Playing with Color: Pulling from the Pattern by Kristine

Bright colors and bold prints worn together make me really, really happy. However, this can look like a hot mess if not executed properly (something I am definitely guilty of at times). One surefire way to wear color and prints together is to pull from the pattern. What does this mean? Well, basically, it means that if you're wearing a patterned skirt with blue, white, and green in it, you'll be safe wearing a blue, white, or green top. You can play with this rule quite a bit to extend to shoes, accessories, etc.

Example 1:  Kind of a crazy top, right? It's pink with little red-orange mice on it. To complement it in a bold way, I chose to wear it with a red-orange skirt. And it totally works. (Also, to keep things toned down a bit, I distanced the mice shirt from the leopard flats, a trick I talked about in Pretty Ways to Mix Patterns!)

Example 2:  This skirt's got little red cherries on it, so I paired it with a red striped top. The white collar of the top also aligns with the little white cats on my skirt. You totally get it now, right?

Continuing a similar color scheme throughout your ensemble creates a consistency that easily pulls everything together. I'm not saying you can't go outside of this box (In fact, please do!), but if you're looking for an effortless way to wear crazy colors and prints, this is one of them. Have fun!