In preparation for asking what you like to combine with red, I’m curious — why wear red in the first place? No matter how hard I try to eliminate it, there’s always a need for some kind of red in my wardrobe.
Some possible reasons for choosing to wear red. Do any of these sound like you?
- Red is bright and fun!
- Red packs a punch with my sophisticated neutrals.
- I prefer the more subtle shades and tints of red, such as burgundy or pink.
- Traditional in many settings, red is logical choice for patriotic holidays, Christmas, and so on.
- Red clothing enhances the red lipstick I love to wear.
- Red is intense.
Personally, I identify with 2, 3, & 4. (I look dreadful in red lipstick!) How about you, why do you wear red?
1,2, and 6 for me.
i could care less about lipstick, or holidays. red is an amazing color, and i like it as intense and as saturated as possible.
1, 2, and 6
Partly 3. I wear lots of pinks and burgundies, but a lot of the pink is fuchsia, and I also like red. Ruby red is my favorite shade of red red.
Number 2 for me. I can’t wear too much of it because I have red hair, and it clashes horribly, but I love red shoes and accessories – they just give a little bit of a lift to more neautral colours.
I wear red mostly because my hubby says I look good in red. So that is good enough for me!
burgundy/wine color is one of my favorite colors too so that is a plus.
I love red because I have dark coloring (Asian-black hair & skin on the dark side of olive) so intense colors are better fro me. 1 & 6 all the way!
Even for pink, I prefer fuschia so I think my coloring & personality are the main influences.
It must be an Asian thing too because the traditional wedding dress in China is red!
2, 5, and 6 mostly.
I wear a darker red and have very little in true red. Though once I was at a conference with a then boyfriend and had been wearing mostly whites except for the last day when I showed up at breakfast – walking over from another hotel – in a red princess style coat. An older gentleman looked up and commented, “NOW, that’s the color you should wear.” I would still wear that coat if it hadn’t disintegrated from wear. 🙂
I used to wear dark red accessories with a dun colored dress. Have none of those items now.
Tomorrow I plan to wear my one true red item, a dress. It’s very demure, just happens to be red. Over it I’m wearing a gauzy knit long 3/4 sleeve sweater with vertical patches of red, mauve, pale apricot and a red band at bottom. Thin ripply golden camel scarf and olive clutch bag.
I’m not a red lipstick gal either, although I do tend to wear the brighter reds. I have a red tweed winter weight blazer I love — I wear it as a jacket in early fall and a blazer in the colder months. I have a couple of different colour red t-shirts I like to pair with contrasting camis underneath. But I adore red accessories to punch up outfits. I have a hankering right now for a red patent handbag!
2 4 5 and 6
I can’t imagine a wardrobe without red, though it’s hard to find a “good” red…it can look tacky very easily. I have red hair too, but my favourites are red shoes, lipstick and dresses. And I always have a red coat for at least one season. Funny though, I never wear burgundy and rarely pink.
It’s probably the one colour I can never be without in my wardrobe.
3,4, 6 and maybe 5. Although I consider burgundy to be in the red family, I don’t really think of pink as a red. Strange, no?
You just have to find a good red lipstick. And sometimes, they don’t look “screaming bright red” in the tube, either.
I’m in the minority … I don’t wear red, but do wear pinks of many shades. I even wear orange sometimes. I don’t ever do red lipstick either.
2 and 6 for me. I love red accessories, and I think I’ve been inspired to replace my old, moth-eaten, lint-collecting, black winter coat with a red one. I’m finding red to be almost another neutral, only with pop.
I’m #3. I don’t own much red-red, crayon red, plain old, whatever you want to call it red. Because most of my clothes are not printed, I find I don’t really like red alone. (That said, I just bought 5 yards of the sweetest red polka dotted fabric for a dress…) BUT! My closet is full of burgandy. My staple lipstick is a shade of burgandy too. I picked it because it’s the same color my lip get when they are chapped. Although I hate chapped lips, the color is perfect and it looks great. Works for me. ; )
3, 4,and 6 for me. Also, warm colors complement my skin and hair color well, and warm colors always have some red in them. Now, I just wish I could make 2 work–I find it hard to pair reds with neutrals other than tan, but your blog is helping!
Janel … I pick lip color based on my chapped lip color too!
Christie, brilliant minds think alike! ; )
Simple. B/c it looks really good on me. 🙂
Amber,
I love red on redheads!!! Maybe you haven’t found the right red, yet. It took me a while, but I found that burgundy is definitely my red. It may work well for you. I’m pale with some freckles, and usually dye my hair reddish (though it hasn’t been a strong red since high school).