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Friday, 27 July 2007

The Black Myth

I felt I needed to comment on "the black myth" as there seems to be a few common misconceptions around that fabulous colour we call black. So many times clients have (mis)quoted to me that "everyone can wear black, can't they?" or "black is slimming, right?" and unfortunately neither of these statements are true - if you are trying to live within your own style.

Might I say from the beginning that the team at Busting Diva are not all about 'rules and shoulds', in fact quite the opposite, we'll search out opportunities to break the rules whilst still looking and feeling fabulous. But you have to know the rules first in order to be able to break them.

The first thing about the colour black is that it actually isn't a colour; it is an absence of colour. This makes it the strongest, deepest of 'colours', and in order to carry off wearing it next to your face, quite simply you need strong, deep colours in your face and hair. Without this strength of colouring, sadly black will make you look tired and worse, age you. Unfortunately this is why black does not suit everyone, and most older ladies in particular should opt for other alternatives such as navy, brown or grey.

The other factor to consider in wearing black is that it does not allow for shadows to be cast like lighter colours do. By this I mean black very much looks like a solid colour when you wear it and without shadows to emphasize the figure underneath, the shape is lost. Therefore the only way black is slimming is if the garment is well cut and well fitted to the individual's figure.

There is a whole psychology behind colours which I will write about at a later date in more detail but take care in wearing black, to others it will represent everything from authority and power to contradiction and mourning!

These are a few of the 'rules' surrounding the wearing of black, and each of us will have different ways to break these rules to best accentuate our features, be that introducing an alternate colour next to your face or only buying fitted black garments. A colour consultation would reveal these in greater detail because they are so personal to each of us.

Personally I do love black and my colouring allows for me to wear it next to my face, however some years back found myself with little else in my wardrobe so I enforced a 'ban on black' for a year. It was a fantastic challenge, tough to start with but I don't regret it and now my wardrobe is so much richer. Worth a try perhaps?

Author: Danièle Hromek

Tags: color analysis, color consultation, colour analysis, colour consultation, fashion styling, fashion stylist, psychology of colour, psychology of color, wearing the colour black