How to Wear Colorful Tights

One of my signature looks in the colder weather months is colorful tights as I still prefer to wear skirts and dresses during those months too. And sometimes shorts with tights too!

Those of you who read my travel blog entries about going to Paris and Chicago during the cold winter earlier this year know that this look is not limited to northern California for me…

When it comes to choosing the color for the tights you can go in different directions so here are a few methods I will share:

1.) Anything goes with black (or neutrals)

This is a great way to start so that it feels less intimidating, especially with the classic combination I did above with the fuchsia and the black. I added in the matching scarf for a warmer look. Click here to buy fuchsia-colored tights

2.) Matching it with the accent color of your shoes

It’s hard to tell with the full body shot, so I took close-up shots of my shoes that I am wearing with the green tights look and the blue tights look (scroll down to list item #3 for the full body shots of the blue tights look). As you can see, both times the color of the tights match the color of the accent colors on the shoes (the color of the rhinestones on the green shoes and the pattern of the bow/ribbon trim on the blue shoes). While the green shoes I’m wearing are no longer available, I did find a similar-looking pair without the rhinestones (which you can easily find and stick on the shoes). And the gorgeous emerald earrings I’m wearing can be found here.

I did wear the same black dress I wore with the fuchsia tights in the green tights look. You may notice that I accidentally wore the same black shoes in the second shot of me sporting the houndstooth coat (which ended up working better for the coat).

3.) Matching it with the accent color of your outfit

The royal blue is the accent color on the printed dress so I naturally went in that direction by matching it with the color of the tights and the hat while I also paired it with a cardigan for a warmer look. With this particular dress, you could swing in the direction of either slightly more purple or slightly more blue (which I love).

Click here to buy the blue cardigan I’m wearing
Click here to buy purplish bluefish tights

4.) Complimenting the [dominant] color of your outfit.

I love wearing jewel tones in the winter months and this is one  way to make different colors work well together.

And sometimes it’s perfectly alright to wear more than two colors! Yellow is a vibrant option in comparison to a neutral color so I like to throw it in there like I did with the warmer look of sporting the yellow coat on top of the dress, complete with a matching scarf. And the color scheme goes oh so well with my favorite peacock pumps.

5.) [If the hue is on the darker side] Matching it to the color of the shoes

OR

6.) [If it’s with a skirt or shorts] Matching it to the color of the skirt/shorts

The color of the purple tights is slightly darker but it does match skirt (sort of) and my slightly darker purple shoes. As I always say, darker purple or blues are great alternatives to black. The matching colors of the bottom does help to make the legs longer, while the gold top breaks it up a bit.

Again, I am not afraid to wear a coat in a different color (you can’t even see the gold top when I wore the pink coat on top anyways). Like yellow, gold is also a fun alternative to a plain old neutral color that will make an outfit look more festive during the holiday season. I also purchased these golden tights recently that instantly give my legs a rock star-quality glow.

Taking Care of Rips & Runs

It helps to have a spare pair of tights around, but a great tip for preventing a run or a hole in your tights from expanding is to apply clear nail polish to the ruined area.

Stay warm and fashionable!

– M