I have to vent about one pet peeve of mine. Most fashion books and magazines give advice on how to choose colors that flatter your personal coloring, and there’s always one thing I really don’t like.

They say that you should consider how your skin reacts to the sun. If you burn, then you should stick with cooler-toned colors, and if you tan, you should stick with warmer-toned colors. Or they say that fair-skinned women look best in pinks while dark-skinned women look better in warmer colors.

Sorry, but that’s just not true across the board. I have fair skin and I burn in the sun, but when I burn, my skin turns coral, not cool pink. Warmer colors like brown, olive green, peach, and teal make me look my best, while cool colors like gray and pink emphasize my acne scars. There are also darker-skinned women who look jaundiced in warmer colors and need to stick with cooler tones.

A much better way to narrow things down is to try the bracelet trick: put a gold bracelet on one wrist and a silver one on the other. If the silver one looks more natural and blends with your skin, then you’re better off with cooler colors. If the gold one looks better, then you need warmer colors.

Once you’ve narrowed things down, you need to stick with colors that make you look your best and avoid the ones that don’t. Yes, you should experiment with new colors and see what works, but if a color does work, make it a signature for you. You must not waste time or money on colors that don’t work.