tattler magazine

Red happens to be one of my favourite colours. It adds a dash of fieriness to an otherwise understated outfit; a pop of colour that directs the eye; a burst of passion that turns heads. If you’ve always stuck to safe hues, why not try mixing this colour in with your wardrobe? This month is the best time to start – how often can you make a fashion statement imbued with the added noble cause of being patriotic? (Um, actually, pretty often if you think about it. But anyway…)

Read on more for tips on wearing red and top picks from the web!

Some tips for wearing red:

• Wearing strong/bright colours requires energy. If you’re already feeling washed out or fatigued, you may fade further into a strong hue like red and appear even more exhausted. So, it’s preferable to wear such colours on a day you’re feeling bright and happy. Don’t let the colour wear you!

• Red for certain accessories/pieces of clothing is best avoided. Red leggings, for example, are hard to carry off – with our short Asian stature, we mostly run the risk of resembling Santa’s little helpers. Leave this risky enterprise to leggy ang mohs, Blair Waldorf and the elves themselves.

• If your basic outfits comprise mostly black and white pieces, then red is really a great colour for your accessories. A nice strong fire engine red can add an interesting dynamic to your look while complementing the season’s gold embellishments nicely. A little red accent can go a long way!

• Our Asian skin tone falls under the ‘Winter’ category so red will generally look good on us:

Winters should wear colors that are sharp, stark and clear. White, black, navy blue, red and shocking pink all go well with winter complexions. For lighter colors, wear icy tones rather than pastels*. Avoid subdued tones like beige, orange and gold. - from here

*This, incidentally, reminds me of my Secondary 4 prom where the dress code was pastel, for god’s sake. We practically blended into the orangey beige of the dining hall’s walls.

Some baby steps for infusing red into your wardrobe:

And my favourite pick of the lot – this will look absolutely adorable with a simple jeans-shorts-and-tee outfit: