Rainbow Brite

Spring 30 for 30 - Outfit 22

Banana Republic Top (similar)/ NY&Co. Skirt/ Steve Madden Shoes from DSW (similar)

When I was little, I watched a show called Captain Noah and His Magical Ark. The show was run by Captain Noah and his wife Mrs. Noah and featured puppets, celebrity guests, and two key songs - Send Your Pictures to Dear Old Captain Noah and I Can Sing a Rainbow.

I loved both songs. I would draw tons of pictures to send to Captain Noah and still know all of the words to I Can Sing a Rainbow (although this was troublesome when I had to learn the color spectrum in 11th grade and thought the colors went in the order they were sung in the song - red, yellow, pink, green, purple, orange, and blue rather than ROYGBIV - who knew pink wasn't even on the spectrum!?).

Since Captain Noah, I have also been drawn to bright colors, wearing tons of neon in the 80s, mismatched bright colorful socks during my grunge-hippie phase (yep, I actually went through one of those), and now I am 100% behind the color blocking trend that seems to be all the rage this season.

Still, there are a few tips to follow to get a good color-blocking look without looking like a circus clown:

• Team colors from the same family together for a harmonious look
• Keep warm tones together
• Go for a neutral-toned shoe to keep it simple
• Enliven neutrals with neons
• Work regal purples in with contrasting, fiery oranges (see above)
• Try lime green with melon or rosebud pink for a pleasantly jarring combination
• Work accessories into the mix. Select a contrasting shoe or handbag.
• Aim for an outfit featuring different shades - three or four if you want (five and beyond is bordering on circus clown)

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