I suppose the proper place to begin is to say that this traditionally autumnal color is, in fact, incredibly versatile. Orange serves as the intermediary between the crush corals of summer and the rich rojos of winter and, indeed, I shall be exploiting a variety of different ways to wear this color throughout the seasons because orange really is emblematic of the way our transition into the authentic decade is in practice.
History aside, this is a color that spans an array of skin tones, making it an all-forgiving, multicultural hue. Not only can it regulate the skin tone of those most fair, it can help define the skin tone of those most dark. It makes fair eyes pop and has the ability to pick up certain nuances in those with brown irises.
As you may very well know, late summer is the time of year to wear the warmest of colors and the least amount of fabric. Not only do these colors reflect sunlight off, but I find that they often have a very sexual effect in the balmy hours of this earliest of August.The reflection given off by citruses such as yellow, red, the star orange, and sometimes green (the y in this refracting vowel sequence) can aid in not only cooling off, but in heating up whoever you see fit.
Let’s not kid ourselves: where the winter might be for love, summer is for lovers (or I should say the act in which lovers verb-it-up). What I mean is that while winter may be the time to snuggle up next to someone you truly care about, summer is all about finding that someone for the winter snuggle. And the hunt is on.
I may be alone in this respect, but I find the color orange and its citrus counterparts to be extremely sexy. In this economic climate, it behooves us all to be self aware enough to (while experimenting with color) embrace the austerity. There isn’t anything, quite frankly, sexier to me than self-awareness. To wear something fashionable is sentient but to wear something with meaning behind it, political or cultural, is something that proves to me that there is so much more going on in one’s head. However, I can count on half a hand the amount of people trying to impress me (I’m so sure).
Back to the color, there is also something completely familiar yet new about it. Perhaps it’s the fact that it’s the color of the sun that gives it a refreshing vibe. It looks like summer and it feels like it, too. There is something to be said about the healing power of colors and the way they can take you back to, perhaps not specific moments in your life, but an innumerable amount of emotions that you can relate to the specific trigger. I guess it’s just nostalgia.
Lastly, I think there is a lot to say about the fact that honeysuckle was named the color of the year. Whatever authority Pantone has to elect such a high honor to something many might deem a bit flighty is controversial but there can be no debate against it. I have seen it on the backs of those wonderful locals loyal to the sartorial armed forces and on the fronts of the billboards of the fashion industry (otherwise known as celebrities). I have also seen it in that most singular part of a city landscape: advertisements. As much as we all try to hide it, we are influenced by these marketing employs and, often times, creative people take their cues from these harbingers of urban capitalism without fully comprehending why. It isn’t so much that there exists a dependency on it, it’s simply a short term solution to some sort of block. In the collective insurance of any creative community in the immediacy of the times, honeysuckle (a notable figure in the cult of orange) comes up headily.
So there you have it, locals. Remember to not only ingest Vitamin C but to also apply it onto your person. It’s the best way to beat this ungodly terrible heat. Well, your ungodly.
Remember, crushes: Don’t be a stranger, but do be stranger.
