Guest Post: Kathleen from Simple Silly Life

Color Me Beautiful

Hi, loyal Michele readers! I'm Kathleen and I blog over at Simple Silly Life. I am so excited to be sharing a little with you about why I wear lots of color and how my style sense has evolved.

As a youngster, color was not part of my wardrobe at all. You see, I attended private school and my uniforms for 12 years were comprised of navy, maroon, gray, white and a dash of pink. Needless to say, once I started college, I was completely intimidated by color, but I knew I wanted some of it in my life.

That obsession for finding a balance of color initially led to extreme overload. There was one summer (admittedly, it was a one filled with fashion don’ts) I owned Jcrew polo shirts in nearly every shade they made.  And I had shoes to match (loafers mostly).  I wanted color so much that I overcompensated for the lack of it in my life. But it was still boring. I mostly just wore solid colors and a necklace.

When I started my ‘big girl job’ six years ago, I met a gal named Paige and she completely opened my eyes to a whole new world of looking great. She became my work fashion icon (and one of my favorite people on Earth).

She wore colors when they were in season and was the first person I ever met who wore a flower pin. Like seriously, how cute yet professional does she look?! She wore a jacket 3-4 days a week with fun patterns and long necklaces (other trends that I have tried to copy)and also taught me the importance of  wearing clothing that fits well. I quote her “you’re not a work to find a man, so don’t wear tight pants.” I still use this rule when I buy new pants. If they’re too tight, I leave them in the store. I think seeing others and admiring their boldness is the first step to trying out a new look. Without Paige, I know I would still be in a blue polo and black pants every day.

Since I began participating in What I Wore Wednesday over at The Pleated Poppy’s blog, I’ve learned to balance color and appreciate it more. I’ve also branched out of my color comfort zone by wearing colors that were once terrifying or that I was told I couldn’t wear (how I spent 28 years of my life without yellow items is a mystery). What really inspired me most was seeing how fellow bloggers wore shades of mustard, pomegranate and orange and did it with confidence. This challenged me to move away from just wearing tons of color to combining it with neutrals (think bright green with navy or mustard with khaki and brown). Now I wear color because it makes me happy, calms me down, or energies me. It’s less frightening and more invigorating. And I love it.

But wearing bold colors and patterns can be scary. My advice? Just focus on one color you've never imagined wearing. Maybe someone said you're too pale for that shade of yellow or you don't know that color to match purple with. Just try one accessory or a simple tee that is out of your comfort zone and pair it with items you already own and love (a great pair of jeans and a khaki jacket) and see the magic that comes from dipping your toes in a new shade of something. If you hate it, try another color. Eventually you'll find colors you love and are comfortable in. And then you can move onto bolder combos and patterns. 

Thanks to the support of my new blog friends (and as we know, Michele is right when she says blog friends are real friends), I’ve continued to go outside the box of simple solids and try new looks filled with paisleys and stripes. In the past year I’ve managed to try every shade of the rainbow. It’s been a colorful, wonderful, fashionable year.

And thanks to Michele for allowing me to guest post. It was my first ever and it was a true honor!!