Our fifth and last installment in the Menswear Colour Primer deals with understanding the concept of dissimilarity. This doesn't deal with colors per se, just rather the difference in color value amongst two or more colors.

If you haven't read the balance yet, you lot can access to other articles in the serial below:

  1. An Introduction To Color Theory For Men
  2. How Complementary Colors Work In Menswear
  3. Monochromatic Colors & Menswear
  4. Understanding Pare Tone For Men
  5. Understanding Contrast For Men (Currently Here)

Colour Dissimilarity

It'due south not plenty to just understand color. To truly expect our best, we must start sympathise the full general concept of dissimilarity. In a nutshell, dissimilarity refers to the difference in color value betwixt two or more colors. See below:

Black White And Grey Blocks Showing Contrast

These color blocks correspond color contrast at it'southward virtually basic.

  • 2 white blocks give you no contrast considering there's no difference in color between the two (the same would be true for ii black boxes)
  • A white and grey block give y'all medium contrast because there'southward some discernible difference in value, and
  • White and black block give you high contrast considering the colors are absolute reverse values

Now, permit's accept the next step and see how this system works with some typical hair and skin colors.

Tan Brown Beige And Black Blocks Showing Contrast

If nosotros take 3 Caucasian men and give them blonde hair (left), medium brown hair (middle), and dark brown or blackness hair (right), nosotros meet the concept of dissimilarity at work in the existent world.

How Does Color Dissimilarity Relate To The Face up?

It's incumbent upon united states to know our skin undertones and then that we tin select colors that make united states wait our best. But past that, the concept of dissimilarity every bit it relates to color is very important.

We've explored this a scrap in our commodity on complementary colors, simply that only covers pairing different colors or unlike values of colors amongst themselves. Did you lot know that dissimilarity also applies to your confront, regardless of what your undertones are?  Consider the following 3 things:

  • Peel tone (both surface and undertone)
  • Hair color
  • Middle colour

When information technology comes to this all-important concept, you would exist well-advised to familiarize yourself with the haberdasher/menswear historian Alan Flusser. His method, outlined inDressing The Man (a must-ain for any homo who's read this far), is preferable because it manages to grouping men not based on specific coloring, simply rather oncontrast. Take a wait beneath:

  • Low contrast: Little difference in color among hair, face, and eyes. Typical of nigh off-white-skinned blondes.
  • Medium dissimilarity: Black gentlemen are best-dressed as medium-to-high contrast faces. Other medium contrast visages are olive or medium brownish skin with nighttime hair: men of Middle Eastern, Indian, or Cardinal and Due south American descent.
  • Loftier contrast: Stark difference amid hair, skin, and center colour. Typical of East Asian men who often have very low-cal skin and very dark hair. Also found on Caucasian men with dark chocolate-brown or black hair.

An important matter to remember is that dissimilarity is skin color-doubter. Accept a look at the infographic beneath.

Contrast Infographic For Men

We take various skin tones and hair colors across unlike ethnicities, but zero necessarily locks you into a particular dissimilarity level.

Black Men & Contrast

African American Face Contrast

Based on what we know of contrast, it would be safe to assume that most dark-skinned men fall in the low-contrast category. While many practice, this is not a difficult and fast rule. The reason for this is notjust that there are a broad variety of peel tones that nosotros refer to as "black." Information technology's too because when you put nigh clothing side by side to dark pare, there's automatically a college level of contrast than there would exist on a lighter-skinned human.

For this reason,it is best for our African-American readers to care for themselves every bit medium-to-high dissimilarity men, at to the lowest degree at the first.

Real Earth Examples Of Contrast

Here'southward our Founder and Artistic Director, Paul Anthony. Paul has a low-contrast visage with fair skin, blue optics, and blonde facial hair. We've seen photographic evidence of blonde hair on his head in the past, but that's neither here nor there at this point:

Man In Low Contrast Outfit

Though Paul fears no color (you lot should meet some of the jackets he picked up in Thailand), opting for a night navy jacket with a dark tie and dark trousers gave him a relatively depression-contrast outfit. This allows his face to maintain the attention information technology deserves. As a lucky bastard someone with a neutral complexion he can get away with wearing almost any colour he wants.

Below is Editor-In-Chief Michael Oxman. Paul's physical contrary in many means, he has fair skin and blue eyes, but rather night brown hair. His is a classic high-contrast appearance, and wearing bright, contrasting colors frames that kind of face well. Pairing blue and pink underneath his blueish-eyed, pink-cheeked mug lends a radiance that he just won't get with warm oranges or reds.

Note the shirt and tie combination is the same equally the photograph at the kickoff of the article. If information technology ain't bankrupt, don't prepare information technology!

Man In High Contrast Outfit

The takeaway is this:Mirror the corporeality of contrast in your face with that of your dress, especially the apparel that frame your confront. This harmony will entice the viewer to look at your face and see it at its best.One of the biggest goals of getting dressed is to draw the viewer's eye to your confront. If you succeed in that, you lot're ten steps ahead of everyone else.

In other words, if you're a loftier-contrast guy, wear loftier-contrast wearable -dark suits, light shirts, brilliant ties. If you're a low-contrast guy, vesture vesture that'south more tonal -a good example of this would be a medium greyness arrange, light blue shirt, and medium blueish or medium red tie.

This is a continuum, so there'due south a practiced chance yous fall somewhere in between the two extremes. Many guys are considered "medium" dissimilarity. Similar men of average build wearing whatsoever silhouettes they want, medium contrast men can vesture whatever level of contrast they like and still look good. The world is your oyster, sir.

Finally, there's room for improvisation and experimentation here. Effort out different combinations, and really pay attention to what brightens your face versus what flattens information technology. Over time, you'll develop a wardrobe that has nil just all-stars in it.

<< Render To Part 4 of five: Skin tone