Have You Managed to Wear / Buy Less Black?

[Graffigne]

All my coats except one are black. My work trousers are black. My boots and work bag are black. All of these are good quality items that I love and will last for years. It suits me when I have make up or bit of tan.

But am realising that apart from black, white and grey, very little goes with black. Somehow I want to move away from buying more black but not sure how as it’s so easy to buy more black. I know which colours work on me (deep summer) but not sure we’re to start….

If anyone has managed to weave themselves off black, what was your process? Thank you.

I’ve hardly worn any black for years- I’m also a deep summer and it just doesn’t suit me. A good 3/4 of my wardrobe is navy, though, and I also wear a lot of grey and charcoal in winter, although not so much in summer. Burgundy and dark green are good deeper colours as well. I don’t wear as much purple and teal as I used to, though- I find the cooler shades work better for me.

Changing jobs!

A long time ago, after I left the smart profession requiring the fabulous black suits, I wandered around looking perfectly ridiculous for a few years - that was me in tailored black wool crepe at an Arab Strap gig, on the school run, in Tesco …

But I made new friends and discovered Zara and bought khaki cargo pants and pale blue t shirts and, crucially, a very beautiful moss green tweed Ralph Lauren jacket that really didn’t want to mix with black.

I guess … you have to commit to buying something as expensive and important as items in your black wardrobe. So you have to wear it. Which will mean buying things to go with it.

I spent most of my life in monochrome. If I saw something I liked in a shop my immediate thought was 'do they do this in black?'. What changed for me was twofold. Firstly, I retired and started to adopt the standard casual 60+ uniform - jeans, stripey tops, trainers, etc. A lot of blue started to creep into my wardrobe. I now have to try and stop myself from buying another thing in blue. I've also transitioned into a lot of khaki and olive greens which I would have run a mile from.

Over time, I've started to associate black with being at work - it was an easy uniform. And my last year or two at work were often miserable.

Secondly, I stopped colouring my hair and my natural grey, which I love, alongside my workhouse pale complexion, really suits a range of bright pastels.

I do still wear black, but it isn't very often.

Yes! Green came into fashion and was suddenly available everywhere. 😀

I'm 46. When I was a kid the women's magazines were full of how to wear less black. In the 00s everyone followed sienna Miller and went brown. Then there was an long period where people went for not-black: navy was the go to colour, or burgundy or grey. Camel is classic and always has been. Recently it's been more khaki and a wider palette of neutrals. Beige browns very popular now. Especially head to toe. It doesn't suit me.

I feel like black is finally making a resurgence for the very classy people. It works well for dark hair and not too pale people. I'm blonde and pale so am soldiering on with khaki, grey, tobacco and other neutrals but it's hard to look put together. I find a cream top can be the best anchor for mixing neutrals. I often look best in black still.

I guess what I'm saying is if you like black stick with it.

I retooled my wardrobe from mainly navy (started c.10 years ago ) to mainly khaki and matching neutrals about 2 years ago. Then again I've been wearing leopard print as a neutral since before it became ubiquitous. I am not a put together person. I'm gradually letting black creep back in.

My advice in a long winded way is to pick a matching palette of neutrals and you will have to purchase a bunch of things as a starter wardrobe and then add to it.

Oh yes and everything is green now: including walls. Personally I love green but its hard to pull off a green wool coat

I bought an olive green wool coat from Monsoon last year, with huge fluffy collar and cuffs. There's no pulling it off, it's just a huge statement. 😂 Totally OTT for the supermarket but I'm wearing it anyway.

This one:

Black suits me and I love it, so I wear a lot of it. Prefer neutrals - black, camel, stone in winter - for day to day dressing as it’s easy.

I’m fussy about colour and only really like deep jewel tones in autumn/winter, but it’s hard to find the right item with the right fit in the right colour and fabric! so I buy ‘colourful’ clothes sparingly.

Currently I do have on regular rotation:
-a dark cherry red skirt
-a burgundy coat
-burgundy gloves
-a forest green dress

Vinted is my friend for this.

Other than that, lots and lots of black!

I stopped wearing black tops or dresses about 25 years ago as it makes me look like a corpse. But most of my bottoms are black and I wear any colour I like with them (except white to avoid the waitress look). I'm all about the dopamine dressing now now.

I think black looks incredibly chic and classy but I feel it also shows a bit of a lack of imagination when people only wear monochrome.

Anyway this is the coat I've bought recently and it makes me very happy.

www.marksandspencer.com/textured-longline-tailored-coat/p/clp60704929?color=DARKAIRFORCE&extid=ps_ps-pla-pmax_ggl_ww_ch__-UK-_-_bau_smec_counterfactual&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAxea5BhBeEiwAh4t5KzPitczhWKPLwp0B1VyXuvGddiRNDTuLO9VeeKB23yndz_AOsgbtdBoCFMQQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

I wear a lot of black. But I do actually wear other colours with it. I never wear white though as it does nothing for me.

I don't own any black clothes except opaque tights. Used to back in the 90s, early 00s but since starting my career in palliative care, it's very common for staff to avoid wearing black. Also I felt the white shirt/black trousers combo was making me look like a waitress.

My work 'uniform' is basically a range of brightly coloured dresses. I have green, cream and navy coats.

Once you give up the black it's easy.

I do have a few things in black, both of which were inherited from my mother. However, I don't look particularly good in black. This, coupled with a hatred of black footwear means I haven't bought anything black in almost two decades.

As another poster has written: Once you give up the black it's easy.

It's also worth considering that as we age, navy and charcoal grey looks far better close to the face than black does. Unlike black, both colours suit everyone - you just need to work out if you need a red or yellow tone navy/a blue or yellow tone grey. I'm a winter, so it will always be a blue or red).

I’ve just been browsing MoukiMou and there are some lovely examples of black with another neutral colour. (Photos.)

(Wish I could agree about grey though. The moment I stopped colouring my hair I found I looked utterly vile in charcoal, which had always previously been an easy colour habit for me.)

That's a beautiful colour @CharlotteStreetW1 !

That's a gorgeous coat. 😀

I gave up black years ago when I had my colours done and realised that it doesn't suit me. Black is difficult because it doesn't go well with other colours (hencewhy people overdo it and go for head-to-toe black). It drains, it doesn't enhance; it often makes the other, colourful thing that you are wearing look cheap.
I'm afraid that I do get a bit snooty about people who wear too much black; it signals laziness and/or lack of imagination to me.

There are plenty of neutrals that aren't black: navy, burgundy, grey, chocolate, camel, etc.

I don’t have much black. A couple of pairs of trousers and one party top. Black can look chic, classic, classy and is easy as there’s usually a black option. Black is depressing to me and sucks life from other colours. It also drains the life from me.

I'm a bit perplexed at the statement that black doesn't go with anything. I'm struggling to think what it doesn't go with.

At this time of year you can mix burgandy, forest green or a dark camel colour with black. Then in the summer you can experiment with some khaki, tan and navy depending on your colourings.