FashionBrother: Citrus

Today I learned yet another vital life lesson. Never Buy citrus fruit in the winter. Had I not underestimated the weight of a single orange, I probably wouldn't have been faced with the 5 euro price tag for three small satsumas...  Too scared to confront the grocer, I accepted that it was one of those things that has to happen to you at least once, so that you never do it again. They'd better bloody be the three juiciest satsumas in the world.

 

The guilty culprits

Anyway, the satsuma incident got me thinking about the popularity of citrus colours in fashion. When faced with yellow, orange or pamplemousse red, even the most fashionable of people tend to turn their noses up at the idea of such colours, but why? Are they to scared that the colour will dominate them? I firmly believe that an outfit will only wear you if you allow it to and the simplest thing, such as making your hair that little bit more complex, or walking with slightly better posture are the kinds of small thing that will help you to outshine what you are wearing. What I love about citrus colours is the way they compliment skin tone. Perhaps it is totally psychological and I am just associating the strong colors with vitamin c and healthiness, but there must be some color theory reasoning behind the way that yellow and particularly orange seems to give that healthy "glow". I hate the term "healthy glow" because for me it conjures up distasteful images of glitter and sequins. And glitter and sequins make me think of those cups that many of us will have had as kids, with various trinkets suspended in water, trapped between the inner and outer walls of the cup, so that when you took a drink all of the little objects (usually pink fairies or cartoon characters) would dance around your lips. I don't know why they haunt me...

Anyway! Stella McCartney SS 11, prime example of the use of citrus. This is a very literal translation of citrus fruit to fashion. I'm not entirely convinced that photo printed fabrics stand very well on their own, I always find that there is something vital missing. However, adding the right accessories to the outfit  (I'd add a fine white silk scarf over the head to block out the sun) would make this a great piece to wear during the summer.


Perhaps I just need to accept that citrus isn't for everybody, but if it is something you have been shying away from because you are too worried, gather the courage to give it a go this summer because you might amaze yourself with the results you get. I didn't see enough citrus in 2011 so I'm expecting it in 2012!

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