By FM Team

Mr. Pink:
Why can’t we pick out our own color?

Joe:
I tried once, it don’t work.
You get four guys fighting over who’s gonna be Mr. Black
(Reservoir Dogs)

Black History: The color worn by clerics and mourners, black’s journey to hip fashionability is an intriguing one. As John Harvey points out in his book Men In Black, it was in the nineteenth  century that men of wealth and power began to dress as if going to a funeral. This was partly to distinguish themselves from women, who wore more vibrant colors. But black also was a reaction against the colorful foppishness of dying monarchies and thus symbolic of the bourgeois democracy. In the twentieth century, black eventually took on sinister connotations.

In postwar America, with the advent of the “beats”, black has been a badge of rebellion in the form of black leather and turtlenecks. In a sense, the modern black suit for men, like the “little black dress” for women, has come to represent a fashion statement by subtraction, a compass point of minimalistic chic that ensures safe passage through the shoals of style. Solid though cool.

By Hochswender, Woody (1998) Men’s Wardrobe, Chic Simple – p. 45

The colors of fashion are personally evocative, and the subtly and skill which a man uses them have a great effect on his everyday image.

In recent years, the word “suit” has come to denote not just a tailored enseble but the boring, predictable company man within it, his personality as dour and regimented as his uniform. But business dressing does not have to be a dull monochromatic exercise. Even a plain gray or blue bussiness suit can be enlivened with well-matched, colorful accesories.

What colors are best for you? While there are a few ironclad rules, certain color guidelines make good sense. Redheads, for example, should avoid brilliant colors, especially red, in favor of browns, medium grays, and greens. Fair people should avoid lighter shades of grey and yellow. Dark-haired men look good in lbue but should probably avoid dark brown suits. Men with gray or white hair look best in dark blue and should be leery of pale tones, which tend to render them inconspicuous.

The next question is: How does one mix colors effectively? Two principles serve as guidelines in matching suits, shirts, and accesories: color harmony and color contrast. Color harmony involves combining different shades of the same color: navy suit, light blue shirt, dark blue-figured tie, and black shoes. The hamonizing impulse is very strong, and most men dress in this manner. Choosing hues that contrast can also make for effective combination. With a blue suit, a red-and-white striped shirt, a maroon and gold tie, and brown shoes are reasonable options. The choices are limitless, but a dregree of sophistication is required. In general, choose shirt colors that are lighter thatn the suit. Close matching of shirt color to suit evokes a Cosa Nostra underling and should be reserved for off hours.

By Hochswender, Woody (1998) Men’s Wardrobe, Chic Simple – p. 68