How To Wear Bold Colors For Your Holiday Look

We are officially in the midst of the holiday season! So making sure we have the right looks to wear to our festivities is important to many of us. It’s really easy to fall into the go-to holiday looks and colors: metallic sparkles, red, green and black. Although there is nothing wrong with the classics (we all love a little sparkle and sequins, don’t we?), we can’t forget there are other ways to deck out like a holiday firecracker. Bold, bright colors primary colors are the perfect trend for the holiday season. Nothing says Merry Christmas or Happy Hanukkah like an eye-popping green, pink or yellow look. Here’s how to wear bold colors when you’re over 40.

Bold Color Trends For Women Over 40

Bold colors are always on trend. True, some can go in and out of style throughout the decades. Yet if you look at the basic primary colors like blue, red and yellow and also the secondaries like orange, purple and green, it’s difficult to find a time when you couldn’t find some form of these on the runways. We saw every color of the rainbow from everyone from Chanel, Sally LaPointe, and Carolina Herrera to Valentino, Versace, and Tom Ford.

Some of my favorite looks were this pistachio green look from Sally LaPointe, I’ll take a colored fur from anyone on any given day. As well as this orange, silk balloon sleeve dress from Carolina Herrera. This look would be fantastic if you have a deep skin tone and pair it with a bold shoe like the on the model. This trend is super fun to dive into, as the different hues can be a great way to express your own personal style. 

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Bold Color Holiday Clothing And Accessories To Try

Wearing bright colors when you’re over 40 is easy. You don’t have to worry about special trends or inappropriate silhouettes or cuts for your body or age. My personal belief is that bold colors look best when worn in statement pieces like a giant chunky sweater, completely over-the-top shoes or a beautiful flowing dress. However, don’t feel the need to deck yourself in head-to-toe color if that is not your style. 

An excellent way to utilize this trend is to go for a simple silhouette dress with lots of color and detail. This Badgley Mischka long sleeve dress is ideal for a holiday party or if you’re playing holiday hostess for your family and friends. You don’t have to do much else with it, just add some simple black pumps and you’re look is complete. 

If you choose to go with accessories instead of a piece of apparel, I like these Betsey Johnson rainbow d’Orsay heels. A great way to play them up is to take a primary color out of the spectrum represented in the heels and add it to the rest of your outfit. For these heels, I think an apple red or royal blue silk top would be gorgeous paired with a pair of black or winter white tapered leg pants.

Now, if you really want to go all out (that would be me!) and go full on statement piece, I would suggest something like this Josie Natori floral topper. It’s in and of itself a stand-alone piece. But if you want to kick it up a little further, I would pair it with a neutral top and some red wide leg pants. Just imagine wearing an outfit so show stopping you’d be the talk of your holiday party well into the new year. 

Bold Colors Styling Tips

1. Find the right tone that suits you.

When going with a brighter color, you always want to take your skin tone into account; especially if you are wearing the item close to your face and neck. As we all know, certain colors look better with certain skin tones. If you are fair skinned, try a beautiful cobalt blue or royal purple. A fuchsia pink would also look lovely! For more tanned and darker skin tones, all of the above colors will also look lovely on you. And you are also likely to get away with bright yellows, oranges and greens.

2. Embrace a monochromatic look.

I absolutely love a monochromatic look! I’ll rock one with black on black, gray on gray, red on red or frankly any color that I love. Don’t be afraid to give this look a try, as it can have slimming effects as well as some serious fashion impact. If you want to start slowly choose black or gray, but if you want to jump in head first, start with something like this Satin Midi Skirt and pair it with this Mock Neck Sweater, both from Express. The bright pink color will be beautiful on any skin tone and this outfit would be perfect for any holiday part or outing. All it needs is some great jewelry and a pair of matching shoes.

3. Opt for complementary colors.

If we all remember our color theory, complementary colors are on the opposite end of the color wheel and pair wonderfully with one another. The opposing colors do not clash and make for some eye candy when you incorporate them into a look. Some of the basic complementary color combinations are blue/orange, purple/yellow, and red/green. To try it out start with this lush velvet pullover top from Anthropologie and pair it with these Marc Fisher embossed boots in navy. Or with these high rise wide leg lace pants to add some additional texture on your both pieces.

4. Primary colors are a great go-to.

The good thing about primary colors is that they will never go out of style. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good Pantone Color of the Year but those will come and go and could ultimately look dated if you invest in a nice piece in that color. A highly saturated Kelly green, cobalt blue or apple red are always in style; they always have been and always will be. Plus, those colors tend to transition nicely from season to season as you can wear them to a holiday party or a summer wedding.

Shop Bold Colors for the Holidays

Pictured above from left to right:

Badgley Mischka Collection V-Back Long-Sleeve Dress with Beaded Cuffs, $495

Betsey Johnson Prince Rainbow Bow d’Orsay Stiletto Heel Pointed Toe Pumps, $79

Nina Crystal Beaded Clutch, $85

Josie Natori Two-Tone Floral Topper, $1495

ALICE + OLIVIA Dylan High Waist Wide Leg Satin Pants, were $330, now $247.50

Are you going to wear bold colors for the holidays?

– Carmen Turner

Runway Photos: Vogue.com

You may like to read more of Carmen’s trends posts for women over 40 like What To Wear To A Winter Wedding for Women Over 40 and How To Style The High Gloss Finish Trend for Fall.

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