Demystifying fashion colour coding across Europe…
He gazed down haughtily at me…from the thick folds of his sumptuous velvet purple cloak studded with rich gold embroidery, his white stockinged legs poised perfectly to flaunt his extravagant red block-heeled shoes. I locked eyes with Louis XIV. Was I was more enamoured by the craft of the artist who had painted this magnificent canvas oozing power, defiance and superiority from every inch or the sizzling persona of the French monarch himself? I couldn’t decide.
They say the dressing diktats of the royals defined fashion in the bygone era…and I was struck to note nobles in bold patterns and daring loud colours in several paintings from Louis XVI’s time. Women’s gowns, on the other hand, reflected soft, delicate pastels like peach, powder blue and cream. Or dark, luxurious indulgent hues like burgundy, emerald green and navy. So much colour!
Later that evening, standing outside the Opera House, as I scanned the busy office-goers scurrying around Paris’ buzzing commercial centre, all I could see was black, black and more black, some greys and browns, but largely black. What a shift! How did this happen? When did France, and most of Northern Europe redefine the fashion colour code…shunning the cheer of colours for the no-nonsense of neutrals, specially black?
Random googling revealed surprising facts…the ancient craft of dyeing and colour, originated in India as long back as 2,000 BC, and seeped through the Mediterranean into Europe during the 15th- and 16th-centuries, when the Ottoman empire was at its zenith. It was us Indians who gifted the world with rainbow colours…how boring everything would have been in black-and-white! How fascinating that tropical colours like indigo, purple and saffron, derived from materials that could not thrive in typical European climates, were considered precious commodities in that era, affordable only by the elite. For instance, purple was the rarest of colours, prepared by boiling thousands of marine snails in giant lead vats for days! No wonder it was the designated colour of royalty. My wardrobe has a lot of purple and Vikas can’t resist mauve ties and violet shirts…boy, am I glad that we weren’t born in that era. We would have been imprisoned or even killed for ‘crossing the coloured line’.
I’ve always wondered why black carries the distinction that it does and now I know. In the West, black has always kept a close association with solemnity, mourning, and sanctity. From the medieval era, when black became the colour for monks’ robes, to when the followers of the religious order started donating their old garments to the poor, the popularity of the colour rose. Maybe people were discouraged from wearing brighter colours, in favour of black cloth, which was easier and cheaper to produce locally. But that was then.
Fashion gurus believe that the real turning point came in the 19th century, when famous French impressionist painters started using black in their artworks to depict women’s fashion. 19th-century German poet Goethe, is said to have believed that “people of refinement avoid vivid colours”. In those days, people of his stature probably influenced fashion and colour choices irrevocably. But the real credit possibly goes to Chanel’s ‘little black dress’, which hit the ramp in 1926. It was because of her that black truly became the epitome of style, elegance, dignity, luxury, authority and power. And that’s how it stays till today. No wardrobe is complete without an essential touch of sophisticated black. What a journey from cheap to chic!
Passing by Louvre later, the queue of tourists was still thick in the evening. Here in Paris, where even tourists come with largely blacks outfits in their bags…I caught glimpses of deep purple sweaters, scarlet red scarves and neon pink nail paint. The overall mood in the city of lights, like in the rest of North Europe remains neutral…whites, greys, beiges, off-whites, olives, browns, but those shots of colour off and on, stand out like magnetic flashes in the dark. Fashion influences from lower down the continent, surely? From Portugal in the far west through Spain, Croatia, Italy, Greece and Turkey in the east, colour permeates not just wardrobes, but cityscapes, architecture, culture and food. The seas are greener. And the skies are bluer.
Such is the call of vibrancy…that even true-blue North Europeans are slowly getting comfortable with colours. The love affair with black, however, continues, timelessly!
100cobbledroads.com 
Very interesting, great read with some nice history
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Thanks! Happy that you enjoyed it. 🙂
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I like your perspective on European dressing; you’re right, we do wear a lot of black. I suppose it’s seen as sophisticated and it hides a multitude of sins!
An interesting read 🙂
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Thanks for your comment.. Black is mysterious too! 🙂
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Very interesting and a perspective we never thought of. Its intriguing to think on when wearing those graceful and elegant colors were considered royal how did black turn out to be color of sophistication. Black is ofcourse boring and monotonous and would love to see more of colors around.
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That is why I love reading about little facts…just adds so much more perspective
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I wasn’t expecting an article like this, but I enjoyed the reading! And I like to wear black too, but I’m trying to quit ahahah
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Travel awakens all your six senses…one of those moments inspired this post 🙂
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Such an interesting take on European fashion. And I certainly feel compelled to agree with Goethe here… Certainly, when I am trying to portray myself respectably, I tend to wear darker colors while when I am letting loose with a couple of beers, I more closely resemble a bowlful of particular tropical fruit. Certainly the Louvre would be a great place to conduct such an experiment
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Glad you enjoyed the post. Wonderful example of yourself you mention…Goethe would have liked your company 🙂
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So much of history in these colors of dress. I too noticed too many shades of black and grey there.
I like how this observation provoked a post from you. 🙂
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Thank you, Indrani. The travel experience is more than just seeing a place, I feel. Its about absorbing with all your six senses.
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I think that black makes us comfortable and we wear it because we don’t want to stand out. More than half of my wardrobe is black and I’ve only noticed recently. I guess the colors we wear also state the mood we are in, in a way. A sad person will never wear red, right? I guess people are more unhappier now that in the past and that’s why they wear black.
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The reverse also works…color therapy os based on that principle 🙂
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This was such an interesting read! It reminds me a lot of learning history at school, this was always the stuff I wanted to know. The French certainly like their noir now!
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Thank you for the comment. Its good to know we share a love for history 🙂
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Wow what an interesting article! Based on the title it was not what I expected! Haha! Your writing is so descriptive and beautiful!
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So glad you enjoyed the read 🙂
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Your post makes an interesting read! I didn’t know that colors were originated in India! Thanks to Coco Chanel for changing the perspective of Global Fashion Industry by introducing the little black dress!
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Happy that you found the post insightful 🙂
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I had never thought about the the history of colour and clothing, and now that I think about it, I see more black than I realise. Very insightful insightful.
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Thank you so much. It means a lot to me.
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Wow! Your article is very well written. I learned so much and enjoyed reading it! Great job 🙂 I look forward to reading more of your articles!
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Thank you so much for your generous comment 🙂 Much appreciated.
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This was a really funny and insightful article! We Northern Europeans always marvel at the brilliant colours in India, but never really consider how sad and depressing our appearence must look to you… While I’m not brave enough to stand out in bright colours, I always try to have some sort of eye-catcher (bright green umbrella, pink hat, purple shoes)! It’s a start… 😉
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Well, its not sad and depressing, but certainly thought-provoking. Yes, colors do come naturally to us Indians, but I suppose global influences are affecting everyone…color choices in dressing are getting more situational, for us too.
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Interesting read!
I like the amount of research you’ve done for this piece! Thanks for sharing!
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Learning makes travelling deeper..I enjoy it :
)
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Paris and fashion always feature in teh same sentence but it is great to see you get deeper nto history and explore the same in such detail!
The Indian connection to dyeing and colour reminded me of some alleys in Old Delhi that used to be the hubs of such trades.
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This is a fascinating post. It is indeed a contrast when you step out of the museums of Paris which are full of kaleidoscopic colours, and find the roads awash in sombre black and white. Indian has lent its colours to the world and made the world a more colourful place to live.
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Thanks for your generous comment. Little observations like these make our travels richer.
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I am guilty fo wearing black or neutral colors as well. It is just so much easier to combine. I am kinda scared of vivid colors, it just doesn’t fit my personality. But I think the biggest problem is that nowadays we are all wearing “uniforms” of what fast fashion shops are selling us so inevitably we all wear black coats in the winter for example. Just look at that queue!
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I wouldn’t say you’re “guilty” 🙂 But yes, you’re right…supply dictates fashion and fashion dictates supply. Its a vicious circle.
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Very interested post, I had never thought about fashion that way! I had actually never realised that black was so common here in Europe. Most of the time I wear all types of colours, but in my case almost of my clothes are blue! Europe is quite diverse though, so probably it is quite different depending on the country. In fact, every time that I go back home to Spain, I notice how different everyone dresses compared to Ireland!
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Yes, I notice a big difference in Northern and Southern European countries…again possibly more influence from the East down below 🙂
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This is great! Learned quite a lot in the couple of minutes it took me to read your article. Thanks for sharing!
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Thank you so much!
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Since I watched the film Da Vinvi code and the other film of Dan Brown I was fascinated with Europe and hoping and planning to see with my own eyes those famouse streets and places
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Yeah, that’s really fun, isn’t it? Going to a place you’ve seen in a movie..
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