Thursday, September 12, 2013

Slit-ther

Another "fashion rule" people are scared to mess with is "never mix black and brown". I think this is just silly so I decked myself out in black and brown from Head to Heels in order to prove that it can be done without looking like a hot mess.

I wore this black asymmetrical side-slit maxi skirt with a black and brown striped silk tank top. I accessorized with a brown floppy hat, black strappy heels, and hints of gold jewelry.

After playing around and experimenting with different shades of brown, I found that medium to light browns pair better with black than a darker chocolatey brown. You want to make it evident that you're sporting both black and brown. If your brown is too similar to your black, it'll just appear as if you failed at matching your all-black outfit and you may have possibly gotten dressed in the dark?! Lol. I'm probably being a little too harsh, but I'd just stick to lighter shades of brown to be safe.

Below are some additional simple tips for learning to break free of this silly "fashion rule". 

Tips:

1) The easiest way to try this look is to probably stick to a solid medium to light brown top with a black bottom or vice versa. Or if that's still a foreign concept to you, try a solid black or brown dress and contrast it with a belt in the other color.
2) If you're feeling a bit ballsier, try adding some prints or texture the way I did. Make sure that both your brown and black pieces aren't printed or that could create one huge disaster. I added a brown and black striped tank top rather than a solid brown top and kept my skirt a simple solid black.
3) Make sure to tie in black and brown accessories in similar shades to bring the whole look together, which I did with my brown hat and black heels. I simply tied my outfit together from Head to Heels with my accessories. Just remember that when you look at your outfit in the mirror, you want everything to simply flow together.
4) I personally think that gold goes well with both black and brown, so why not add a little gold bling to this brown and black ensemble?! I kept it pretty tame with the jewelry and embellished my outfit with a gold chain necklace, a gold cluster ring, and a set of black and gold bracelets.

If you already know how to style these colors together like a pro, feel free to leave more tips in the comments for myself and others!

P.S. this post is dedicated to a good friend of mine, Chris, who likes to give me crap for pairing black and brown together! :P

Tank Top: Sam & Lavi Los Angeles
Asymmetrical Skirt: LF Stores
Floppy Hat: Free People (here)
Shoes: Dolce Vita 'Elka' heeled sandals (here)
Necklace: Vintage
Bracelets: Vanessa Mooney (here) and Jenny Bird (here)
Ring: CC Skye (here)

2 comments:

  1. The black and brown look great together! I don't know if I could pull off the two together but you look fabulous!! The hat is lovely

    xx

    www.salted-roses.blogspot.com

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Amy! People sometimes forget that both black and brown are both neutrals, which means they can go together!
      And I'm sure you would look fabulous in this color combo!

      xoxo

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