to those who have had their 'colours done'

[shelley72]

i was wondering how far do you take their advice - for example have you really thrown out swaythes of clothes because they werent your colours? do you always only wear make up, shoes, bags etc in your season?

i am making a start on going through my minimal wardrobe and clothes are quite easy to charity shop as i have lots in the wrong size, but shoes / bags are somewhat different. some i LOVE even though they are in a 'bad' colour for me. i cant afford to have shoes to go with every outfit and so i have tended to buy neutral colours but now i am stuck. and do shoes have to match with bags? i am so confused - advice please!

I had my colours done. I didn't throw out swathes of clothes, but just tended to buy 'my' colours in future. I did the same with bags and shoes. As for make up, I never really follow colours for that (most of my makeup is free gifts)! I don't think shoes should match with bags - it can look really frumpy if they're too matched. Some things I still have in the 'wrong' colour, but they are fine with other 'right' colours. Enjoy your new wardrobe!

shelley i feel your pain. the consultant who "did" me said what's most important is what's on your top half/near your face, so she was not overly fussed on whether i wore black jeans or whatever even if black is not one of my colours. i have taken this as carte blanche to hold on to black trousers, shoes, handbags etc and wear them as long as the overall outfit "works" iykwim.

also i would have to be surgically parted from my black viv westwood top - no way that is leaving my wardrobe! so i try to soften it with a scarf or necklace. i have a couple of lbd's too, again i try and use a shrug/cardi/scarf to soften the effect.

that said, some people say a base colour like black does not work well with the colours on some of the lighter palettes - it's too much of a contrast - so i am trying to work in more greys, blues and taupes to make the whole thing gel a bit better. still v much a work in progress though.

my greatest bugbear is matching clothing shades to my fan. nothing seems to be quite right, so i have adopted a "good enough" approach before i blow a gasket and have to do the school run nakkid!

oh and agree with cloud on matchy matchy handbags/shoes - but the overall outfit should be harmonious iykwim

As I understood it, having your colours done meant that items that you wear near flesh should match your skin tone; clothes further away are not so important. So, unless you are wearing shoes with skirts/dresses and no tights, then shoe colour is not that important.
No-one can afford to bin perfectly good clothes or shoes for a fashion rule. As minnow says, buy better in future to gradually build up your wardrobe and you will be fine.

Same as the others really - I haven't bought anything black since having my colours done (6 years ago) but do still have some black items (can't afford to just throw perfectly good clothes out). I always try to make sure I have accessories in 'my colours'. I also think that every woman no matter what season needs a smart black cardi! But that's just me. Navy just doesn't look the same! I have changed my make-up to fit my season - have only bought HoC lipsticks since being done. Shoes are difficult as 90% in the shop are black - I do have a lovely casual red pair and a smart turquoise pair for work. Sometimes I do wish I was a winter as it would be so much easier .......

I tend to still wear black trousers and skirts and I am a spring. i think it is the colour near your face that is important. You can't always get everything in your colours and matching colours can be a nightmare.

I have loads of blue stuff and have grey trousers and skirts as well. i never throw out good clothes.

shoes are mainly black. I have such difficult feet anyway.

I used mine as an exuse to get rid of a lot of clothes that I'd been hanging on to for too long. So what's left all 'goes'.

But I do find myself slightly paralysed... I went into Debenhams yesterday because of their 25% off everything deal, but left empty handed! I just couldn't decide what was the exact 'right' shade of anything. I didn't have my wallet with me, but probably would feel a bit daft whipping it out to compare shades.

I'm a deep summer, BTW, although was shocked by it.