Hue: The Colors You Need To Know

Launch Gallery

Every year, winter melts away and with the new season comes an onslaught of trends for spring and summer. Despite the influx of new (and often ridiculous) ideas, it becomes your job to adopt what works and avoid what doesn’t.

With that in mind, we’re giving you our picks for the best trends to take in stride, and which to step over completely.

Adopt: Hue

Even more than last year, color is the mode. The trend appears in flashes and floods in the form of denim, khakis, blazers and sports coats, and even dress shoes.

Concept

Rather than just wearing color, think about using unexpected colors in places generally reserved for navy blues and neutrals. Expect to see anything, from highlighter-brights to pastels bordering on grey.

What’s Cool

• Chinos, khakis and cargoes: it’s never been more fashionable to sport them in saturated yellows and oranges, even bold, bloody reds.
• Denim: Keep your blues, but step elsewhere on the spectrum. “Lavender,” and “plum,” might not be within your comfort zone, but lighter blues, greens, or yellows could placate your color concerns.
• Suits/Blazers: Move out of the shadows into lighter hues of blue, or jump right into pastels.
• Shoes: A pale suit is still a suit (read: traditional), but you can set it off with classic oxfords or boat shoes with nearly-neon soles to look like a one-man light show strobe-ing down the sidewalk.
• Jackets: We’ll touch on outerwear later, but three words: dusty blue parka. You want.

Execution

As a general rule, don’t get carried with bright colors or get too match-y.
• If the piece is a shade bold, let it stand out on its own.
• With subdued hues, complementary trumps monochromatic. Pair colors that appear on opposite sides of the color wheel.
• Contrasting color combos create visual interest and will draw female attention, not for your slow-motion car crash of an outfit, but for your sick style.

What We Want

Barbour Washed Blue Parka                               Knowledge Cotton Apparel Shorts                Paul Smith Cardigan

Avoid: Hawaiian Prints

Irony’s not what it used to be. Thankfully, “aloha” means goodbye as well as hello.