Since having a blond daughter, I have become interested (obsessed) with the way colours work on blonds versus brunettes. I have had to learn a different style of shopping for her, as colours that suit me don’t always suit her (mind you, I think she is stunningly beautiful ALL the time).

I started with a simple theory:

• I reckon when blonds wear black, white or yellow it highlights their hair colour.
• Pink and red work against blonds.
• Brunettes look better in purple, green, orange, hot pink and red (not black, white or yellow).
• Blues and browns work for both blonds and brunettes.
• Grey (though I love it) and light pink make pretty much everyone look blah.

For example, my daughter looks stunning in white shorts with anything. They just look really smart on her. Me? I can wear white pants, but they only work with a fabulous blue or green top. And that is where the second version of my theory came from…

• You still start with the simple theory: i.e. Does this colour suit my hair colour?
• But you also need to consider:
  • What colours are near my head versus on my legs?
  • What colour combinations are going on?

My idea is – if you start with colours that suit your hair colour then you can’t go wrong. If you do want to wear a less flattering colour, then you need to consider colour combinations and think more about it.

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Of course you can wear any colour. Noone cares really. I certainly don’t! This for me is just an intellectual exercise to work out why some outfits are more pleasing to the eye. In art theory we used to talk about “colour journeys” and how a piece comes to seem like a cohesive, complete work. For clothing, I think it is all about the colour – of the clothes and the person’s hair.

And yes. I think too much about trivial stuff. (Actually this is what I occupy myself with on the train ride home from work). Meditations on colour.