Conventional wisdom says brown belongs in the Fall color palette. Where do these assumptions come from, anyway?  Maybe the best muse for humans is mother nature where brown shows up in the autumnal palette. I’m also sure the physiological aspects of color have something to do with the conventional seasonal fashion palettes — isn’t dark brown retentive of summer heat?  However, will an airy, breathable fabric in a deep chocolate brown work for summer?  Or brown combined with cool white gauze? (Hand raised) Or, with cheery pastel cotton?  I am currently loving the brown and blue palette; plus, there’s stuff in my fabric stash that fulfills the aesthetic, and I am always on the lookout for inspiration.

In this post, I’ve dipped my toes in the South Asian ”stylist” pond, to see how one white kurta and dark brown wide-leg pant could go summery casual (right) and then be somewhat dressier with a dupatta switch and silver earrings to get the blingy blue and brown combination that is now my summer go-to palette. Its difficult to see the small shiny bits on the blue dupatta (scarf) so here’s a close-up. The little silver bits are made with very narrow metal strips. It is called “kamdani” embroidery and needs specialized skills passed on by one artisan to another.

I’m sure a real stylist could have refined these looks a little more, but this is what you get with me.  The shoes are go-to black wedges because my shiny turqoiuse blue flat sandals did not work.  However, everything looks good with these black wedges.  Just so I don’t forget that I live in the Southern US, the sleeveless blue top is already getting a workout, paired with the same pants.

For some minimalist and curated wardrobes, the other blue-brown combo is khaki and blue chambray.  But I have branched out from khaki and gone into deep dark-chocolate brown. Wanna see some inspiration from Pinterest? You can visit my blue and brown palette Pinterest Board where I’m still adding inspiration and ideas.

There you have it — one pair of pants and two tops covering two cultural spectrums. And there’s more blue/brown stuff to come; take a look at what’s hanging on the door. What’s not included is my turquoise blue pants and the white ponte pants.

Okay, guys, until next week, start having a great summer! Be careful anyway. I am taking baby steps and stepping out mindfully. I am actually beginning to like some things that were done previously due to precautionary measures during the pandemic; why did I not buy groceries with curbside pickup before this? It was available at my local grocery store pre-pandemic. I love curbside because I hate grocery shopping. Period.

Samina