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Personal Branding Image Consultant & Personal Stylist
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This article is based on an expert interview with Shelley Golden, conducted by wikiHow Staff Editors. Shelley Golden is the founder of Shelley Golden Style based in the San Francisco Bay Area. With over 20 years of fashion and visual arts experience, Shelley has worked for The International Academy of Merchandise and Design in Chicago, the Wellesley Historical Society, and at Bloom formerly: Image For Success. Shelley is a certified Color Consultant from The Image and Color Institute International and a Color Specialist Member of Color Designers International (CDI). Shelley holds a BS in Textile and Business from Arizona State University and was rated a Top Pro of 2018 by Thumbtack.
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Key Takeaways
- Wear colors that look good on you and don’t blend into your background.
- Go with a bright or medium blue top when in doubt.
- Avoid wearing black or white during a Zoom meeting since it will be harder for people to see you.
Video Transcript
It's twofold: what colors look best on you, and then what colors look best on you in the space that you're in. So for example, I have a dark cabinet behind me and a light sofa. So I can't wear anything light or I'm going to blend in on this side, and I can't wear anything too dark or I'm going to blend in on this side. Quite often a really good color to wear is a medium blue or a brighter blue because usually people don't have blue walls. So that brings you into the foreground and you're not going to blend in with what's behind you. You do not want to wear black. And you do not want to wear white. White is the first thing that the camera picks up on, and everything else will become darker because the camera needs to adjust to the white. And the reality is you don't want everyone to see the white clothing. You want them to see your face. On the opposite side, if you wear black, you will recede into the background. You'll look smaller and you're not going to be able to have people look at you and pay attention to you so that you're the focus. And also you want people to be able to see your torso so they can read your nonverbal language. And by wearing a solid color that is different from your background, they will be able to see your face and you.
