It's time to talk about color with Genevieve Antoine Dariaux! This is part of a series reviewing the book, A Guide to Elegance. An introduction to this series of posts can be found here and previous posts can be read here. As always, be sure to share your thoughts in the comments and weigh in on whether the fashion rules of the 1960s still apply today.
"[C]olour is no different from anything else; there is a question of mode; and a shade or combination which seems impossible to us today is quite likely to enchant us tomorrow." (pg. 25)
This is a very important point to make because Madame Dariaux first published this book in 1964 and although the 2003 update has some changes, it is still very much a product of her time. (I strongly disagree with her that sky blue is the only good option to pair with plum. In fact, I would argue that sky blue should rarely, if ever, be paired with plum.) Although she creates an extensive chart of color combinations that she deems "successful," probably the easiest thing you can do is to window shop at the mall and see what exciting color palettes are being shown on the mannequins. That will give you new ideas so that you don't find yourself stuck wearing the same few colors for years on end.
"It is very difficult to form an elegant and harmonious combination with three different colours, except when two of them are black and white." (pg. 28)
To say that you can't mix three colors together shows a lack of imagination and thousands of colorful, fabulous outfits on Pinterest prove her wrong. I will even go so far as to say that a true mastery of color is the mark of a modern, elegant woman. It shows not only an understanding of the garments, but demonstrates a certain amount of creativity.
"[T]here are absolutely no taboos for the majority of women. Besides, most of them have acquired in childhood preconceived notions as to what colours they can and cannot wear, and they sometimes deprive themselves of many highly flattering shades simply because they refuse to try them." (pg. 29)
This was an obstacle I came across all the time when I was working retail. Nearly every client had a color that they felt very strongly against and could not voice any real explanation for why. We generally tried to coax the more pliable into at least trying it on because eight times out of ten, the woman would discover that she actually liked the color on her.
When I was at BlogHer'13, a woman at my lunch table told us about another blogger that she had met earlier in the day who believed that women should find their signature color and then only wearing that shade. Not only is that limiting, but it puts a lot of faith in the person who helps you find that "perfect" color. When the discussion of color would come up when I was working in retail, clients would often tell me what season I was. Sometimes they would look at me and say that I was obviously a winter and the next client would swear I was an autumn. I mostly just nodded along and ignored it because I was not about to let myself be limited to a smaller color palette just because a random person told me I should.
When I was at BlogHer'13, a woman at my lunch table told us about another blogger that she had met earlier in the day who believed that women should find their signature color and then only wearing that shade. Not only is that limiting, but it puts a lot of faith in the person who helps you find that "perfect" color. When the discussion of color would come up when I was working in retail, clients would often tell me what season I was. Sometimes they would look at me and say that I was obviously a winter and the next client would swear I was an autumn. I mostly just nodded along and ignored it because I was not about to let myself be limited to a smaller color palette just because a random person told me I should.
"When you are matching colours which are meant to be worn in the daytime, it is absolutely necessary to judge them in true daylight; and colours which only go out at night should be selected under electric lights." (pg. 30)
This reminds me of an episode from the BBC show, As Time Goes By. Jean is shopping for the wedding and can't decide whether the dress she likes is beige or pink under the lights of the store so she steps outside onto the sidewalk for a bit of natural light and gets in trouble for shoplifting. I am sure that we can all relate to picking up something that drastically changes shade once it gets away from the fluorescent bulbs.
"In conclusion, an elegant woman must have the courage to try an unaccustomed color from time to time, but she should select it with open eyes as well as an open mind." (pg. 31)
I couldn't have said it better myself.
References
Dariaux, Genevieve Antoine. A Guide to Elegance. New York: William Morrow, 2003. Print.
Dariaux, Genevieve Antoine. A Guide to Elegance. New York: William Morrow, 2003. Print.
RSS Feed
