Monochrome Style [Full Guide Plus Examples]
Monochrome Style – when done right – can be absolutely mesmerizing. Sadly, most people who try out a monochromatic Outfit get it wrong.
No, it’s not as easy to pull off as you might think. There are quite a few factors you have to consider when putting together a monochrome color scheme for your clothing.
What is Monochrome Style?
Mono means “one” and chroma means “color”. So, monochrome style is what you get by creating a cohesive look using only one color. In fashion and design, you also incorporate different shades, tints, and tones of the same family on the color wheel (hue) into a monochromatic color scheme.
Monochromatic looks use only colors from the same hue. In this example the hue is blue.
This color palette consists of only variations of blue: shades, tones, and tints.
Monochromatic clothing can be created through layering or wearing items together in order to create a monotone outfit that is still eye-catching and stylish. The monotonous nature of monochromatic clothes means they're easier to put together than an outfit with multiple colors.
There’s just one quite obvious catch with all clothing pieces having the same color: You have to own every piece in the same color.
Key Things to Remember
There are a few things to remember when creating a monochrome outfit:
Make sure there is some variation in the shades, tints, and tones of the color palette you choose. For example, if you're wearing all shades of blue, add in a pop of very light blue somewhere in your outfit to accent and make the whole get-up more interesting.
Don't be afraid to mix different textures together. This will add visual interest to your look.
Accessorize! A monochrome outfit can still use accessories to add personality. Try adding a scarf or belt of the same color family to make what you're wearing more complex-looking. Wear matching makeup to complete the look.
Black and white are not in fact part of the monochrome scheme of any hue. This is quite important to note, so there's more on this later in the article.
Examples of Monochrome Outfits
Here are a few monochrome style examples to give you an idea of how it can be done:
Example 1: Shades and tints of red.
The key to creating a monochromatic look is to make sure there is some variation in the shades, tints, and tones of the color palette you choose. In this example, the different shades and tints of red create a cohesive monochrome look.
The outfit is also styled in a way that adds visual interest; The layering of different clothing items and various degrees of lightness create dimension. Accessories such as a belt, matching shoes, and a watch help to pull the outfit together and add personality.
Pink is a light variant of red. As such, we can create a monochromatic look easily. | Socks: Pineable
Example 2: Shades of Brown.
This monochrome outfit uses different shades, tints, and tones of brown to create a pleasing look.
Brown is essentially just a form of orange or yellow-orange. Though it’s not always easy to perfectly match various browns, that shouldn’t actually be the goal.
Different brown-ish colors are hard to tell apart but, therefore, easy to pair with each other.
Example 3: Variations of blue.
This monochrome outfit uses different shades and intensities of blue to create a cohesive look. As mentioned earlier, it's important to add some variation to your color palette to avoid looking too monotonous.
In this example, there is some variation in the tones of blue, but they all fall within the same color family on the color wheel.
Black and White - An Exception to Monochrome Style?
You may have noticed from the examples of monochrome outfits above that black and white were not included as colors within the monochromatic schemes. It may seem odd that they were left out given that they are simply very dark/light versions of any hue.
There is a reason for this.
Yes, even though white is technically a very light form of blue (or yellow, orange, green, and so on, for that matter), it shouldn’t be used in monochromatic style. The same goes for black, obviously.
You could, however, put together an outfit consisting only of either black or white pieces of clothing to make an entirely new type of monochromatic look: an achromatic one.
Achromatic color schemes are defined as schemes that lack “color” and saturation. They consist of either various shades/tints of gray, black, white, or all of them together.
Effectively, you can make three different types of monochromatic (actually achromatic) outfits using colorless clothes:
All-black
All-white
Gray (including or excluding some white or black elements)
All three options are classic staples in fashion. They’ve been used countless times on the runway and are – quite honestly – simple to pull off.
Most people own many clothing pieces in black, white, or gray. In fact, black is the most common color in clothing, so it’s super easy to put together all-black outfits. Just swing open your dresser and slap on all the black clothes you want and you’re good to go.
Presto! You’ve put together your first monochromatic/achromatic outfit.
Dichromatic Outfits
Dichromatic outfits are those that incorporate two different hues. For example, an outfit that consists of reds and blues would be considered dichromatic.
In fashion, the most common color pair for two-colored get-ups is black and red. In fact, any other color paired with black is quite common.
Dichromatic outfits using black as one of the two colors are among the easiest outfit combos to pull off. Seriously. Just put on your favorite black clothing pieces and sprinkle in accents of only one other color. It’s that easy.
For example, slip on a black suit, black shoes, and a black shirt. Now, accent with a red bowtie and red suspender and you’ve got yourself a perfectly viable dichromatic outfit.
Pair black with another color and you’ve got yourself a dichromatic outfit.
It looks composed, sophisticated, and (most importantly) thought-out. Plus, it’s the easiest way to put together an outfit using color. Hands down.
Monochrome Versus Polychrome
Polychrome means “multiple colors”. Any outfit that makes use of multiple hues counts as a polychromatic one. Typically, polychromatic outfits are harder to put together than monochromatic ones – at least if you want them to look good.
Going monochrome makes pairing colors easier because you only have to use colors that come from the same color family. You don’t have to pay attention to clashing, analogous pairing, complementary schemes, or whatnot. It all doesn’t matter.
But this is also what makes monochrome style so difficult to pull off.
You must actually own all pieces of an outfit in your desired color to be able to even think about donning a monochrome get-up.
It is for this reason that many people shy away from wearing only one color. It is also why most usually go polychrome: ease of use.
Now, if you’re struggling with putting together smashing outfits that are polychromatic, we’ve got you covered! At Colorbux, this is what we do all day – we get you places by teaching you color.
More precisely, we show you how to use color in fashion effectively (and correctly) to make the impression you want to make using the clothes you already own.
And guess what? We give you all the info for free. Go through our list of articles here and see for yourself.
Thanks for reading. We hope you learned a lot about monochrome style and how to use it. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us. Seriously.
Also, if you’d like to show your appreciation, we’d seriously enjoy a nice Google review. It would help us out a bunch since we’re pretty slim (to say the least) when it comes to online feedback on third-party platforms.
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