Blog · Kleuranalyse Online
Personal contrast level: why one outfit looks powerful and another washed out
Do you have low, medium or high contrast? Discover your personal contrast level with the black-and-white test, and how to use it in your outfits, make-up and accessories.
Which colors make you glow?
Why does one outfit look powerful and another washed out, even though you like both colors? Often the difference is not in the colors themselves, but in the contrast: how much difference there is between the light and dark parts of your outfit. And how well that matches your personal contrast level.
Your face has its own contrast too. The better your outfit matches it, the more harmonious you look. Below we explain how that works and how to discover which contrast suits you.
What is contrast in clothing?
Contrast is the difference between light and dark. Black with white is a lot of contrast. Beige with light grey is little contrast. Navy with a light blue shirt sits in between.
In yourself, it is about the difference between your skin, your hair and your eyes. Someone with dark hair, light skin and bright eyes has high contrast. Someone with light blonde hair, light skin and light eyes has low contrast.
What is your personal contrast level?
Take a selfie in daylight without make-up and switch it to black and white. Without color, you see much better how light or dark your hair, skin and eyes are compared to each other. If everything looks like one shade of grey, you have low contrast. If your hair and eyes clearly stand out, you have high contrast.
What happens when the contrast is off?
Too much contrast for you
If you wear black and white while you have low contrast yourself, your outfit draws all the attention. Your face fades into the background and you can look harsher and sterner than you intend.
Too little contrast for you
If you have high contrast yourself and only wear soft shades that are close to each other, you can look washed out and unremarkable. Your natural strength then does not come through.
Using your personal contrast level in outfits
- Low contrast: choose colors that are close to each other, such as cream with camel, or dove grey with lavender. Tone-on-tone often looks beautiful on you. Read more about the monochrome outfit.
- Medium contrast: combine a mid-tone with something lighter or darker, such as navy trousers with a light blue shirt.
- High contrast: dare to wear light and dark together, such as white with navy or black, or a clear color on a dark base.
Three examples from practice
Low contrast: light blonde hair, light eyes
A soft pink sweater with dove grey trousers and pearly earrings. The colors are close together and make her face look soft and fresh. A black blazer would quickly draw the attention away here.
Medium contrast: mid-brown hair, green eyes
An olive green blouse with camel trousers. There is a clear difference between light and dark, but it stays calm and harmonious.
High contrast: dark hair, light skin
A white blouse under a navy or black blazer, with a raspberry lipstick. The strong difference between light and dark matches her own contrast and makes her appearance powerful.
Contrast in prints
Contrast also plays a role in prints. A print with big differences between light and dark, such as black-and-white stripes, mainly works with high contrast. With low contrast, soft prints with colors that are close to each other often suit you better. You can read more tips in how to mix prints.
Contrast and your seasonal type
Contrast is one of the three characteristics we use to determine your seasonal type, alongside undertone and clarity. Winter types often have high contrast, soft types such as Soft Summer and Soft Autumn often low. But there are exceptions, which is why we always look at the whole picture. Read more about 12 season color analysis.
Accessories, make-up and hair
With accessories you can adjust the contrast of an outfit. A soft outfit becomes more exciting with a dark belt or bag. An outfit with a lot of contrast becomes calmer with a scarf in a mid-tone.
Make-up plays a role too. Dark brows and pronounced lips add more contrast to your face, while soft, well-blended make-up reduces it. Choose what matches your natural contrast.
Your personal contrast level can change over the course of your life. When your hair turns greyer or you dye it lighter, your contrast often decreases. Outfits with a lot of contrast can then suddenly look harsher than before.
Want to know for sure which contrast suits you? In a color analysis we look at your contrast, undertone and clarity together, and you get combinations that enhance your appearance.
Contrast and your age
As you get older, your contrast often changes a little. Hair becomes greyer or lighter, brows become softer. Outfits with a lot of contrast can then look harsher than before. That does not mean you can no longer wear them, but sometimes a slightly softer combination now suits you better. So take a fresh look in the mirror every now and then.
Looking for inspiration? On our Pinterest page we collect outfits and color combinations for each seasonal type.
Frequently asked questions
Does black and white suit everyone?
No. Black and white is a lot of contrast and mainly works for people who have high contrast themselves. Read more in who can wear black.
Can I have low contrast with dark skin?
Yes. Contrast is about the difference between your skin, hair and eyes, not about how light or dark your skin is.
Does my seasonal type change when my contrast changes?
Usually not. You often stay in the same season, but some combinations then work slightly differently.
Read also: How to combine neutral colors and Wrong colors for your skin?
Color analysis
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