Following on from yesterday’s post on finding your colour personality preferences, today we’re going to look at the first category – the neutrals.
What are the Classic Personality Style Colours?
Those of you who tend to choose traditional neutral colours such as black and white, grey and navy, shying away from most colours of the rainbow can be described as liking the colours of the classic style.
The Classic neutrals fit most easily into coolundertone colour directions, but a variation of them can be found in all colour palettes.
Classic Personality Style
- Classic clothing is traditionally neutral in colour.
- Wearers tend to prefer to be more understated and not draw too much attention to themselves. Bright colours make them feel uncomfortable.
- They like the simpleness and class of neutrals. No spending lots of time worrying about if colours go together or not.
- Classic clothing tends toward the structured, crisp and smooth, low-textured, but this aspect of the clothing style may not appeal if your Classic personality style is also blended with the Feminine, Relaxed, Dramatic or Creative personality dressing styles.
- This style of clothing comes from professional men’s business wear, this is why it doesn’t vary as much year to year (but it still does date).
- Classic jewellery is traditional in its materials and construction, this also may not appeal.
- It’s the most formal of dressing styles and is appropriate for the office as it says that you are professional, organised, responsible and mature.
Wearing Classic black and white – the dress is also a Classic style garment and pattern, the vest is not!
You may just incorporate the low-keyed nature of neutrals with another clothing personality style. You may also like to wear a high-value contrast which is typical of the professional element of the Classic personality dressing style. Some prefer to wear the same shade of neutral head to toe, whilst others like to mix up their neutrals with a pop of a traditional colour such as soft light blue, red or burgundy. Just remember, if you have a warm complexion to look for warmer neutrals, from browns and warm greys to deep olive and marine navy. If you have a cool complexion try greys, navy, rose beige, white, charcoal, deep rose brown and black.
There are many neutral options and you can still wear a variety of shades, whilst sticking to a mostly neutral palette.
If You’re Classic You May Describe Yourself as …
- Organised
- Professional
- Mature
- Responsible
- Sensible
- Conservative
- Reliable
- Trustworthy
But even if you don’t identify with all these words, you may find one rings true for you. If you were all of them then you’d be attracted to the Classic style as a whole, but if you only find a word or two related to you, then this may be why only the colour palette attracts you and you find other style elements from different personality styles.
Dive Deep into the Influence of Personality on Style
Personality influences every choice we make in choosing clothes, from fabrics and prints to shape and style. If you’d like to gain an in-depth understanding of how your personality influences your style (and why you gravitate towards some clothes and accessories and shun others) you can get this in my 7 Steps to Style program, as Step 1 Personality delves deeply into this topic and will give you a comprehensive understanding of your own choices.
More Tips on Classic Dressing
How to Be Contemporary and Casual in Classic Clothing Styles
How to Interpret and Choose Prints and Patterns For Your Personality
Imogen: You are right, I do like the neutral classic and then the pastels in 5. I just didn´t realize, that I can choose from more than one palette.
Aaaahhhhh. I tend a little towards the blue from this, but still, just makes me want to say OM…It's not that my personality is like this, though, it's that my personality is so high wire my clothing needs to compensate. For my own mental health, if you will.
That is so true of me as well. Added to that, I am those things where my personality is concerned, however, being in the legal field all of my life. I am a total cut loose cut up when around my close friends and family. Same clothes with a splash of red!
I am definitely a non-classic neutral lover and, perhaps like Metscan, I love the pale colours of lilac, soft sage, and dusky rose. (I LOVE everything Anne Taylor offers.) I like to make my look interesting by varying texture rather than colour and wearing really different jewellery pieces that are neutral or pastel in tone. The personality traits though are not at all mine. Organized???? Who are you kidding, lol! Great post as usual. BTW, you are warmly invited to add your input to my post today on disguising the strange lumps and bumps that accompany middle age. I know you'll have great ideas outside of my own.
I definitely am drawn to neutrals!
I just returned a green sweater. I loved the cut, but when I put it on it just didn't feel right. I have an olive jacket I really love (bought it with you, Imogen, when you came to LA!) but the sweater was more of a Hunter green. Maybe the color was too cool for me? Thankfully I've finally learned not to keep things I don't love.
How would you classify these colors?
http://www.shoptomlinsons.com/images/william-and-mary-color-chart-2.png
Thanks!
Metscan – of course you can be more than one thing!
LPC – I bet there is some of you there – just not all!
Rosina – your neutrals may come from style 2 rather than 1.
Tara – the colour green may not have been the right one (or they style may not sit right too).
Anony – those colours look to be Style 2 colours
I definitely need my eyes to be lasered. Yes! I am from group two. All the lovely soft hues of nature and natural lines. No grotty plaids and frills any more.
Thanks! So I am 1 and 2 … Yippee.
– Tall & slim anon (who asked about colors at a link in a previous comment)
Hmm. Now I like all of this, but reading the description I'd need a bit more interest via texture or structure, although a lot of personality traits fit … This is a great series of posts, Imogen – thanks!
This is me, except for the personality traits. Is there a 'quirky classic'? When I read the following post (natural) had a physical reaction (queasy). And I find if I buy brights, I tire of those pieces so quickly.
OMG this is so me. I've had my colors done and sometimes get inspired to buy items in those colors, but they are rarely worn. I default to my blacks, browns, grays and navys. I knew there was more to it than what color looks good with one's eyes, skin and hair, but hadn't thought my way around it enough to discern that all those colors don't go with my personality. Thanks for thsi!
I don’t buy into this totally as yes although I do have a mainly Classic clothing Personality, I also have some Romantic probably translated to feminine/womanly in it as well. The styles suggested are right but the colours are a million miles away. I am not a huge fan of neutrals and wouldn’t be seen dead in black in fact I don’t have a single piece of black clothing in my wardrobe and very little navy or grey. I wear my Blue Spring colours in a Classic way, I love red, bright green, cobalt blue, turquoise and purple
Everyone is a combiantion of styles – and some of us like to use more than lot of colours in any outfit. Just becuase you like classic styles doesn’t mean you want to wear classic colours.