Skip to main content

The Power of Color in your Life and in your Wardrobe

 Imagine living in a world of black and white.  Back when I was a little girl, some of my favorite shows to watch on television were the old black-and-white shows.  I was a "Bewitched"  and "I Dream of Jeannie" girl.  I loved all of those old shows on Nickelodeon.  "Dennis the Menace", "Mr. Ed", "The Donna Reed Show", "The Patty Duke Show".  Maybe it was how different the times were from when I was a kid, but those were some of my absolute favorites to watch.  All of these shows started being filmed in black and white because that was what was available.  When several of those shows ran long enough that they were able to be filmed in color, I was so excited!  You could really start to see the personality of the characters come out because you could see how they decorated their house, and what colors they chose to wear.  It really enhanced their personality.

The same is true today.  Color gives us an insight into so many things, whether we realize it or not.  

Color is a power that directly influences the soul.

The above quote by Wassily Kandinsky speaks about the impact of color so well.  There have been many psychological studies about color and how it subconsciously impacts us when we wear it.  However, it also impacts the people around us.  As we think about color's impact, have you ever walked into an office or an appointment and felt instantly unsettled or irritated, or even on the flip side, calm and relaxed?  How much attention do you pay to the colors of those places' walls and how they are painted or decorated? There is a high likelihood that you are being impacted emotionally by the chosen colors.

Let's chat a little bit about the colors and what they communicate.  Before we do this, however, I would love for you to think about your favorite color.  If you aren't sure, close your eyes, take a deep breath, and really feel your favorite color before you read on.



Now that you have your favorite color inside of your mind, let's dig into color and its positive and negative psychological impacts.

Red

  • Positive:  Power, Passion, Courage
  • Negative:  Anger or Aggression
Pink
  • Positive:  Soothing, Caring, Empathy
  • Negative:  Needy or Helpless
Yellow
  • Positive:  Confidence, Optimism, Happiness
  • Negative:  Anxiety or Irritability
Orange
  • Positive: Energetic, Fun, Playfulness
  • Negative: Frivolous or Unrefined
Brown
  • Positive:  Supportive, Dependable, Grounded
  • Negative:  Boring or Lacking Humor
Blue
  • Positive:  Calm, Serenity, Logical
  • Negative:  Cold or Uncaring
Green
  • Positive: Restful, Balance, Harmony
  • Negative:  Boredom or Stagnation
Purple
  • Positive:  Spiritual Awareness, Contemplation, Powerful
  • Negative:  Losing Touch with Reality or Too Introspective
Gray
  • Positive: Quiets the Noise, Allows other colors to shine
  • Negative:  Draining
White
  • Positive:  Peace, Simplicity, Clarity
  • Negative:  Uncaring or Isolating
Black
  • Positive:  Authority, Sophistication, Elegance, Protection
  • Negative:  Unapproachable or Overly Serious

An interesting aspect as you look at the positive and negative sides of color is that in many cases, the positives and negatives are the other side of the same coin.  So, what does that mean?  If you go TOO far with an individual color, it can have more of a negative impact than a positive.  That's why we love a POP of color.

Now that you know the impact of color, are there any colors you would like to add to your wardrobe?  Has it made you rethink what color you may want to wear if you have a really important meeting or presentation?  Or how about if you are nervous about getting together with someone; might you want to choose the colors you wear strategically?

I can tell you that for me, sometimes I subconsciously choose a color to wear and after I have done so I realize, "Hey!  I chose that color to bring a certain vibe."  Many times when giving a presentation where I need to feel energized and want to bring energy to the audience, I find myself in orange.  If I meet certain friends that may need a bit of happiness or we just plan to have a fun time, I wear yellow.  Consciously, however, I always know my Power Color is red.  If I need to feel confident, I will always don that color!

I would love for you to email me and let me know what YOUR favorite color is. I would also love to hear if you plan to add any new colors to your wardrobe crayon box to evoke certain feelings within yourself or others.  Email me at michelle@michelleglassstyling.com !

Stylishly Yours,





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Why Style is Important: The High Cost of Not Caring

 Close your eyes. Transport yourself to a moment in time when you felt absolutely beautiful. Maybe it was yesterday. Maybe it was when you were heading to an special event. Maybe it was when you were going on your first date. Maybe it was your wedding day. When you close your eyes, think about these things: How did you look? How did you feel? What were you wearing? What was the fabric like? How did the clothes fit your body? What did your hair look like? What did your makeup look like? Were you smiling at yourself in the mirror? How long did it take you to get ready that day? Did you take pictures of yourself? What thoughts did you have when you saw yourself in the mirror? When you open your eyes, I want you to think about the last time you felt that amazing? That powerful? That beautiful?  When's the last time you cared like that? When's the last time you allowed yourself to take that long to get ready? As I shared in last week's blog ( https://stylesynchrony.blogspot.com/...
Post a Comment
Read more

How to look stylish in your 40s (and beyond)

You're here! Congratulations because that is Step 1: Caring enough to want to make a change. Here's the thing, nothing changes if nothing changes. The biggest roadblock is if you aren't fed up ENOUGH with how you are feeling about your style (and likely yourself), you will never make a change. That's not you though, my friend, because you found this blog and opened it!  Step one is complete. Let's celebrate that! via GIPHY Here's what you already know. Style in your 40s and beyond (we will call this "midlife" going forward) is...different.  👉Our bodies are changing. Things don't sit where they used to. 👉Our priorities have changed. Most of the time, we aren't out all night at the bars. 👉Our lives have a new focus, oftentimes around our family. 👉Fashion and clothing is not typically geared toward women our age. It's commonplace for women who are in midlife to feel like they are lacking style or being left-behind, but that doesn't hav...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Importance of a Conscious Closet (and what is it?!)

Many times as consumers, we look at our shopping habits when it comes to clothing in terms of how much we are spending, where we are spending our money and the comfort and wearability of our clothes.   These things are all relevant.   However, one area that is becoming increasingly important to consider for value-driven shoppers and for those who are concerned about the environment is the true impacts that our clothing purchases have on the future of Earth and the lives of humans living on it right now. Today is the first of a 2-part blog series about Fast Fashion versus Sustainable Fashion.  Whether you care about the environment or not, I heartily believe it is important for all of us to take a look at our decisions as consumers and understand these topics so we can make our decisions coming from a place of knowledge.  The decisions we make today will impact not just our own lives, but the lives of our children and grandchildren and cannot be ignored. Clothes cou...
1 comment
Read more