Coloursense

Mina Prints

Sarah — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 16:02:32 +0000

Minauk.com prints are almost alive, with much of their inspiration coming from nature. There are so many variations of colour, in florals or bird prints. Delicate yet strong feminine styles in different cuts; easy to wear over a pair of leggings. Wish there were more patterns with cooler tones, but then warm vibrants are the fashion for this Autumn ’09. This butterfly dress presents the strong mustard, saffron, teal tones of autumn time beautifully, without you feeling you’re in boring brown! Worn by Keira Knightly, Sienna Miller and other UK fashionistas.

Purple

Sarah — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 01:06:31 +0000

Purple is the colour of the season (Autumn ’09). Purple, a combination of red and blue, is a secondary colour and symbolizes superiority and prestige. Bishops wear purple, and it was the colour of attire for kings and emperors. To be going through a ‘purple patch’ is to to have things be going very well for you. Variants of purple can also be associated with higher levels of consciousness. Worn with black, purple can be more sinister and authoritative, rather than regal. Worn with white, the purple will seem lighter and inspirational, but will still dominate the look. Purple is best worn with less contrast, so with softer neutrals rather than stark white or black. Denim jeans look great with purple and also a neutral grey, taupe, or beige. The light neutrals are in fashion this season, so you will find plenty to dress it with. This over-knee boot is a hot accessory this season, from Jeffrey Campbell.

Light Performance Art

Sarah — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 14:16:46 +0000

A new street art has emerged that involves using various light sources to paint a picture on to the camera lens. They create incredible colour displays.

Liberty’s Latest Prints

Sarah — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 17:44:54 +0000

Liberty, the high-end London department store, are infamous for their prints from artists such as the Pre-Raphaelites William Morris and Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Now, a well known rocker Ronnie Wood is launching a fashion collection with Liberty. His colourful and abstract artwork is going to be featured on a line of t-shirts, dresses, and men’s shirts, starting at the price of £175.

Colour Forecast Autumn ’09

Sarah — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 22:57:45 +0000

The colours forecast for this autumn/winter season are predominately warm muted tones congruent with the ‘Autumn’ seasonal colour palette. They incorporate three warm neutrals that introduce a minimalist edge, and rich earthy primaries that provide an overall contrasting and utilitarian look.

American Beauty – 19-1759 – a deep ‘true’ red, yet best suited along autumn tones
Purple Heart – 18-3520 – a muted steel purple that stands out slightly against the other seasons colours, as it slightly colder
Honey Yellow – 16-1143 – a rich golden camel shade, a complementary counterpart to purple heart
Iron – 18-1306 – a warm dark grey, replacing black as the staple dark neutral and great paired with Nomad or Crème Brûlée
Burnt Sienna – 17-1544 – the colour of saffron, an earthy orange, adding some warmth to Iron or Majolica Blue
Nomad – 16-1212 – a warm taupe, a medium neutral, great with the other neutrals or Warm Olive
Rapture Rose – 17-1929 – a deep rosewood, pair with Majolica Blue, slighter colder than the other colours
Warm Olive – 15-0646 – a deep lime green, a vibrant contrast to the paler neutrals
Majolica Blue – 19-4125 – a dark marine navy, paired with the light neutrals looks very utilitarian
Crème Brûlée – 13-1006 – a deep warm beige, works with with the Honey and Sienna

Pantone has a detailed colour trend forecast report for this Autumn’s trends that is available to download on-line for free.

Seeing Red

Sarah — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 12:12:24 +0000

‘Seeing red’ means to become enraged, become incensed, to be angry and irritated. Red is the colour associated with the element fire, and fire ceremonies are often used as rituals to arouse feelings, to stimulate, and invigour. The colour red is also associated with blood and the exposure to red, physiologically, can raise your blood pressure. ‘Seeing red’ is also similar to the idiom ‘it made my blood boil’. Blood is associated with the humour of Sanguine, which denotes a person who is spontaneous and confident, or cocky and arrogant. People whom have red as their colour signature are vital, active, and passionate.

Pantone Necklace

Sarah — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 20:57:43 +0000

What a fun way to show off your knowledge of colour and art with this pantone necklace from the Tate Modern in London. Certain colours are associated with particular art movements, such as pop-art red, or the Futurism Grey, or minimalistic white, and this necklace references some of these associations. Pantone is the leading colour company that created in 1963 a universal colour system for design that is now used worldwide as a way for referencing colour.

How to Economize with Colour

Sarah — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 14:15:07 +0000

You may not be running out to buy your autumn wardrobe, but instead looking to economize this season. There is a simple way of achieving this, and this autumn’s colour fashion palette will give you ample opportunity. Rather than buying a hodgepodge of colours to fill up your wardrobe, instead pick a few neutrals – those staple pieces that are versatile and timeless, and add 2-3 colour choices to your wardrobe. Opt for an outfit in Nomad (deep beige) or Iron (dark grey brown) or if you have cooler skin tones – Taupe and Charcoal, and then complement with a few different colours. Building a capsule wardrobe always starts with a skirt and trouser in a neutral, setting the foundations for maximum usage from a minimum number of pieces. Consider your favourite jean, a skirt and another trouser in your neutral as your capsule pieces, then pick a jacket and some tops in different colours to swap around creating different outfits. Add a boot, a heel, and a flat, and with 10 simple new pieces, you have many different options. With neutrals, you may need to up the quality, especially for the lighter shades, but Target, Urban, Gap, etc…will fill up your wardrobe with ample colour choices to keep your investments within budget.

Taupe

Sarah — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:23:25 +0000

Taupe, also referred to as mole, is a light grey-brown, is cool in temperature, is a tint (white added), and is clear rather than muted, even though it has the grey in it. Taupe is a neutral – a base colour, and is a good alternative to steel grey or blue grey, and especially black. Although a neutral, the psychology of taupe – more earthy, practical, and casual – means that it is not as authoritative as extreme neutrals such as white or black, and complements other colours well as it creates less of a contrast. This is because the brown base deepens its luminosity making it more complementary, as it lessens the psychological impact of the darker strong colours, such as damson. The brown means that it works well with other cooler shades that have some yellow – e.g. chinese blue, damson, and cool violet, and it’s a great complement to one of this season’s favourite colours – purple. It is the equivalent to beige for warmer skin tones. Taupe is perfect for lighter accessories, as it doesn’t taint as quickly, and so is harder wearing in smooth textures such as suede, providing the same versatility as a metallic.