How to build an outfit around a single colour

Almost every outfit that looks accidentally good follows the same structure: a base of neutrals, and one colour with a job to do. Almost every outfit that looks slightly off has two colours competing for the same job.

This is not taste, it is arithmetic, which is why we could put it in code. Dripswipe scores an outfit as a whole and penalises the second saturated colour. The same rule this guide describes.

Two neutrals, from the same temperature family. Cool: navy, grey, charcoal, white, black. Warm: cream, camel, brown, olive, stone. The base is the majority of the outfit, usually the bottom half and the outer layer.

A base built from one temperature is what makes cheap pieces look expensive together. Mixed temperatures are not wrong, but they need a reason.

The accent goes on the thing you want looked at. Near the face (a scarf, a knit, earrings) for a conversation. Lower down (shoes, a bag) when you want the outfit read as a whole instead.

Size matters more than intensity here. A large area of a soft colour reads as loud as a small area of a bright one, so a full rust-coloured coat is already your accent; do not add a red bag to it.

Two shortcuts that hold up. First, hold the piece next to your face in daylight: if your skin looks tired next to it, it is the wrong shade of the right colour. Go warmer or cooler rather than abandoning the colour.

Second, pick colours you already own something in. An accent that matches nothing else in your wardrobe becomes an outfit you can only wear one way.