Life in Colour

This week I'm walking you through the colours that are about to land in stores for spring and summer here in the Southern Hemisphere: straight from the Pantone London Fashion Week Trend Palette and the Pantone New York report. I go colour by colour and tell you which colour season each one belongs to, which sister palettes can borrow it, and how to actually wear it because seeing a swatch on a screen is never quite the same as having it explained to you.

You'll hear me talk through burnished lilac, tea berry, pale banana, mandarin orange, amaranth, tickled pink, amethyst orchid, caramel, Dutch canal blue and shale green from the London report, plus acacia, marina, musk melon, alexandrite teal, lava falls, dusty rose, t-rose and burnt sienna from New York — along with the seasonless neutrals from both.

If you're in the Northern Hemisphere, you've probably already seen these colours land in stores so this episode is really for those of us in Australia and New Zealand who are just starting to see them come through.

Links to the Pantone reports are below so you can see the colours as I talk about them. Pantone London Fashion Week Trend Report & Pantone New York Trend Report.

A note on shopping overseas I mention this in the episode and I'll say it again here — if you're in the Southern Hemisphere and feeling like you're seeing the same things over and over in store, try shopping overseas online. Smaller population, smaller range in our shops. I've just done this myself for a set I found on Instagram. And if you're in the Northern Hemisphere heading into your off-season, you can do the same in reverse.

How to work with me

If listening to this made you wonder where your own colours actually sit here's where to start.

Virtual Colour Analysis: $150 a full colour analysis done virtually, so you know exactly which of these seasonal colours are yours to wear.

The Colour Collective: $32.95/month My monthly membership, for ongoing support, outfit ideas, and "What's In Store" content like this episode — but personalised to your palette every month.

The Style Reset: $997 My 1:1 premium programme, for anyone ready to properly rebuild their wardrobe around their colours and their life.

The easiest way to reach me about any of these is a DM on Instagram. I read every one myself. Instagram: @lovingcolour__ Website: lovingcolour.au If you enjoyed this episode, a review would mean the world and it helps other women find the podcast.

This week's episode is inspired by something doing the rounds on Instagram, the "worth the money" trend, but from my perspective as a personal colour stylist.

I'm not talking about must-have basics or trend pieces. I'm talking about the five things I genuinely think are worth investing in if you want your wardrobe to actually work for you, not against you.

In this episode I cover:

Why a properly fitted bra is the real foundation of every outfit (and how often this gets overlooked)

The difference between trend neutrals and your neutrals — and why wearing the wrong ones could be working against you

Why tailoring matters more than price, and how a $20 op-shop find altered properly will always beat an ill-fitting $200 piece

The case for one genuinely good coat, blazer or jacket in one of your best colours, not a safe neutral

Why knowing your colours (not guessing them) changes everything else on this list

I also share what my own everyday neutrals look like as a Light Summer, versus my daughter's as a Deep Autumn, to show just how different "the basics" can look depending on your colouring.

If this episode has you wondering what your own colours actually are, you can find out through a Virtual Colour Analysis with me — done online, at your own pace, no guesswork involved.

👉 lovingcolour.au/colour-analysis

If you enjoyed this episode, I'd love it if you'd subscribe or leave a review — it genuinely helps more women find the show.

Ashley 💕

Your season never changes. But how you feel about wearing certain colours within it? That can shift completely and it doesn't mean something's gone wrong.

This week I chat about why a client might suddenly love a colour she used to avoid, or why you might open your wardrobe and just not want to reach for something you know suits you. It's not your colours. It's your relationship with them.

In this episode:

The emotional baggage we attach to colours — school uniforms, hard seasons, and why "I could never wear that" is rarely actually about the colour

My own story of retreating into "safe" colours (blush pink, navy, white, grey, denim) during years of serious health struggles, and what that taught me about clothing as control

The real difference between colour fatigue and styling fatigue and why it's almost always the second one

Why having your colours analysed doesn't shrink your options, it expands them (I wears more shades now than she ever did before her own analysis)

Permission to evolve: your colours stay the same, but you're allowed to take a break from one, come back to another, and keep discovering new favourites within your palette

Mentioned in this episode:

Last week's episode: Breaking Up With Platinum Blonde [link to episode]

The Colour Collective — Ashley's monthly membership for women who want ongoing colour and styling support [link]

Virtual Colour Analysis — if you're ready to find your own palette [link]

Ashley 💕

After 18 years as a platinum blonde, I finally made the call to go brunette. In this episode I'm talking through the why behind it, the how of actually doing it, and what it's been like navigating my own colour journey through the exact same lens I use with clients every day.

I get into what actually prompted the change, why I'm taking the slow road toward a cool, ashy dimensional blonde rather than rushing it, and how understanding my own colours has shaped every decision along the way. It's been a strange thing, letting go of a look that's been "me" for almost two decades — even when I know it's the right call.

If you've ever felt torn about changing something that's been part of your identity for a long time, I think you'll relate to this one.

I'd love to know if this one resonates with you — send me a DM or email ashley@lovingcolour.au, and if you're ready to go deeper, let's chat about a Virtual Colour Analysis, The Colour Collective, or The Style Reset.
www.lovingcolour.au

There's a theme that keeps coming up with my Style Reset clients lately: the belief that you're not "stylish enough" to dress well. I hear it all the time, and I totally get it — but it's so far from the truth.

In this episode I'm dispelling that myth for good. We talk about the real difference between being stylish and just feeling good in what you wear, why outfit formulas are simpler than you'd think, and why dressing well is a skill set, not something you're born with. I also share the three things to do if you're ready to move out of this mindset: stop comparing, get curious about your style personality, and understand your colours.

If "stylish" has ever made you feel like you don't belong in the conversation about clothes, I hope this helps you let that go.

In this episode:

Why "I'm not stylish enough" is a myth I want to bust

Stylish vs. just feeling good in your clothes

How outfit formulas actually work

Why dressing well is a skill set, not something innate

Taking inspiration without falling into comparison

Finding your own style personality

Why colour is foundational to loving what you wear

I'd love to know if this one resonates with you — send me a DM or email ashley@lovingcolour.au, and if you're ready to go deeper, let's chat about a Virtual Colour Analysis, The Colour Collective, or The Style Reset.
www.lovingcolour.au

Ashley 💕