Abstract
Fashion stylists advise clothing colours according to personal categories that depend on skin, hair and eye colour. These categories are not defined scientifically, and advised colours are inconsistent. Such caveats may explain the lack of formal tests of clothing colour aesthetics. We assessed whether observers preferred clothing colours that are linked to variation in melanin levels among White women. For this, we presented 12 women's faces: six with fair skin (relatively lower in melanin) and six with tanned skin (relatively higher in melanin). Across two experiments, observers (N = 96 and 75) selected the colour (hue and saturation or hue and value) of simulated clothing that most suited the skin tone of each face. Observers showed strong preferences for red and blue hues, and in addition favoured ‘cool’ blue hues to match fair skin and ‘warm’ orange/red hues to match tanned skin. This finding suggests that skin tone can determine colour preferences for clothes.
Highlights
Clothing affects the perception of attractiveness and personality (e.g. Albright et al, 1988; Hesslinger et al, 2015)
Clothes with blue hues are preferred for individuals with fair skin and clothes with yellow-red hues are preferred for individuals with tanned skin
Our research establishes for the first time that there are rules relating the aesthetics of garment colour to objectively measured skin tone
Summary
Clothing affects the perception of attractiveness and personality (e.g. Albright et al, 1988; Hesslinger et al, 2015). Clothing affects the perception of attractiveness and personality Albright et al, 1988; Hesslinger et al, 2015). Colour is one aspect of apparel that may affect judgments, yet findings for the attractiveness of given clothing colours have been inconsistent. Elliot & Niesta, 2008; Roberts et al, 2010) have been discredited (Francis, 2013; Hesslinger et al, 2015; Peperkoorn et al, 2016; though see Sidhu et al, 2021). It may not be that one size or colour fits all. Particular colours may look more appropriate on particular. We aim to bridge that gap in knowledge by examining the perception of the aesthetic match between clothing colour and different people
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