Colour and Confidence!
Jenny Dalton is my life-partner and a design journalist-turned-colour analyst. She explains how colour can help men as much as women become more confident and happy in their own skin. And for the record, I don’t mind admitting that although I was a little sceptical at first with the idea of shedding my favourite black and blue threads (typical mens wardrobe!), the new found confidence I’ve found from wearing bespoke colour themed clothes has been huge for me physiologically. So men out there take note - this is an easy confidence booster you simply must consider!
Russ: Why would I want to get colour analysis?
Jenny: There are various points in life when people tend to get colour analysis. They may be starting a new business - and want to know which colours suit their brand and their new identity. They might be getting married, and want to wear the most complimentary colours for their skin-tone on their big day. They might have suffered ill-health and depression and want to tap into a more positive self-image and way of looking at themselves. Or they may be newly dating, for example, and want to make sure they feel comfortable and confident stepping out in new clothes and a new role. Any time people have experienced big changes in life, or have lost confidence, is a great time for colour analysis.
How can colour impact your wellbeing?
Colour is an important psychological tool, and continues to be examined by scientists to see how it impacts our brain and mood. For example, wear a yellow sweatshirt next time you are out in public and see how much more approachable you are to others, and perhaps how much better you feel in yourself (yellow has been documented as helping boost seratonin and good hormone release - see Colour Research & Application journal, 41, 2015, by Al-Ayash, Kane, Smith and Green-Armytage). And in 2004 Russell A Hill and Robert A Barton of Durham University performed a study that showed in sports, those wearing red have a distinct and measurable competitive advantage over those wearing blue. So, wear red if you want to feel energised and stand-out - for example, if you are doing a presentation to a group. But what kind of red?
There are cool reds and warm reds, and what I found was that understanding the colours that suit you best and make you feel your best can have a very meaningful impact on how you feel about yourself. They take the emphasis off being critical about your appearance, or perhaps comparing yourself to others, because what suits me with my warm Spring skin tone will not suit someone else with a cool skin tone, and there’s a bit of a magic that happens when you see your face light up in the right colours for you, and you go ‘Ah, okay, I see. I was just wearing the wrong things. I don’t actually have those huge dark circles under my eyes all the time, I don’t look pasty and ill, just when I don’t wear my colour palette.’
Russ: How do I start wearing colour for confidence?
Jenny: If you know or suspect you’re a warm or cool skin-tone, you can start to zone in on the best colours for you to wear. If you’re warm, you’ll look great in orange-y reds, ivory and cream rather than white, and warm navy. If you’re cool, you’ll look great in soft greys, and darker navy, light pinks and blues (if you’re Summer); or deep pinks and blues if you’re Winter. The best way to start wearing more colour is to stick to your neutrals in trousers and jackets, and then put something more colourful under your face so the colour reflects onto your complexion. You could introduce colourful scarves, shirts for work, and T-shirts under bomber or field jackets. This will have the most brightening and flattering effect on your face and make you look healthy and glowing, which in turn brings confidence.
Russ: What’s the value of knowing your best colours?
Jenny: So a lot of us won’t feel happy in something we have in our wardrobe, but we won’t be able to pinpoint why exactly. Similarly we can see someone we admire wearing a certain outfit, but it won’t work for someone with our skin tone and we may buy the outfit, but never feel great in it, and never want to wear it. The result is that many of us may feel there’s something wrong with us because we don’t look great in it. So for me, it’s a way of only buying what really suits you, saving you money and disappointment, and takes away that ‘Why don’t I feel good in this?’ feeling. It also saves you so much time in the shops, because you can quickly zone in on your colours and ignore the rest. It takes me about 5 minutes to scout round a large store now, curating picks I know will work rather than going for pieces that might look great in a magazine, but aren’t right for me. If you’re going to make a large investment in clothing too - for example - a coat or suit, perhaps for a wedding or for work - something you know you will want to keep in your wardrobe for ever, you want to make sure it’s the most flattering choice for you.
However there’s also a benefit in discovering your season and what the personality of that season is. Spring, for example, is joyous, light, happy, clear colours; Winter is dramatic and powerful. This can challenge what you thought about yourself, and how you see yourself. Eventually when you come to terms with it, knowing your season becomes a comfort, and reinforces a positive self-image. The more you delve into your colour palette the more you feel kinship with that season’s identify.
Russ: What’s the result of having colour analysis?
Jenny: A potentially huge increase in self-confidence. I recently analysed someone who thought he was a cool season, and who favoured neutrals, black and grey. I thought after his analysis as a warm season he might just stick with warm neutrals and play it safe, but he has really gone for it, and now wants to wear bright blues, reds and yellows. He now owns that positive self-identity, feels much more confident, and it’s really encouraging to see. It’s lovely to be a part of bringing that to people. My heart lies with helping those who have had their own experiences of chronic illness, but so many of us struggle with our identify after significant changes in our lives, whether that’s becoming a father, or getting divorced or losing a job or starting a new career and having to come up with a brand identify that suits them and that they feel expresses who they are. At all these points in their lives, they have to re-imagine how they see themselves and how they feel about themselves. And if I can help anyone on that journey towards renewed confidence, then that’s a real privilege.
*Find out more about colour analysis with Jenny at www.jennyldalton.com/services