Skin is in

A little darker than champagne, lighter than sand or perhaps an amalgam of both with a beautiful hint of blush and peach — nude is the fashion colour du jour. An easy add to the wardrobe, the shade of toasted almond, cream, apricot, beige, tan, cream pink or caramel shade, whatever you call it, reminds us of the sunny weather, sun-kissed skin and soft sand, according to style gurus. What’s most appealing about the shade is that it’s really easy to mix and match with any other colour.

Designers Paras and Shalini of Geisha Designs share, “This season, the past is relooked at with an honest eye. The volume and romance (in a garment) is given a hint of freshness with nude tonal colour palette. Flesh coloured tones in soft lacy delicate embroideries, vintage Victorian styles can pep up your look. There is nothing on a woman more beautiful than having her wear her essence or skin tone. Colours can be loud whereas nudes are a soft whisper — a sexy and elegant whisper. Nude allows a woman to wear her dress instead of the dress wearing her. It’s very elegant.”

On the other hand, designer duo Ankur and Priyanka Modi of AM:PM reveal, “Nudes are a group of elegant shades but there are a lot of specific shades in nudes as well. We can break down the nude spectrum into five categories — whites, pinks, yellows, beiges and browns — and offer more than 30 narrowed-down names including porcelain, tawny beige and toasted golden brown. We Indians have a wide range of skin tones and colours like camel or sand generally complement people with fair complexion. These are basically colours that work in the West and only people with similar skin orientation should attempt wearing these. On people with darker skin tones, these tend to look dull and eventually unattractive. However, we’re in a place in fashion where women want to express their own unique selves. This array of essence colours is very individual. So, go for it if you are confident enough.”

About combining the shade with different hues to create contrasting colour wheel, Vandy Mehrra of SBJ elaborates, “In order to understand how harmony between various colours can work, take a look at the colour wheel. There are a total of 12 colours that comprise the colour wheel: Three primary colours, three secondary colours and six tertiary colours and these are considered to be the ultimate guide to understanding colour combinations. Adjacent colours are somewhat similar and can be easily paired. Opposite colours are complementary but must be muted one tone whereas pairing them at full strength can create conflict. So, you can apply this rule to pair any ensemble.”

“Go for chanderi, as it is an all season fabric that you must always have in your closet,” Ankur and Priyanka Modi suggest on the fabric front. They add, “Since it’s a silk-based fabric, it always has a rich sheen to it. It’s also an extremely breathable fabric. Besides that, silk organzas, nets, lace and tulles work well with this look, too.”

On the most fashionable piece to invest this season with respect to the shade, designer duo Baani Sachdev and Nikita Jain of brand E.Z.R.A. say, “It would be a draped skirt or dhoti pants in muted palette. These can be styled in various ways and have options to get a maximised dramatic impact.” 

 

 

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