One woman’s life-changing reconnection to her true self.

contributed by Jodi Clark

Ten years ago I had my colors professionally analyzed. I was inspired by my chiropractor, who when asked, told me he had been dressing in his colors according to the Suzanne Caygill method since the 1970’s. Not only did he always look pulled together, but his clothing, I believed, made people feel more comfortable with him. It’s hard to explain, but you didn’t notice his clothing as much as you felt a better connection to him. It put you at ease and helped instill trust. It’s like his clothing helped express his personality. It didn’t detract or upstage him.

As an interior designer, I pay attention to color and the psychological effects of it and I wanted to learn more about this system not only for myself, but to help with my customers and design projects. Plus, I always felt a disconnect with my clothing- like it didn’t represent me- and of course it didn’t. I was buying whatever was in fashion, in season or following a certain designer (which is more an expression of themselves) or simply defaulting to black and white.

So, when his friend and color specialist came to visit, I sat down to have my colors done. She used water colors and the whole experience was fascinating. Armed with my painted color palette, I started shopping. To be honest, I found it a bit ambiguous shopping from water colors as I wasn’t sure of the exact colors or fabrics to look for. I was buying clothing in my palette colors but, unfortunately, I still did not feel great wearing them. Eventually, I kind of let it fall to the side thinking I wasn’t doing it right.

When we moved and downsized, I also wanted to down size my wardrobe. I had lots of different things, even some new purchases still with tags but not much that I loved. I was trying to create a capsule wardrobe but was at a loss at how to pull it together.

I found it frustrating because I can do interiors just fine, and I’m great with selecting colors and paint but I could not dress myself. It made me very self conscious, like I wasn’t expressing myself creatively or professionally.

It was only when my hair color started to change that I thought perhaps that was the problem and I needed to get a color tune up.

I looked online in the color analysis groups and found Joan Kosmachuk. Seasonal Color and Style Consultant. I followed her pages and read her articles and I immediately liked her. She was down-to-earth, knowledgeable, and approachable. Color or no color, I wanted to know her. She had recently moved only a few miles away from me and if this wasn’t a sign I don’t know what is, so I reached out.

We set an appointment for a color tune up and I arrived with my painted color palette. After some diplomatic double checking with fabric swatches, we both agreed that there were better colors that “lit me up.” That possibly the reason I did not resonate with my palette was I had been mistyped. I wasn’t a “Vibrant Spring” after all.

Finding my color harmony in nature

After another amazing in-depth color analysis session, I learned that I’m an “Iridescent Summer”- the sun washed colors of summer at the beach and sunset with a little shimmer thrown in. This immediately clicked with me and with everything I’ve gravitated toward since a child and before the disconnect of fashion influence.

My new “Iridescent Summer” palette

I walked away from that session feeling fully seen. I am in love with my new color palette! I went home and recognized my favorite pieces from over the years were all in alignment.

What’s different about Joan is she finds what harmonizes with you- your hair, eyes, and skin of course but then also your energy and personality, not just a cookie cutter season that so many resort to. She has a color lab of thousands of colored fabric swatches in all different fibers- mine have subtle shimmer, are soft like velvet and suedes, which I’ve always loved, my colors are complex.

Joan holds each color swatch up to you to see if it raises your vibration or lowers it, what each quality of color brings out in you. You can see it happen for yourself in the mirror along with her as she tries different colors.

Some colors relate to your eye color

The best part is that once you have your color palette, everything in your closet goes together because you are the common denominator. The colors all connect with you. My clothes no longer wear me. They harmonize with me and put me forward. I’m no longer wearing what’s in season or some other designer’s idea of what to wear. I dress uniquely me. It’s so freeing.

I’m still working (I can’t really call it work because it’s so fun) on rebuilding my wardrobe. I’ve even taken to stripping and custom dying some of my old favorite pieces to get my wardrobe color change jumpstarted. I love making beaded jewelry and am enjoying exploring that as well. Shopping with my fabric swatch fan makes it easy and is always a conversation starter. It’s such a game changer to have this knowledge!

Each color on my palette creates a different effect on myself and others

There have been a few revelations as well.
First, it was the color black. We’ve all been told that black is our friend, especially for anyone wanting to look slimmer. This was a big hurdle for me at first. My closet was literally half black and while I may have had tops in color, I always paired them with black pants or shoes. Joan showed me through examples in her newsletter, what that really looks like. It did nothing for me. It cut me in half and black near my face only brought out my dark circles, drained my face of color and made me look sallow or even sick. It gave the effect of a head disconnected from my body.

A column of color that harmonizes with me is more flattering than wearing black

I found that dressing in a column of “my” colors did so much more for me than black ever did. I don’t look bigger, I just look more vibrant and attention is drawn to my face or my eyes. No more trying to hide in plain sight.

The other revelation was my hair. I’ve only ever highlighted my hair but the toning turns into unflattering colors over time. I’ve come to realize that it does not suit my natural harmony at all. I’m in the process of embracing my greys as it’s more in harmony with the rest of me. I’m excited to be true self.

One last thing- this is a wise investment for sure. As I have gone through my closet, weeding out all the things that don’t suit me, selling some and donating others, I realize all the money I’ve wasted on clothing I didn’t wear or even like. From bargain purchases to thoughtful splurges- there was a lot of wasted money. I spent years standing in front of a closet struggling to find something to wear that I felt good in. To be completely honest, sometimes I felt so broken down by this exercise that I even cancelled going to events last minute.

It’s been a year now, and I no longer have that problem. I love everything in my closet and everything works together harmoniously with each other and me. I feel confident every time I leave the house. Even just running errands, I get compliments. That feeling is priceless.

I’m so grateful to have found Joan. She really has a gift for finding your true essence. I highly recommend that everyone find themselves and their true harmony in colors and nature. And I can’t recommend Joan enough to help you do that.