Colour Blocking: From The Catwalk To Your Wardrobe

Can you block it? Yes you can...

colour blocking

by Funmi Fetto |
Published on

We’ll let you into a secret. While the Grazia fashion desk may extol the virtues of new season trends, our personal approach to dressing tends not to be so obviously trend-led.

Of course, there might be the one (or three!) key items (see The Elevators) but it is usually teamed with judiciously selected - and rather understated - pieces. Which essentially means a lot of black, navy and grey. Except this season.

This spring, the fash-community is changing tack. Everyone is now, shock, horror, wearing colour. And no, we don’t mean a pop of colour here and there. The new bold, irreverent way to wear colour is not only odd, it is top-to-toe, extreme-ends-of-the-Pantone-spectrum bonkers. Blame the Balenciaga designer, Demna Gvasalia, (aka the most influential designer alive right now) for rewriting the rules of colours that supposedly go together. He sent his models down the catwalk in a cacophony of strangely contrasting – but compelling - numbers. Think red mini-dress with electric blue thigh high boots, a high-neck sugary pink dress with shiny purple spandex, an 80’s style ruched top in bright purple with chocolate brown leggings… You get the picture. Celine’s designer Phoebe Philo, a woman with an innate ability to anticipate what every woman wants to wear, made the idea of combining a lime green top, burgundy skirt and red boots a very welcome proposition.

Such is the sway of these deliciously eye-popping confections that even Victoria Beckham, a woman known for her more or less colour-free aesthetic, has been unable to resist. So if you want to make sure your delve into this brave new colour-blocking universe doesn’t get lost in translation, just look to VB. Her blue shirt and orange trouser combo alone is a spot-on lesson in runway-to-reality dressing.

Victoria Beckham

Click through our gallery to see how you can get the look:

Gallery

Colour blocking - Grazia

Olive off-the-shoulder top, Fendi1 of 9

Olive off-the-shoulder top, Fendi

Olive off-the-shoulder top, £500, Fendi at net-a-porter.com

Blue A-Line skirt2 of 9

Blue A-Line skirt

Blue A-line skirt, £65, Finery at John Lewis

Gree kitten heel pumps3 of 9

Gree kitten heel pumps

Green kitten heel pumps, £440, Gianvito Rossi at brownsfashion.com

Blue blouse4 of 9

Blue blouse

Blue blouse, £29.99, Zara

Yellow wide leg M&S trousers5 of 9

Yellow wide leg M&S trousers

Yellow wide leg trousers with belt, £35, Marks and Spencer

White leather shoes6 of 9

White leather shoes

White leather shoes, £55, Next

Silk shirt, & Other Stories7 of 9

Silk shirt, & Other Stories

Wide cuff silk shirt, £65, & Other Stories

Red trousers at M&S8 of 9

Red trousers at M&S

Red trousers, £45, Per Una at Marks and Spencer

By Far red shoes9 of 9

By Far red shoes

Red shoes, £223, By Far

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