Orange & Gray

Tonight, I was browsing a few ties after work and stumbled upon a a bow tie in oxford gray at BB. It was interesting and It reminded me of this orange striped shirt I've been waiting to wear for sometime now.

Now, this got me thinking what exactly can you wear with, tie wise mind you, with an orange shirt. Orange is a pale enough color so I thought I could pull off a dark green. For some reason I just wasn't feeling it. I let my mind blank and grey came to me. I think I got this idea that I could treat it like pink and it would pop out at me against a grey.

I was really right. The darker grays such as charcoal make it seem brighter. Oxford and medium grays make the orange appear normal; not too bright and not too pale. Light grays or gray patterns on a white ground make the orange look like a pastel or pale color. Take a look and my photos. The bow tie was purchased today and the straight Glen Check patterned tie I've had for at least a year.

With the darker gray the shirt appears to be brighter.

With the white ground underneath the stripes this appears to make the orange a pastel almost a salmon pink color

See what I mean. Play around with this and discover what you like and what looks good with you. Also, know this, depending on the seasons you can use this to play on the suit you are wearing. In Winter and Fall, darker colors are worn more frequently so, we could use a darker tie and contrast with a brighter orange shirt. The reverse is true for Summer and Spring so, a lighter tie will bring the color down and let you play with a pocket square or lead with some go to hell pants.