Monochromatic Fashion

Even the fashion-impaired can look stylish with ease and economy with the monochromatic look. Mono, meaning “one,” and chroma, the root for “color,” refers to a style of dressing in a single color. 

I’m the type of person who doesn’t pay much attention to fashion and style. You know, the type that prefers to bury her head into a book and wear pants until they’re hopelessly threadbare and faded, destined for the rag bag rather than the charity truck. When I shop, I have to look at the mannequins to see which top coordinates with which pants. Patterns intimidate me as do textures. Styles change far too frequently for me and my debit card to catch up. Look people, I just want to be able to go out in public without getting arrested for indecent exposure. So what’s a fashion-phobic girl to do?

She went monochromatic. It started out by wearing black. So slimming, after all. One day as I wandered dazed through the petite department at Nordstrom, a young salesgirl approached me with far more interest than I’d ever been offered in any of my previous visits. “Are you a designer?” she asked. She was serious. I laughed nervously and admitted that I was quite the opposite and couldn’t she tell by my lack of style in wearing all black? She said that most of the clothing designers wear all black, perhaps because they like the blank slate as they come up with ideas. Well, well. 

A jewelry salesgirl showed me how to change my “look” by switching out the jewelry I wore when going monochromatic. I was stunned at the difference. Soon, I began to select not only all-black outfits to wear but also all-tan or khaki, all white. People began to make nice comments about my “classic” and classy style as I chuckled under my breath. Who would have known that my fashion weakness could turn into panache?

Here are some tips if you choose to go monochromatic:

1. Collect a variety of jewelry to suit different occasions and moods.
2. Choosing hues in the same family also counts as mono-chromatic, for example, different intensities of blue.
3. To avoid being a blank canvas, add textural interest with different fabrics in the same color.

And although once you add a different color, it isn't mono-chromatic any longer, you can add a bit of style with the following:
1. Add a punch of color, pattern or texture with a scarf, hat, belt or handbag.
2. Get outrageous or artful with your coordinating accessories to keep the mono-chromatic outfit from being boring.
3. Keep a white tee, blouse or tank on hand as a nice contrast for any mono-chromatic pant/skirt and jacket combination.

Monochromatic fashion works for every occasion. No other fashion style could be as simple.