Finding my Color with Jamie + the Jones

I am the queen of indecision. When I’m making a choice of any significance, I tend to struggle and waver in my selections. I’ve wasted way too much energy and mental space over-thinking my choices. Shopping online for clothes (pretty much the only way I do it) only magnifies that. Which size? What will it really look like in person?  How does it feel? What shade is it really?

Luckily, there are some smart people who are way ahead of me. Let me tell you about Jamie and Hannah, the duo behind Jamie + the Jones. They recognized this was an issue too, and came up with a simple solution – color swatches!

Jamie Frazier and Hannah Jones launched Jamie + the Jones in 2009 after collaborating in design school, where they found a shared vision and complementary talents. Their line is inspired by colors, hues and textures. Impressively, they hand dye a number of their fabrics and produce all of their garments in their Nashville studio! Jamie and Hannah know color, and they’ve smartly found a way to share it with you and me.

You may have seen some photos from their Color Campaign on Instagram, and sort of wondered what all this is about. Well, it’s very clever and yet simple. Here’s how it works.

1. Order your swatches. ($12)
2. Open the envelope and split them up. Lay them on your skin. (Don’t settle for icky florescent light or the yellow-cast of an incandescent bulb. Find a window and utilize that gorgeous natural light!)
3. Pick a few favorites and sleep on it.
4. Choose your color and then select your top style. (Hint: it’s really hard to go wrong with the T-Top.)
5. Wear your new top (or dress!) to do all your favorite things, like eating out, riding your bike, even baby-snuggling.

Here’s how I did it:

When I got my packet in the mail, I was pretty stunned with how beautiful the colors looked in person. I felt like there would be no way I could ever choose. I mean, look at this lineup! They even look beautiful all mixed together. Seeing the shades in person was so valuable, because pictures and computer monitors often don’t do the real item justice. In fact, many of us have computer monitors and devices with displays that project in a wide variety of color temperatures, leaving colors prone to looking different than they might in real life. Seeing the swatches first hand removed that guessing game for me.

I did all my swatching in my bedroom, which has beautiful, natural light. It really made a difference. Do you ever experience a situation where you go outside and suddenly your makeup doesn’t look as good as it did in the bathroom? Or you realize your shades of black don’t quite match? It’s much easier to see how things truly look in natural light, namely our skin and what’s on it.

After studying these pretty little squares I was able to easily narrow it down to three shades: blush, olive and umber, and then I was stuck. I loved hearing all your responses when I posed my question on Instagram; it seemed like many of you preferred the blush. However, in the end, I decided on the umber! Which really surprised me, because before the swatches arrived, I was sure I’d go with olive or blush. But after holding them all up to my skin, I fell for the umber.

A few notes on raw silk.

I first learned about raw silk when I ordered a top from Jamie + the Jones earlier this spring. Let me tell you, it is probably my favorite fabric! It is warm on the skin in winter and perfectly breezy in the summer. It is organic looking, textured and chic. It drapes like a blouse with the utility of a t-shirt. There is a reason you will keep seeing raw silk in more and more places.

Top revealed.

Selecting my preferred silhouette was almost as hard as choosing a color! I was looking to add an updated ‘tee’ style to my closet, so I went with the Staple Basic Tee. It looks fantastic on, and I can’t wait to share how I’m styling it. Be sure to check back next week when I take this top, and one more from Jamie + the Jones for spin!

Cheers to a great weekend!

xo,
Andrea

This post is in partnership with Jamie + the Jones. Thank you for supporting brands who make this blog possible, and more importantly, make the world a better place!