COLOURS

Orange You Glad You Wore It
This highly popular color marries the sunniness of yellow with red’s depth. In fact, orange is the perfect substitute if you’re not comfortable seeing red. But the color is by no means ho-hum -- orange evokes action. "Orange is much more of a casual, active color—it’s big in active wear—whereas red is much more sophisticated," explains Harrington. The perky shade is your best bet when you want to rev yourself up so you can hit the gym or channel creativity for a work project. "Orange is said to stimulate enthusiasm and creativity," says Mai. "It symbolizes vitality and endurance."
It’s also the color to choose when you want to stand out without taking a big risk. That’s because orange is considered a little edgy without be too "out there." "If you’re going to buy a pocketbook and it comes in red, orange and yellow, yellow will be the biggest statement while almost everyone has a red bag," says Harrington. "Orange is in the middle. It says, ‘have a little more fun and be a little different but not too different. Because of that, you see a lot more orange colors showing up in cosmetics."
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The rich color is associated with royalty and luxury, according to Mai. "Anytime you need to feel confident and regal, such as for a job interview, wear purple," she says. If you have a young-looking face and want to appear more sophisticated, make purple your go-to color to help you look more mature, suggests Mai.
Back in Black
Having a “fat day”? Slipping into something black makes you look five pounds slimmer -- instantly improving your mood. "We all know what happens when you put on black jeans versus white jeans -- it’s slimming," says Harrington. But the darkest shade of all can affect how you feel in two other distinctly different ways: Wearing black can be a downer (think funerals) or make you feel trés chic (think Audrey Hepburn in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”). Although in old movies, the villain always wore black, over the years the color has become more associated with high class -- black limousines, patent leather shoes and elegant black tie affairs, according to Harrington.
Black is clearly the go-to color when you want to look more regal and formal. "It can be very elegant"” says Mai. “Every woman needs an LBD. It plays everything else down so you stand out. It lets you shine.”