Workwear Colours and Video Call Colours

The rest of the outfit

Resolved largest area first, with each choice constraining the next — so these work with each other as well as with the blazer.

1. Trousers: Black #000000

   Grounds the outfit

   Hue

   A near-neutral, so there is no hue relationship to get wrong — the pairing is decided by depth and finish alone, which is why neutrals are the reliable answer beside a strong charcoal.

   Lightness

   clearly deeper than Charcoal — a gap of about 28 lightness steps, which is enough to stay legible in a photograph and at a distance.

   Saturation

   Chroma 0 — effectively a neutral. Across a large area that is the point: it holds the outfit together without asking for attention.

   Temperature

   Temperature-neutral, so it will not argue with Charcoal whichever way Charcoal leans.

   Formality

   Very deep colours read dressier than this occasion needs. That is not a problem — being slightly over is more comfortable than being under — but it is worth knowing which direction you are erring in.

   Fabric

   Whatever fabric this ends up in will shift the colour: a pile or a nap reads deeper, a satin or a silk reads lighter along the highlight. Match sheen before you match shade.

   Season

   Season and climate change what this colour looks like more than most people expect — direct summer sun saturates, flat winter light does the opposite.

   Where you will be

   Expect mixed indoor and daylight at a office and workplace.

   In photographs

   Very deep colours lose all shape detail against a dark background — the outline survives, the garment does not.

   How it goes wrong

   A trouser colour that is lighter than the top half, which inverts the usual weighting and needs to be deliberate rather than accidental. The strategy-level risk is landing in the near-miss band — close enough to the anchor to look like an attempted match, far enough to fail it.

   Do not own black? These keep the same lightness

   • navy blue — Navy Blue sits at essentially the same lightness as Black, so it occupies the same place in the scheme's light-to-dark structure and nothing else has to be rebalanced around it. Expect it to read as slightly lighter, considerably more saturated, cooler in undertone and in the blue family rather than the neutral one. That is the trade being made in order to keep how light it is.
   • midnight blue — Midnight Blue sits at essentially the same lightness as Black, so it occupies the same place in the scheme's light-to-dark structure and nothing else has to be rebalanced around it. Expect it to read as slightly lighter, considerably more saturated, cooler in undertone and in the blue family rather than the neutral one. That is the trade being made in order to keep how light it is.
   • prussian blue — Prussian Blue sits at essentially the same lightness as Black, so it occupies the same place in the scheme's light-to-dark structure and nothing else has to be rebalanced around it. Expect it to read as noticeably lighter, considerably more saturated, cooler in undertone and in the blue family rather than the neutral one. That is the trade being made in order to keep how light it is.
2. Jacket: Grey #808080

   Stays behind the anchor

   Hue

   A near-neutral, so there is no hue relationship to get wrong — the pairing is decided by depth and finish alone, which is why neutrals are the reliable answer beside a strong charcoal.

   Lightness

   clearly lighter than Charcoal — a gap of about 25 lightness steps, which is enough to stay legible in a photograph and at a distance.

   Saturation

   Chroma 0 — effectively a neutral. Across a large area that is the point: it holds the outfit together without asking for attention.

   Temperature

   Temperature-neutral, so it will not argue with Charcoal whichever way Charcoal leans.

   Formality

   Sits comfortably at casual, neither dressing the outfit up nor down.

   Fabric

   Whatever fabric this ends up in will shift the colour: a pile or a nap reads deeper, a satin or a silk reads lighter along the highlight. Match sheen before you match shade.

   Season

   Season and climate change what this colour looks like more than most people expect — direct summer sun saturates, flat winter light does the opposite.

   Where you will be

   Expect mixed indoor and daylight at a office and workplace.

   In photographs

   Photographs predictably — nothing here is likely to surprise you in the pictures.

   How it goes wrong

   Planning the outfit under the jacket and never checking what the two look like together. The strategy-level risk is choosing something so quiet it reads as unfinished rather than restrained.

   Do not own grey? These keep the same lightness

   • slate grey — Slate Grey sits at essentially the same lightness as Grey, so it occupies the same place in the scheme's light-to-dark structure and nothing else has to be rebalanced around it. Expect it to read as a little more saturated, cooler in undertone and in the blue family rather than the neutral one. That is the trade being made in order to keep how light it is.
   • rose gold — Rose Gold sits at essentially the same lightness as Grey, so it occupies the same place in the scheme's light-to-dark structure and nothing else has to be rebalanced around it. Expect it to read as considerably more saturated and in the red family rather than the neutral one. That is the trade being made in order to keep how light it is.
   • indian red — Indian Red sits at essentially the same lightness as Grey, so it occupies the same place in the scheme's light-to-dark structure and nothing else has to be rebalanced around it. Expect it to read as considerably more saturated, warmer in undertone and in the red family rather than the neutral one. That is the trade being made in order to keep how light it is.
3. Bag: Cerulean #007ba7

   Echoes without repeating

   Hue

   Within 1° of Charcoal on the hue circle, so the two read as the same colour family at different depths rather than as two colours.

   Lightness

   moderately lighter than Charcoal — a gap of about 20 lightness steps, which is enough to read as separate up close, though it will compress under a flash.

   Saturation

   Chroma 34, a muted colour. Over a modest area it registers as a colour without becoming the subject, which is what a balanced outfit wants.

   Temperature

   Both cool in undertone, so they agree with the same metals, the same woods and the same light. Shared temperature is what makes two unrelated colours look like they belong together.

   Formality

   Sits comfortably at casual, neither dressing the outfit up nor down.

   Fabric

   Whatever fabric this ends up in will shift the colour: a pile or a nap reads deeper, a satin or a silk reads lighter along the highlight. Match sheen before you match shade.

   Season

   Season and climate change what this colour looks like more than most people expect — direct summer sun saturates, flat winter light does the opposite.

   Where you will be

   Expect mixed indoor and daylight at a office and workplace.

   In photographs

   Photographs predictably — nothing here is likely to surprise you in the pictures.

   How it goes wrong

   Matching it exactly to the shoes. It reads as a set bought together rather than an outfit assembled deliberately. The strategy-level risk is echoing too closely, which turns a relationship into a failed match.

   Do not own cerulean? These keep the same warmth

   • egyptian blue — Egyptian Blue carries the same warmth as Cerulean, so it will agree with the same woods, metals and skin tones even though it is a different colour. Expect it to read as slightly deeper and in the blue family rather than the cyan one. That is the trade being made in order to keep its warmth.
   • paynes grey — Payne's Grey carries the same warmth as Cerulean, so it will agree with the same woods, metals and skin tones even though it is a different colour. Expect it to read as considerably greyer and in the blue family rather than the cyan one. That is the trade being made in order to keep its warmth.
   • chambray — Chambray carries the same warmth as Cerulean, so it will agree with the same woods, metals and skin tones even though it is a different colour. Expect it to read as slightly lighter, a little greyer and in the blue family rather than the cyan one. That is the trade being made in order to keep its warmth.
4. Shoes: Umber #635147

   Grounds the outfit

   Hue

   Roughly opposite Charcoal on the hue circle, which is maximum separation and reads unmistakably as a deliberate contrast.

   Lightness

   Almost the same lightness as Charcoal. Two areas at the same depth merge at a distance and in photographs, so this only works when the two are separated by texture or by a third element between them.

   Saturation

   Chroma 10 — effectively a neutral. Across a modest area that is the point: it holds the outfit together without asking for attention.

   Temperature

   Warm against a cool charcoal — a deliberate temperature contrast. It works, but it commits: the metals and the shoes then have to pick a side.

   Formality

   Sits comfortably at casual, neither dressing the outfit up nor down.

   Fabric

   Whatever fabric this ends up in will shift the colour: a pile or a nap reads deeper, a satin or a silk reads lighter along the highlight. Match sheen before you match shade.

   Season

   Season and climate change what this colour looks like more than most people expect — direct summer sun saturates, flat winter light does the opposite.

   Where you will be

   Expect mixed indoor and daylight at a office and workplace.

   In photographs

   Cameras compress tonal differences, so two areas this close in lightness are likely to merge into one shape in a photograph even though they look distinct in the room.

   How it goes wrong

   Shoes lighter than the trousers, which draws attention downward and shortens the line — occasionally the intention, usually not. The strategy-level risk is landing in the near-miss band — close enough to the anchor to look like an attempted match, far enough to fail it.

   Do not own umber? These keep the same lightness

   • hunter green — Hunter Green sits at essentially the same lightness as Umber, so it occupies the same place in the scheme's light-to-dark structure and nothing else has to be rebalanced around it. Expect it to read as a little more saturated, cooler in undertone and in the green family rather than the orange one. That is the trade being made in order to keep how light it is.
   • tourmaline — Tourmaline sits at essentially the same lightness as Umber, so it occupies the same place in the scheme's light-to-dark structure and nothing else has to be rebalanced around it. Expect it to read as a little more saturated, cooler in undertone and in the green family rather than the orange one. That is the trade being made in order to keep how light it is.
   • egyptian blue — Egyptian Blue sits at essentially the same lightness as Umber, so it occupies the same place in the scheme's light-to-dark structure and nothing else has to be rebalanced around it. Expect it to read as considerably more saturated, cooler in undertone and in the blue family rather than the orange one. That is the trade being made in order to keep how light it is.