… blacks and brights.
I’m fairly certain that Winona snapped up a pair of these cords from J.Crew MONTHS ago, and I never thought I’d follow suit. But an uncharacteristically rewarding brush with the store’s late winter sale drew me to these blaring, yellow-highlighter-colored skinnies, and I couldn’t resist their pull.
Although I rail against OD’ing on black, many of my wardrobe staples are, in fact, black. Boots, skirts, sweaters, accessories, the lot. I’ve got at least one black everything. And to avoid my wintry inclination to pair black with white and/or gray – which makes me look about as cheerful as the slush I’m slogging through in my black boots, gray tights, and black skirt – I pair my blacks with the brightest colors in my closet. Hot pinks, teals, and bright blood reds are the primary candidates, as these are some of my best colors. (For more evidence see here, here, and here.)
Fluorescents generally turn me off, but in a pant – which wouldn’t sit anywhere near my naturally yellowish complexion – I was willing to give it a shot. And I’m thrilled with the results! These cords will get FAR more use than I ever could’ve imagined when I talked myself into them a few weeks back.*
Do you pair black with brights? What are your favorite shades to partner with the darkest of darks?
*In case you’re worried, these NEW pants were bought with birthday money. Totally ban-friendly! Also sorry about my blurry head. I think our point-and-shoot might be on the verge of retirement …
{ 32 comments… read them below or add one }
The pants look great on you. Karen at “Of a Certain Age” bought the same pants last fall. I bet you got a better price! She did a series of posts in Nov. and Dec. on the outfits she put together with her “citron pants.” Here is the first of them:
http://karen-ofacertainage.blogspot.com/2008/11/bright-citron-pants-yes-we-can.html
Nice color! It great to have vibrate colors pieces that you can mix and match and add some “pop” to and outfit where you need it. I have a tenacity to lean toward dark color as well in any season. So I do have to make a conscious effort to inject more color into my wardrobe, am working on that too! Good start!
Very cute. I love the injection of the bright yellow. I usually tend toward turquoise blue. But, I have a pair of bright pink stiletto sandals I like to pair with the darks in the summer.
wow- I want your bravery!!! I am loving the yellows!cute!
I do love the look of pairing blacks with brights. However, I don’t really consider myself to be much of a bright colors person. In general, I like to have my color more subdued.
When I think black and yellow, ‘bumblebee’ normally immediately springs to mind. You so squashed that! X
Lovely contrast
.
i like extreme contrast of black and white or cream. Or, black with bright colors such as red, orange or yellow.
Cute pants – I had my eye on some in emerald green, but never actually bought. I like pairing fuschia with black, myself.
Hi there-what a gorgeous colour, they really are a great all year rounder!! They will also be nice with a white tee in summer!
I have a bright daffodil yellow (bordering on neon) slim knit top that I absolutely LOVE. I never would have imagined that the colour would suit me (given my olivey undertones that meld into pallor) but it makes me seem very healthy. And chic! You look great in these…
Oooohhhh, you are rocking this look. These pants look great on you!
Hi there-You’re so fabulous, please accept the award over on my blog!!
totally cheery, I love the cords. I’ve got the same problem with yellows – totally bad w/my skintone!
You look great! Those cords are surprisingly versatile given their bright colour.
Hmm lately I’ve been pairing black with hot pinks and bright blues.
I have a bright hot pink that I wear with black. I always feel wrong doing it but I still do.
Oh my god, Sal, you’re wearing my pants! This is so exciting! You look incredible, and I demand we meet up in one of our cities or in the middle (what would that be? Eastern Wyoming?) wearing matching outfits to celebrate our yellow J.Crew sale rack purchases!
I always wear black with brights. I love the yellow!
Those pants are great! I’ve never really done the neon with black before… but JUST did for the first time on Thursday.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/futurelint/3218020962/
I love black with brights as well. I actually have an issue of buying way too many things in colour and then having problems trying to wear them together. So my fairly small collection of black clothing gets a whole lot of wear!
Oh I love this, Sal! The yellow is so daring and you pull it off beautifully. I’m actually planning on wearing magenta or neon yellow platforms with cropped kakhis this spring. It sounds weird, but I think it will look awesome!
Go Steelers!
You look fab.
A bright acid yellow has turned out to be my favorite color in clothing and accessories. I’ve got a bigass handbag, long cashmere gloves, and at least 4 tops in that color, with some leaning toward the chartreuse.
A friend who went to the inauguration reported to me that Michelle O’s dress and coat were actually chartreuse in person, but looked yellow in all the photos.
Yay for yellow, chartreuse and Michelle Obama!
You look awesome in brights! You are maybe the only person in the universe who looks awesome in fluorescent green, too… I love to pair black with cotton candy-style pastels. And PS— thanks so much for your package!!!! I love it all— especially your black and white theme! Very Capricornian indeed. Thanks again!!!! And again!!! and Again!!!! Hurrah!!
What a gorgeous burst of colour!
Oooh yellow and black, love it!
pairing darks with brights is great. i love the contrast it creates. your new cords are beautiful on you!
I’m a real brights with brights and black with black, excpet I love navy and black and purple and black. I used to do all black with a red cardigan, so I might try that again now!
daddylikeyblog: I KNEW it! I knew I was totally copying you. And I will meet you in the Badlands next Tuesday. I’ll bring pie.
I need to write a cords update with a picture of me in the SAME ones!
You look gorgeous dear.
I also love black and brights.
xoxo
I’ve never seen such a zippy yellow in my life, and I really like how it looks with black. It’s really compelling.