Orange sensation

We’ve come a long way from orange being a fashion faux pas. Most people used to think of orange’s contribution to fashion as being limited to the clashing of ugly oranges against various shades of brown in the 1970s, and since that decade, the colour has been relentlessly silent on the runway…until last year.

In 2011, the colour orange transformed into something unique, different and sensational when it was renamed tangerine. With the addition of some serious trendsetters in the form of celebrities and princesses wearing the colour over the last year, tangerine has become one of the newest and most exciting trends – many might say it has actually been responsible for the movement towards bright colours of all kinds this summer. Spring/summer collections have been using bright orange pieces as part of their capstone collections for the past year, and the popularity of the colour has showed no signs of slowing down.

Many top designers such as Prada and Stella McCartney have turned to bright, fruity colours for inspiration. Banana yellow, tangerine orange and tropical prints are burning up the fashion world. Celebrities are turning to these colours more often in their everyday wear, and orange gowns have been draped on celebrities as they walk down the red carpets over the past year.

Everyone can use a little pop of colour in their wardrobe. Think outside of the norm and do some mixing and matching to create a fabulous look that will stand the test of time. Pairing up a bright tangerine colour with other pieces of more neutral tones gives an otherwise boring ensemble a vivid and bright look, and the flash of colour will bring the ensemble together. The more new collections come out, the more these colours will hit the racks near you, and that means experimentation and some exciting colour choices for women this summer.