As you may already know, neutral colors are a favorite here in Paris. Many students from my study abroad program have felt the need to ditch their bright white peacoats, pink scarves and pretty much anything with strong colors in order to blend in with the crowd. With only black, grey, brown, beige, and more black to work with, you may wonder how the French do it. A prime example: the Fashionista and Fashionisto pictured here.
They are both wearing only two colors, brown and black, but look at the variation in their outfits. It’s actually fun to see what kind of combinations people come up with when the color palette includes just a few colors. Just because they aren’t wearing red or green or purple doesn’t mean they’re limiting themselves, there’s really so much you can do it just takes a little creativity. Take a look at the Akris Pre-Fall 2011 collection, and you’ll see what I mean. The Fashionista on the left is wearing a lengthy ribbed scarf atop layers of drapes and beautiful fur that peaks out from her cuffs, her neckline, and the bottom of her coat. The Fashionisto on the right mixes plaid from his jacket with the larger plaid from his scarf. What’s important to note is that both of them added texture and played with different tones from their shoes to their hair, which makes their outfits similar but completely unique.