Three New Ways to Approach Color This Spring

Yes, we all know that Spring 2010 is all about the nudes and neutrals (thank you, Phoebe Philo!) but that doesnt mean color has gone completely over the rainbow.

But eBay’s The Inside Source is in a brighter sort of mood and have been carefully considering the happy colors their closets cant live without as the weather gets warmer. (And never fearall of their choices look perfect paired with both poppy prints and your preferred shade of khaki.)

1) High-Voltage Neon (see above)
Splashes of neon, from sunglasses to nail polish, are back. But this isnt the mega-watt new wave look of the 80s. This time around, it should be worn in a softer way, Andrea Linett, Creative Director of Lucky magazine, said. We like small touches mixed with light neutrals. Linett suggests a shocking yellow (or pink or orange) tank peeking out from under a soft heather gray scoopneck tee and paired with light gray jeans or a skirt. Little neon bracelets or a bright bag can punch up an outfit without making you feel like youve gone overboard, she added.

2) Coral Alert

Once a color strictly reserved for weekend outings in Palm Beach, coral has outgrown its preppy roots to become the hot new shade of the season. J. Crews spring catalog is a spectrum of coralsfrom blushing nude cardigans to neon nail polishand almost all have found their way onto creative director Jenna Lyons monthly picks in one format or another. But the color is in no way reserved for casual clothing. Its already showing up on red carpets from London to Los Angeles: Demi Moore donned a pale peach gown at the Academy Awards and Gwyneth Paltrow wore a ruffled persimmon cocktail dress to a celebration at Tods. And eBay currently boasts over 100,000 search results for the term coral, from jewelry to clothing to accessories.

3) Nailed! Fashion Inspired by Must-Have Nail Colors

Playful mixes of candy-coated pastels are huge this season, said Stacy Simmons, the individual at nail color Orly company who is responsible for dictating seasonal color palettes. Simmons describes the assortment of soft shades of turquoise, lilac, coral, and butter yellow in the brand’s spring lineup as girlish but confident. Of turquoise pastel, a particular favorite, she says, This will be one of the hottest colors this spring. Reminiscent of one of your favorite Goody Goody gumdrops, this turquoise is very versatile and sweet, yet poppy. Its great for adding a pop of color to your spring wardrobe. (Like the above Orly nail color: Gumdrop from the Sweet Spring 2010 collection.)

Meredith Barnett is the Editorial Director for The Inside Source, a digital style magazine presented by eBay.

Also The Inside Source writers Amy Flurry (Neon), Heather Summerville (Coral) and Emily Hsieh (Turquoise/Nail Color) contributed to this article.

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