of letting it wear you!
The goal is to make that key piece of clothing blend with the rest, but you don’t need to find exact color matches for the other garments. In fact, it’s usually easier to find a slightly different, but complementary shade instead of an exact match. If it’s too close, but not quite right, it’ll look unintentional.
Accessorizing Monochrome
One of the most fun parts of a monochrome outfit is the accessories. Those earrings, that bag, those glasses that are usually the statement piece on their own suddenly become a great supporter of your eye-popping outfit.
But if you just need that accessory to pop out too, turn to another school of fashion: color-blocking. Take your outfit’s color and jump across the color wheel to the opposite side for the statement accessory to make it stand out even more effectively.
The yellow scarf on the purple blouse. The white boot against the burnt orange dress. The vivacious pink against the all black too-cool-for-school look. The green earrings against the red blazer. That way you get two statements for the price of one!
