Guest Post By Elise Urbaniak
Do colors and styles we wear affect our mood, productivity, and confidence? According to studies, what we wear has an impact on our feelings and productivity! With fashion, color, and science in mind, House of Colour shares the benefits of learning why colors and styles make you look and feel your best.
How Colors and What We Wear Affects Our Mood?
Have you ever noticed that some colors you wear make you feel better and more confident compared to other colors? It turns out there is science behind the phrase “look good, feel good”. According to the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, the term “enclothed cognition” describes the psychological effect that clothing can have on our mood. Next time you need a mood boost, try changing into your happy colors that make you feel your best to help uplift your mood.
How has work from home affected fashion trends and wardrobe choices?
While working from home it can be easy to roll out of bed and log-on to your computer without changing clothes or freshening up your appearance. According to a poll done by market research group NPD, only 10% of people who work from home get dressed at the start of the day and change into comfortable clothes later. A Fashion Psychologist named Shakaila Forbes-Bell believes that the lack of social feedback caused by the COVID-19 pandemic requiring people to remain indoors made people think more about how their clothes made them feel instead of their aesthetic value. Forbes-Bell anticipates that comfort will remain an important fixture in our wardrobes for the foreseeable future. An international trends expert and CEO of The Style Pulse, Helen Lambert agrees, predicting that even as people return to the office they will continue wearing comfortable clothing they can move more freely in. Lambert believes women will replace their work from home chic loungewear with comfortable dresses in the office, and men will say goodbye to ties and suit jackets and opt-in for laid-back button-ups instead. We may start to focus more on how we look as we go back into the office, but the comfortable feeling of clothing doesn’t seem to be going anywhere.
How does our outfit affect our mood and productivity each day?
It might seem like what you wear while working from home does not matter, however studies show this isn’t true. Your clothing affects your mood and productivity more than you think, according to science. A recent study done by Sevinc Kurt and Kelechi Kingsley Osueke shares that what we wear can have a psychological effect on people’s moods, confidence, and feelings. A professor and expert in fashion psychology, Karen Pine, conducted research that found putting on different clothing creates different thoughts and mental processes which therefore changes our mood and performance. Pine concluded that we wear plain clothing when we are in a low mood and want anonymity, and we choose bright, well-fitting clothes when we are in a happy mood. Next time you are feeling down, the right outfit may be just what you need to turn your day around.
How can we find out what colors make us look and feel our best?
You may have experienced putting on your favorite colored sweater and seeing your whole face light up. If not, it might be because you don’t know what colors look best against your skin, hair, and eye color along with what colors help your personality shine. Believe it or not, it all comes down to science. The best way to find out what colors look best on you is by visiting a professional who is trained in the principles of color science and color theory. Yes, it is a real thing! As masters in color theory, House of Colour’s color analysis for men, women, and children helps individuals find the colors that boost their mood and confidence, encouraging them to wear these colors at home, at work, traveling, and everywhere in between. Your power colors will compliment your skin, eyes, and hair color, boosting confidence in every room you walk into and gaining compliments from friends and strangers alike. Though trends and fads come and go, House of Colour remains based in science, logic, and objectivity, enabling every client to find their power colors to look and feel wonderful.
What is a color analysis and how does it change the perspective of the colors that we wear?
During a color analysis appointment at House of Colour, a trained Colour Image Consultant explains the color theory process and walks through the color analysis to determine which seasonal palette helps you look and feel like the best version of yourself: Summer, Autumn, Winter, or Spring. Once a color palette is determined, a 90 second makeup look is applied with colors from your personalized season’s color palette, concluding with finding your power colors from your seasonal palette, making you look and feel your best. Continued styling sessions are also available to help find the best fits and patterns that showcase your body type and personality, making it easy to walk into any room with confidence. Finding the colors and styles that boost your mood and confidence may be as simple as finding a House of Colour Image Consultant near you.
How can we simplify our closets with outfits and colors that best suit us?
Let’s face it, you probably are not going to be wearing those clothes in the back of your closet but keep “just incase”. If you always find yourself with a full closet of clothes but nothing to wear, you may just need to refresh your closet and think strategically about what clothes make you look and feel best as a guide of what to keep. According to personal stylist Hanna L. Ashbaugh, one of the best ways to simplify your wardrobe is to purchase clothing staples that are in the same color palette. Ashbaugh says that having a wardrobe with staples that match allows you to easily mix and match to effortlessly create outfits. Don’t know where to start with creating a more practical wardrobe? Luckily nowadays many organizations offer services to help refresh your closet and educate you on finding wardrobe pieces that you will wear and love. House of Colour’s closet edit appointments are a great option for having someone trained in color and style walk through your closet piece by piece to help educate what clothing you should keep and what to donate. It’s time to stop dreading getting dressed because you have “nothing to wear” and fill your closet with pieces that get you excited to showcase.
What business opportunities are there for people that love color and fashion?
If you have a passion for fashion and color, you may get excited to know there are jobs out there designed for people like you! Careers like interior designers, art teachers, cake decorators, painters, makeup artists, and fashion stylists may all be great options for you to put your passion and talent to use. Becoming a House of Colour Image Consultant allows you to be a color analyst, stylist, and makeup artist all in one! With House of Colour you can build your own thriving business to help others find the colors and styles that look best on them! As the world’s leading color and style consultancy, House of Colour provides Colour Image Consultants with the support, tools, and education for you to start your own successful branch.
Knowing that what you wear actually does impact mood, confidence, and productivity may help us to be more aware of how our clothing is contributing to how we feel. It may take some help from a professional to figure out what colors evoke confidence and positive feelings for you, but once you have that knowledge it can make all the difference in the way you think, dress, and perform.
MS, Lund University, Sweden
Nutrition plays an important role in human life. Eating habits are one of the factors that affect our health. There is often a misconception among people that nutritionists force a very restrictive diet, but that is not true. In fact, I don't ban any products, but I point out dietary mistakes and help change them by giving tips and new recipes that I've tried myself. I advise my patients not to resist change and to be purposeful. Only with willpower and determination can a good result be achieved in any area of life, including changing eating habits. When I don't work, I love to go climbing. On a Friday evening, you are most likely to find me on my couch, cuddling with my dog and watching some Netflix.
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