The Power of Color

By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS    

There is nothing that influences us in our daily lives quite as much as color.

One of the most powerful means of communications and expression, color can influence the way we think, feel and perceive the world we live in.

Color is a key factor in corporate branding and marketing, and nearly 90 percent of impulse buying is based on color preference.

The color of the clothes and accessories we wear also play a role in how we express ourselves to the rest of the world, and are a reflection of our variable moods and attitudes.

And as it turns out, Thursday, March 21, is International Color Day, and in keeping with that theme, Comex, Mexico’s largest exterior and interior paint company, offered a special seminar last week on the commercial, emotional and psychological effects of color in our daily lives.

Mexicans, it seems (or so says Comex’s color-life program director Hectór Escamilla), tend to be color-shy, at least when it comes to painting the insides and outsides of their houses, with more than half of all consumers opting for some shade of white or ivory over more vivid hues in their home décor.

When they do choose colors, Escamilla said, they general prefer bright, intense tones such as tangerine orange and royal blue.

And as for the average Mexican woman’s fashion color of choice, the hands-down favorite is black, year-round, day and night.

In fact, black is worn more in Mexico than red, blue, green and yellow combined, and nearly every Mexican fashionista has at least 12 LBDs in her closet.

So in keeping with the celebration of International Color Day, we offer up a sampling of colorful new products that can help brighten and enliven your style and get you rainbow chic.

Mexico on Parade

The 25th edition of the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Mexico (MBFW-MX) is set to open on Monday, April 1, at the elegant Four Seasons Hotel in Mexico City, with more than 30 Mexican designers participating.

The five-day event will be a somewhat more modest catwalk than in seasons past, due no doubt to the fact that the Mexico City government is not co-sponsoring this time around (probably because the new populist National Regeneration Movement, or Morena, administration of Claudia Sheinbaum feels that fashion is too “fifi” to merit any financial support, despite the fact that fashion and design account for more than 7 percent of Mexico’s Gross Domestic Product).

The second, third and fourth days of MBFW-MX will be held at the Frontón México installations in the capital’s more grungy Colonia Tabacalera, with plenty of up-and-coming newcomers to the design game on parade.

The grand finale of the of MBFW-MX fashion extravaganza will be held in Bosques de Chapultepec, headlined by some of Mexico’s most hard-hitting runway icons, like Pineda Covalin and Kris Goyri.

And what can we expect from the much-anticipated preview of what will be au courant come fall and winter?

If Mexico’s last season and other MBFW presentations for fall/winter are any indication, there will be classic capes with indigenous embroidering, waist-tailors pants with flared legs that almost touch the ground, lacey, frilly blouses with big billowy sleeves, and ultra-dainty shoes and clutch handbags with ethnic detailing.

And, yes, color, plenty of color in bright unmuted shades of aquatic turquoises, heathery burgundies and auburn red, as well as radiant Mexican flamingo pinks, eye-popping canary yellows, opulent forest greens and lush majestic purples.

MBFW-MX is always a big draw for fashion fanatics, and it is a great guide for helping you to get out of that black-wardrobe rut and get your color groove on for fall and winter.

15 Years of Dauntless Color Blocking

One Mexican designer who has never been afraid to put bold color front and forward in his designs is Enrique Solano, who just celebrated his 15th anniversary as a master haute couturist.

Solano’s latest full-on creations are modern classic pantsuits and retro-glam evening gowns in no-holds-barred, mega-intense chromes that are far more fearless than his previous mix-and-match collections of fluffy floral prints and lacy synthetics.

This time around, Solano has stuck to statement-making solids in audacious primary colors.

Solano, who recently took a year and a half off from designing to attend to his ailing mother after she suffered a stroke, is definitely back with a vengeance, along with his signature smart style that is sure to grab the color-conscious clotheshorse this season.

Boldly Black-and-White

Another Mexican fashion house that is daring to break the color barriers — this time in stark, contrasting black-and-white, with only occasional pops of luxuriant gold and beige — is relatively new Esånt, led by the young Sonoran designer Aline Díaz Gámez.

In her latest cruise collection, Díaz Gámez sticks almost entirely to solid linens, silks and cottons with an unabashed boldness that establishes presence and conveys a message of intrepid tenacity, while focusing attention on Esånt’s trademark undulating cuts and designs.

Díaz Gámez’s garments are sensuously loose and flowing, with plenty of skin-revealing provocation.

Available on line or in Mexico City’s Naked Boutique at Córdoba 25 in Colonia Roma Norte, the new Esånt collection emphasizes ultimate femininity with classy, sassy drapes and soft, voluminous styling.

Bling It On

You can take your love of color to the next level by pairing up your du jour ensemble by adding chromaticity to your bling.

Just like in garments, the trend for jewelry this season is bold and adventurous.

Forget those dainty necklaces and classic hoop earrings.

The new accessory style is about standout conversation pieces with unapologetic panaché, and Mexican design house Iconique has captured that concept with its latest collection.

This scintillating collection is the epitome of maximal jewelry, interfusing ladylike elegance with bigger-is-better slabs of polished rocks and sparling Swarovski zirconium gems in tender pastel hues.

Never forgetting her Mexican roots, Ruth Zamorano, the Nayarit artist who created the Iconique brand, firmly believes in vintage vogue made timeless through uncompromised quality.