Copyright (c) 2008 Wes Fernley

"What color dress shirt should I wear?" is a commonly asked question. There are many different things that go into choosing the proper color for a dress shirt. While for conservative dressers, colors such as light blue or white shirts are generally safe, if you are looking for a bit more fashion in your dress shirt there are many colors and considerations to look at.

Your Natural Coloring

When selecting a color of dress shirt, you should look for a color which properly matches your own complexion and natural coloring. In the world of fashion people's colorings are often described by seasons. For example, if you have warm and clear coloring you would be described as a "Spring," while if you are more warm and muted in coloring you would be described as an "Autumn." Cool and muted is "Summer" while cool and clear is "Winter."

If you have warm coloring, then your skin will generally have yellow undertones. For cooler coloring, you will have bluer undertones. These undertones are usually very subtle and can be difficult to spot. Golden or sallow skin is a sign of warmth, while red cheeks and ruddiness are a sign of coolness.

One good test to discover your coloring is to find pieces of gold and silver metallic fabrics of paper. Take the piece of gold metallic fabric and place it next to your face. Then put it down and try the silver metallic fabric. Putting these fabrics next to your skin will help the blue or yellow undertones to pop out more visibly to help you know your coloring.

Picking a Color That Suits You

Once you know your natural coloring, you are able to pick out a dress shirt that is right for you. Each seasonal palette has its own array of colors. Springs will want to wear warmer and clearer colors. Examples would include salmon and lime. Winters, on the other hand, will want colors which are clear but cool, such as navy blue, black or white. For an Autumn, you will want cooler, muted colors. Examples would include olive green or terracotta. For Summers you will want cool, muted colors like burgundy or pastel colors.

It is also possible to mix and match between palettes, based on your color. For example, you might be a warm and clear Spring, but lean more towards the clear side. Since Winter is also clear, you will also be able to wear many clear Winter colors even though they are outside of the Spring palette. Same goes if you are a cooler Summer, you can go for the cooler colors of the Winter palette while still matching your own complexion.

Quick Tips

If all of this seems a bit much for you, there are some basic guidelines you can use to help you in picking a color of shirt, based solely on your complexion with no discussion of coloring.

If you have fair skin, then gray will probably look good on you. If you have more of a beige complexion, blue will most likely be a good choice. For a more golden color of skin, you might want to give green a try. If you have deep skin complexion, red or pink might be more up your alley.


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