How many colours a wardrobe needs

Short answer: Five colours are enough, two dark neutrals, one light neutral and two accents. More colours do not give more combinations, they usually give fewer.

Why fewer colours give more outfits

Each garment can only be worn with the garments it actually matches in colour and style. If all garments share a small colour universe, each single piece can combine with almost everything else in the wardrobe. With fifteen different colours, each garment usually only combines with a couple of others.

The role of the five colours

Two dark neutrals typically carry bottoms and outer layers, because they withstand the most and hide stains best through a busy day. One light neutral carries tops close to the face, while the two accents provide variation and personality without threatening the system.

How to find your five

Look at the clothes you actually wear right now and count up the colours in a simple list. The three colours that recur most often are usually your real base colours. Build from there instead of starting over with a whole new colour choice. See bamboo clothing for women.

Black and white as neutrals

Black and white count as neutrals and can therefore be combined with almost everything else in the wardrobe without trouble. They are often the most valuable colours to own several garments in, precisely because they never create a problem.

Can the accents be swapped

Yes, that is actually the point of the system. The base colours stay put year after year, while the accents can shift with season, mood and taste without upsetting the rest of the wardrobe or requiring new base garments. See bamboo clothing for men and bamboo t-shirts for men.

Patterns count too

A pattern counts as all the colours it actually contains, not just the main colour you notice first. Keep patterned garments within your five colours, otherwise you end up with a piece that does not match anything else in the wardrobe.

Colours across seasons

The five colours do not need to change with the seasons, even though materials and thickness do. A dark neutral works just as well in a thin summer trouser as in a warm winter trouser, so the system holds all year without starting over each season.

Keep the system from growing

New colours easily creep into the wardrobe if you are not deliberate about it with every new purchase. Ask yourself whether a new garment fits the five existing colours before buying it, otherwise the number slowly grows without you noticing it.