A little Colour on a Rainy Day

                                        

Dressed in my blank canvas, which in my case is black I headed to London to meet Nikki Bogardus, Color & Style Consultant from My Color Rx. As the spelling suggests, Nikki is based in America and so the opportunity to meet her needs to be planned in advance.
I felt more invisible than usual  because I didn't wear any  make-up, except for a little mascara, a dash of lipstick and a lot of perfume. I made my way with trepidation and anticipation.Would I find a new me? Or would my current wardrobe suffice? Would I be told that what I was wearing was not suitable for the age, the woman I am now?

This is Nikki,elegant and engaging and now my style guru. Any fears I had were soon overcome as Nikki told me about the concept of colour analysis, her emotional journey to this career and the reinvention of the business. Much of what we shared was personal so will not appear on this page. But it is testament to how relaxed I felt that after a while even my pen and notebook were put down [my normal defence mechanism] and then the fun began.

During the next two hours lipstick and mascara removed I was surrounded by grey sheets, for grey is neutral, my natural skin tone was truly on show under full spectrum lighting. The colour drapes were placed over my shoulders at varying rates as a new palette emerged which would explain why I only felt half a person as I came into the room. 

Traditionally colour analysis has been based on the concept of the four seasons, summer, spring, autumn and winter, the Color Me Beautiful concept. Previously I had been told I was a summer and much of my wardrobe has been a reflection of that assessment. But maybe it was the spectrum lighting , maybe it was Nikki's eyes but summer was not the diagnosis today  and I was going to leave the room with a new prescription for my lifestyle.

Nikki explained that colour actually has more palettes than the four previous conceived. That there are actually twelve, rather like twelve months of the year or the twelve chords in music and it is the balance of these that provides the perfect set of 65 pantones for a person's skin tone and eye colour. Any yes, it did feel that Nikki was looking right into my soul as she examined my face and eyes.

                                         

Each season has three elements, warm, cool or neutral and these determine the chroma of a colour or its saturation. Interesting, because it all started to make sense, why I could wear some shades of blue and not others. Baby blues had washed me out and icy blues had sparkled. But I had thought that because I had blue tones in my lips that all blues were suitable. So many mistakes I have made.


                                           

And these are my results:

Bright Winter

To quote from the sheet

"The hues of the Bright Winter tone sparkle and shine like the colors in a Kings crown of jewels. This tone's intense clarity hold the magnetism of an ocean's wave and creates an atmosphere of power and intrigue"

Welcome teal, violet, shocking pink and silver.

                                         

We then played with make-up and I now have a five step, five minute , five product base from which to work. My daughter is delighted as she now has all my mistakes and my make-up bag is so much lighter.

How do I feel?

I feel liberated and informed. I now have a secret code file I can carry with me.

My secret weapon, by which every item of clothing I own is being judged. If it doesn't match, exactly, then it is out. I no longer have to keep the patterned tops, although well made and beautiful they just are not for me, it is clarity I need along with contrast.

So out they go. The charity shop has been the lucky recipient of items that are no longer me. Any muted versions of the colour, no, because they look faded. I am told that Winter Brights do not do faded and that includes jeans. Here, I am resisting slightly, because I have several pairs that I would like to keep for home days. But we will see.

And jewels, yes I can wear jewels, the bigger the better and pearls. I can wear loads. It is bringing out the diva in me. All those tiny gold necklaces that I have kept I can hand on now, daughter take note a box full is coming your way.
Out has gone the black Kohl and all those lipstick mistakes.
I am also considering stopping colouring my hair!

 I have been given websites for buying clothes, scarves and my own make-up list. Together with a reading list. Black is still in my life but now with all those lovely contrasting  regal colours and its a pretty dynamic combination!

Meeting Nikki  was worth every moment of personal angst to be given a few hours of home truths and revelations. I would encourage anyone to go, anyone who describes themselves as somebody's mother, daughter or mother of the bride, go and find the real you and become the person you were meant to be, yourself.

In Nikki's words:

“The right style, shape, fit or brand of what you wear will never again be as important as the right color. Wearing colors in true harmony with your skin ‘tone’ will make a dramatic difference to the way you feel about yourself and to how you are seen by others. This color analysis system is the most accurate that I have found, and the impact it has had on my clients’ appearance has been truly amazing”.

Nikki Bogardus