Plum, lilac, lavender. All shades of the new hot colour-purple! For years, purple and its hues have been seen only in children’s clothing and acrylic cardigans. Not any more! Women and men are embracing this colour in clothing and accessories.

Here in our beautiful land, colour purple used to be associated with mourning only and it was very rare to see people adorned in purple clothes.

I remember wearing a purple dress to work a year ago and everyone looking at me like I was nuts- but am glad those looks are no more. I have seen both men and women embracing more of purple now than never before.

Purple is a colour full of symbolism and a long association with royalty.  The colour purple denotes affluence, supremacy, dominance and magnificent opulence.  It is also associated with spirituality, mystery and pacification.

Purple was once a much warmer puce colour with hints of crimson.  The first purple dye was made in Tyre in Phoenicia using marine secretions from the snails found in Murex shells.  However the Minoans are also thought to have made a similar royal purple dye using Murex shells found on Crete, but centuries before the Phoenicians made their discovery. 

The dye was always a luxury product and it was as expensive as silver weight for weight then, just as saffron is more costly than gold gram today.  Each snail yielded a drop of liquid which took time to develop into the dye making the dye costly to procure and produce. Tyrian purple had a crimson tinge to it.

Purple is a mixture of red and blue.  Don’t confuse it with violet which is on the end of the indigo blue spectrum, making it a spectral colour. Variation in purple colour is due solely to the combination mix of red to blue rather than to wavelength as in spectral violet.  In good light or as a sheer fabric violet appear more blue toned than purple.  Purple may seem warmer and redder.

The colour purple, especially shades of violet, will definitely make a statement. Wearing purple shows others that you want to be noticed. If it is your desire to feel special and unique then purple is the right colour choice. If you would like to send a message out into the world that you’re one of a kind and that you could care less about conformity, then wear purple.

The trick, however, is in the manner you choose the other accessories and how you combine your purple with other colours depending on the shade of purple you decide to wear. Other bright colours are a big no-no with purple. Pinks, oranges and red are colour which you should not even give a single glance to while deciding to wear something purple.

If you are in the mood to wear a bright shade of purple, then you should consider dark accessories or a black coat to go along. A black skirt / trouser with a light purple top will make you look like royalty.

Dark purple, on the other hand, should be teamed with light neutral colours like beige, cream and off-white. If you don’t want to be ousted by your friends and colleagues in a social gathering couple purple only with blacks, brown, cream, beige, white or on the outside a tan colour. At no cost should you include any other colours.

If you are not confident about being able to decide the right colour mix and are not positive that you can carry off a purple dress but still want to flirt with the colour, you could try adding a hint of purple to your attire by using purple accessories. These could be in the form of buttons, earrings, scarves or pins.

But this piece of advice does not mean that you venture out and wear purple socks or shoes to match your purple shirt. It will smack of being cheap and flashy. Avoid matching any kind of purple dresses which are the same colour from top to bottom. Too much of purple makes you look exactly the opposite of what you want to appear as. Purple should be used selectively with a certain angle to give a hint of nattiness without seeming to be flashy.

The colour purple is beautiful and men and women alike should use it. But still, judicious use of the colour is essential to get the desires result. Purple is a main colour for this season’s fashion and you cannot go wrong with any garment or accessory in such a hot colour as purple.

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