Why you should embrace monochromatic outfits when you are petite
Wearing one color all over creates a long vertical line and gives the illusion of height. This look is especially flattering on petites when styled in dark (visually slimming) color like black, navy, hunter green, dark chocolate, you get the idea.
A monochromatic look gives the illusion of being taller than you are. Click To Tweet
Be aware – red and pink add weight
When red is tricky to wear for you, make sure that you pick a vertically structured pattern or anything that enhances the vertical line, e.g., a V-neck, open cardigan, open blazer, or like I did, a vertical cable knit. The long necklace adds a vertical line too to provide the illusion of height, i.e. offset the “seemingly added pounds.”
Tricks to keep a monochromatic outfit from boring
Wearing a monochromatic outfit requires some thoughts to not look boring. Monochromatic – as the word says – means one color only. To get the monochromatic look right create interest with a play of texture vs. no texture and/or matte vs. shine. Here I picked a sweater with a small cable knit pattern (see last photo for a close-up). The leather of the pumps is polished and shiny, while the suede of the pants look duff.
Know when to add a pop of color
For the commute to work I wore my red pea coat and swapped the red pumps for winter appropriate booties. I added a big leopard print purse to carry my pumps, a red floral print scarf, head band to keep my ears warm and brown gloves. Adding these minimal colors keeps the outerwear outfit from being boring. The look of the red suede and the coarse molten are too similar to keep the look in all red.
Do you like monochromatic outfits? In which color do you style them? Do you style your outerwear? Email me your style challenges so I can help you.
You may be interested in these additional examples of styling a monochromatic looks, for instance, with a red skirt and top look and/or even an all red look with skirt.
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Photos: G. Kramm
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