Today we are going to play with color!
Like we did when we were kids, and we had a brand new box of crayons or
colored markers.
Color is amazing.
Don’t you love all the different colors of bulbs we put on our Christmas tree?
And the lights we string up outside?
The candles we light for our Jewish, Muslim, Hindu or other religious days?
The balloons we put up to celebrate our Birthday?
Oh, and let’s not forget our finger paints, in all their glory!
If you do any art or photography, you are always playing with color.
You see the vital role of color in every one of your creations.
If you have ever painted your room or seen your house painted a new color,
you know what a wonderful transformation a color change can bring about!
But how about the colors YOU wear?
How can wearing your best colors contribute to the building of YOU,
and actually make you stronger?
I believe when we start to wear our best colors we
Improve our mood
Increase our confidence
Make ourselves more attractive
What’s there not to like???
Let’s DO this!
What is my relationship with color?
What colors do you love?
If you were buying a new car and you didn’t care what anybody else thought,
what color would it be?
If you could buy a new bedspread for your bed in any color what would it be?
If you could buy an expensive top quality dress, what color would it be?
What color would you choose as the decoration of your stationery?
Did you ever have a swim suit you loved so much you could have cried when
it wore out? What color was it?
What color crayon did you always use up first?
What was your favorite color popsicle?
You have been loving colors all your life.
What colors do I wear now?
Let’s go take a look.
What do you see, in your closet and drawers?
Many colors?
Only a few?
I am betting only a few, and one of them is black.
Why do I bet that?
Because black is considered highly fashionable, and if we are carrying a few
pounds we figure it makes us look thinner.
But I think you will agree that black is a rather serious color.
Would you be willing to try some colors with a little more fun and vitality in
them?
I also bet you see a fair bit of white in the clothes you own.
But white is, shall we say, lacking a bit in imagination.
Would you be willing to try some colors that are a little more creative?
OK, now can you find anything you own that is in your favorite color?
If yes, that’s great! If not, let’s see what we can do.
So how can I find out what are my best colors?
There are many free quizzes online that are fun and can assist you.
They often begin by determining whether your coloring is warm or cool.
The easiest way to figure this out is to look at which looks better on you:
silver jewelry or gold. If silver, your coloring is cool. If gold, it is warm.
Then they determine which season you are. If cool, your colors are in either
the winter or summer palette. If warm, your colors are either in the spring or
autumn palette.
To learn the most about color, I can recommend an excellent book:
Color Me Beautiful’s Looking Your Best (Spillane/Sherlock).
It will give you step by step instructions on finding your best colors.
If you get really interested, you could decide to pay to see a color consultant.
That’s what I did. Saw a Color Me Beautiful consultant. She draped large
pieces of colored cloth up under my face, one at a time, to determine exactly
which shades of each color bring out the best in my appearance.
Some colors are dynamite! Wore one to my son’s wedding. One of his
friends looks over at me standing with one the bridesmaids. Exclaims to my
son “LOOK at those babes!!!” Son: “That’s not a babe, that’s my mother!”
I was told I am a Soft Autumn, and received a wallet-size packet containing
dozens of tiny swatches of cloth. All my best shades of each color.
They rock! Make me look and feel my best. Makes clothes shopping easy.
Then I used Color Me Beautiful’s Looking Your Best to analyze my man’s
colors. Ordered his swatches online. Now HIS clothes shopping is super easy.
He rocks his shirts and outfits every day. He loves his clothes now.
So, once you figure out your season, you can order your swatches.
Then you just keep your little pack handy in your purse!
How can I start searching for my best colors today?
If you are up for a little action and have about ten bucks available in case
something clicks, drive over to Walmart or any store that sells lots of tank
tops, t shirts and camisoles.
You can do this on your own, or bring along someone who dresses well and
isn’t critical of you. Whichever way would be more comfortable for you.
Go in the store and find the shelves or tables of tank tops in your size.
And the nearest dressing room.
Bring one of each color, including black and white, in a nice big neat pile,
into the dressing room.
Don’t unfold them. You’re not putting them on ( unless one clicks 🙂 )
These are your color swatches!
Should I prepare to laugh?
Yes. No matter who you are, MOST of these colors will be a joke!
Most will NOT look good up against your face.
What I want you to really NOTICE, however, is how particular shades of
color actually make you look WORSE!!!
I want you to realize the full NEGATIVE impact of wearing wrong colors.
I want you to conclude that COLOR REALLY MATTERS.
It is important, and worth spending some time and even some money on.
So–go ahead–find the WORST shades of color for you!
Some will make you laugh. Others may make you feel a bit ill. 🙂
Have some fun with this!
RANK them as to which are the very worst!
Make a glorious REJECT pile!!!
Remember, you are not rejecting YOU, nor your appearance.
You also are not rejecting an entire color.
You are only rejecting THESE PARTICULAR SHADES of that color
because they are not for you.
The black and the white
I want you to take a little extra time with the black and white tank tops.
You may be wearing these two colors all the time these days.
Alas, I am sorry to tell you this, but they may not look all that good on you.
In fact, I am sorry to say, they may actually look…um…terrible.
Don’t believe me?
Hold each one up to your face and ask yourself:
Does it make me look pale as a ghost?
Dangerous? Half dead? Could I maybe wear it on Halloween?
Hmmm, you think. This is not fair! Black and white are in fashion!
Don’t worry. It’s not you.
The truth is that very few people are flattered by either color.
(Charcoal may look far better on you than black.
And cream may work way more magic than white. Just sayin’ . )
So let’s keep searching for a color that ROCKS!
Now that we have seen how some colors can RUIN you, the time has come
to find one that BUILDS you.
One that makes you more attractive and more confident.
THIS one, when you put it up next to your face, makes your eyes light up!
Makes your skin look healthy.
Works with your hair color.
Makes you look like YOU, only better.
If none of these tank tops is in a color that rocks for you, put them back.
(If you DO find one you love, that’s what the ten dollars you brought is for 🙂 )
Either way, let’s head over to the blouse or sweater department!
Let’s just start holding up blouses or sweaters to your face at the nearest
mirror.
We are going to keep searching till you find one in a color that lights you up!
Yes, you may have to search quite a while.
Yes, we may not find the color you own today.
But have faith.
I promise you there is at least ONE color in this world that is absolutely you.
How will I know when I find the color I OWN?
I am a dancer. I dance free style every summer in the standing area of a large
outdoor concert hall. Since 2004, I have had a modest following. In 2014
they used my photo in promoting the venue in the county travel guide.
Red is my favorite color. I am a show off and I love to show off wearing red.
For years I wore my favorite red heels for my free style performances.
When they wore out I bought a pair in the same style only cream colored.
One day one of my friends who is part of my audience saw me on the street
wearing them. She looked down in dismay, and said mournfully:
“O, but I always loved to watch you dance in your red ones!”
That is how you know you OWN a color. It is part of you.
It expresses your vitality, your nature, your personality.
You will move differently when you wear it.
It brings out the best in you, and people will even come to know you by it.
A little help from your friends
Even if you don’t recognize your true color even when it is staring you in the
face, some kind soul will tell you.
Someone will say “WOW! You look amazing in that color!”
Even if you judge yourself unattractive, overweight, and ridiculous in it.
Color has transformative power!
Your friends will see it.
Finding your very own color–the one you own–will feel like a homecoming,
once you allow yourself to enjoy it.
So start finding your way home!
Start noticing different shades of color.
How each one makes you feel, how each one makes you look.
Take lots of selfies. Even show off a little. 🙂
Give your usual colors a rest, and start playing with new ones.
Keep testing…keep trying…keep wearing different colors…
Be like a bird who wants only the very finest colors for her plumage…
Then listen for the WOW
…whether from you, or from someone else…
and believe it!
QUESTIONS:
What colors might give you joy to try wearing? What holds you back?
What color did you find that looks so good on you that if you start to wear it,
you could indeed imagine someone saying: “You OWN that color!”
Write and tell me!
Dr. Hall