July 31, 2023
Olive! Oh, do I have advice…
If you really want to build a core wardrobe in olive green, be prepared to work with colors that blend, rather than match perfectly. Couple the difficulty of even FINDING olive clothes, with the way that different companies call all sorts of different colors “olive,” and you’ve got a project on your hands!
My approach would be to buy a couple of rolls of packing tape, and then mail order a BUNCH of olive garments, and then return anything that didn’t work.
And get some paint swatches, or lengths of embroidery floss, and keep them with you at all times! You never know when the unexpected craft show will offer up the perfect scarf, or necklace…
But I finally managed to get some things to work out! Persistence…
The easiest outfit is always 3 solid, matching garments. This doesn’t have to be boring – a scarf or necklace, some earrings, a little bit of texture…
Tee shirt – Banana Republic; earrings – Daisy Charmed; corduroy shirt – L.L.Bean; pants – Banana Republic; scarf – The Met Store; boots – Franco Sarto
To me, the easiest color to match is black! I would risk this outfit, even though I’m not wild about olive, just to wear this sweater, scarf and earrings!
Tee shirt – Banana Republic; earrings – House of Elliott; scarf – Kueen; pants – Banana Republic; cashmere cardigan – L.L.Bean; boots – Franco Sarto
A warm color is always going to look good with camel; here again, the scarf makes a difference, but I think the gold with stone in the earrings helps pull the colors together too.
Tee shirt – Banana Republic; earrings- Nordstrom; cardigan – L.L.Bean; pants – Banana Republic; scarf – Aventura; loafers – Cole Haan
Navy? Always. The only color I don’t put with navy is black, and that’s a personal failing on my part!
How about that labradorite pendant?
Tee shirt – Banana Republic; necklace – Banana Republic; earrings – Latelita; pants – Banana Republic; cardigan – J.Crew; loafers – Earth
Grey doesn’t feel like a natural fit with olive, but think of a pretty olive stone set in silver…
Tee shirt – Banana Republic; earrings – Bling Jewelry; cardigan – L.L.Bean; pants – Banana Republic; scarf – Ilona Tambor; loafers – Eastland 1955 Edition
Brown and green are naturals, literally! Every green plant grows up out of brown soil; nothing could be better…
Tee shirt – Banana Republic; necklace – Bocar; earrings – Aqua; pants – Banana Republic; cardigan – H&M; boots – Aerosoles
Denim is a neutral; we are so used to seeing it worn with everything, it’s THE neutral for most people!
Tee shirt – Banana Republic; silver necklace – Banana Republic; earrings – Banana Republic; pants – Banana Republic; denim jacket – L.L.Bean; sneakers – Cariuma
In hot weather (uh, like now?) you can certainly wear olive with white; our tee shirt and pants core would be perfect with olive sandals and a white linen shirt worn over…
And any shade of off-white – ivory, bone etc. – will work the same way!
Tee shirt – Banana Republic; earrings – Kendra Scott; cardigan – L.L.Bean; pants – Banana Republic; scarf – Fable England; sneakers – Sorel
I’m really eager to pair olive with some accent colors – I’m feeling the call of rust, orange, gold, turquoise…
love,
Janice
p.s. Eight years ago, our heroine was swept away to a spa weekend…
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I’m not a fan of olive AT ALL, but wait! it actually looks great with the silver-grey accents, & that’s a really beautiful scarf!
I get so many compliments when I wear Olive Green. That and Dark Teal Blue are the best colors for me and I wear them with white, ivory, dark brown, camel, lime green (yes, with olive), and some others. For me, it’s a super neutral! I don’t wear gray, but you really pulled that together!! Thanks for posting!
Olive and denim with grey, black and peach accents are my colors for my travel capsule for my week away in Lake George next week. Depending on the weather forecast it will be a travel six pack or whatever’s clean 13. I just wish I had even one of the scarves you showed to add to my capsule!
+1 on the lime with warm olive! also coral & turquoise and amber! 😊
Thanks for this inspiration. Agree w/Susan – olive is a super neutral! +1 for wearing warm olive (on the bottom) with ivory, camel, navy, heather gray (esp tees), and denim neutrals AND coral, violet, turquoise, dark rosey pink, and sky blue! If I had a bit more gumption, I’d also do the lime green. :)
The scarves and jewelry do a lot of work here.
You’d think, with the rise in online shopping, retailers would standardize color names for the sake of the planet.
Olive is not a color for me, but I’ve seen is paired with teal, true red (without blue or yellow added) and a gold/mustard. Coral, that’s a bit muted, is also very pretty with olive. There is a color out there called rosewood, a softer pink, that looks very pretty with olive. It looks lovely on certain people.
The navy, the denim jacket and that soft hooded grey sweater are my favourites.
I’m really looking forward to see the post with the accent colours. I just began pairing aqua and turquoise with sage or olive green a couple of years ago. I get a few surprises looks from people sometimes but I really like how the colours work together.
The look back was great fun, dreaming about a romantic spa getaway weekend wearing gorgeous clothes.
Olive in the shade that is most flattering to me is hard to find in retail. When I find it, I stock up. The last two years have been excellent for stocking up. Since then, olive has become one of my most successful foundation colors. I wear it with purple, navy, and black. Only very recently have I tried it with grey. The grey is an acquired taste. At first, it did not work to my eye, but that has passed and now I wear it in regular rotation (especially at the gym).
I have not yet made peace with olive combined with sky blue. This should be a given but for reasons I have not figured out, it does not work to my eye. It feels like they clash. If anyone has a suggestion, I am all ears.
Another olive lover, and I stock up as well. Thanks for the reminder to acquire the basic T shirts for work!
Sky blue with a turquoise base, rather than ultramarine base seems to work. I also think it’s the tone of the olive. Mine could be considered “rich dark sage” and that might be why turquoise based blues work.
Dustier, more khaki notes in the olive work better with more royal to navy blues.
I’ve got bright red hair and the coloring that goes along with it, though.
Grey is a new affection of mine. I love grey with greens. Brighter, almost slivery fog grey blends forest and olive (or forest and sage) quite well, deeper greys tend to work on heathered olive.
I love this! Decades ago (in the late 1970s), 17 magazine had an article that paired camouflage with lavender, so I like to pair olive with lavender.
I love to wear a cool, not warm, olive green. Especially as a bottom item. I wear tops of navy, any purple shade, plum, denim, ivory, coral and pink. Finding a cool olive is not easy and I snap them up whenever I see them. I really like the Fable scarf!
Yes, this is how I wear the color as well. Must be a cool shade. It brings out the deep cool olive tones in my hazel eyes.
I look great in olive, but have only just started to add it to my wardrobe – I have a tshirt, cardigan and pants… they don’t match, but do blend, so thank you for that Janice. Typically I wear a scarf to tie things in. I’ve worn it with black, navy, and gray – I think I have a scarf that ties in the gray and the olive, but it escapes me exactly which one that is right now…..Gray not really my favorite to wear. I do also have that cute Koala scarf you featured some time ago – which works wonderfully on a lot of my outfits. I’ve used that to tie in a pumpkin cardigan with the inner column of Olive. Looking forward to seeing other colors….
I don’t love olive, but I do like what you have done here. Very useful for those who wear olive!
This is one of my favorite posts. I love olive but with silver hair it’s not my best color near my face so I indulge myself with purses, bags, boots, cardigans etc. Working in camo is a neutral color for me. Camo goes goes with a lot of things but it is a pattern so I’m careful with it. Brown is my best mix but turquoise and olive or red, I especially like the faded denim red or an old red sweatshirt with my olive jeans. Can’t wait to see the rest. 🌹Love your posts. I save to Pinterest all the time. I call it my V files.
I love olive green and I wear it a lot. Accessories and accents in cognac/caramel would be nice to see!
Olive is “supposed to” be one of my worst colors, but I actually like it as an accent neutral, worn away from my face. I love it with black or denim, and especially with pink, either icy or hot.
Janice,
Blush, Peach ,coral, burgundy, rust, copper , and golden yellow also look great with olive !
I will refer back to this list when I get to the olive with brighter accents post! I’m going to detour to the “Six Paintings” for the rest of this week, but I will revisit olive next Monday, and THEN look at navy with various colors.
hugs hugs hugs,
Janice
Oh, so excited for navy!!
Though this post is about olive with neutrals .
I wear Olive green & find it easy to come by in clothing & accessories many places such LL. Bean, Lands End, Clarks, Frye, Coach etc. Yes please I wear Olive with the other colors you’re thinking of showing it with, so I’d love to see your take on them, Janice! I think maybe the reason I find Olive & other colors & color combinations I love & find easy to find & wear but then I keep being surprised that you don’t is that we have different coloring & preferences, which is great!
Kettlewell (available in the UK but I believe globally) have great tones and intensity of Olives, worth a look if hire looking for different options.
I agree that if you can find an olive color you like that comes in multiple pieces, buying them all at once will ultimately simplify your life! I mix and match olive with a cooler, somewhat lighter sage green (that I have several pieces in), and though it seems like it shouldn’t work, I think it does. The colors are similar enough to blend but distinct enough that it looks like I put two colors together instead of accidentally mis-matching my olives, if that makes sense. I think a dose of perceived intentionality can work wonders for making an outfit seem like a coherent look.
Every color combination and outfit here is a winner to me! The denim blue sneakers are very tempting, and the labradorite pendant is gorgeous.
When I wear olive, people start calling the casket maker. But I love some of the accent pieces to wear with other colours! Always something to learn, to like, and to think about with every post. And I want allllll the shoes.
I am unable to reply directly to Megan’s comment but wanted to say: Yes! Each of us as individuals is the missing element that Janice obviously can’t supply for us with any capsules/outfits she puts together. Some of the meh combinations will look spectacular when the right person puts it on, bringing the colors together or giving them a spark of life through the addition of her own coloration and personality. And combos that look great on screen can look insipid in real life if they don’t work with us as individuals. This isn’t to say there isn’t value to examining and analyzing these combinations! But I agree that it can help explain why a given color combo is a go-to for one person and avoided by another.
This is my favorite post you have made! I would wear every one the outfits! Olive is great! Black has been my color, but now for sure I will add Olive! You showed me it goes with everything!
Such a lovely look-back wardrobe :)
Olive is such a good color – it’s one of the ones I’m considering as a main color in my wardrobe right now. I’d love to see it with burgundy, or terra cotta, or a warm yellow – but especially with a dark teal (that’s the main color I’m trying to get it to work with right now).
Olive and deep teal can work as an alternative to Navy+olive.
I’m packing a capsule for NYC travels and have opened for olive trousers with teal throw over shirt and teal trainers and deep purple T-shirt- accented with gold. And it definitely works 👍🏽
I agree with Megan and Sally, it depends on the person that wears the capsule.
For me, all the colors should have a warm undertone. So I could not wear navy. I am glad you showed the combination with grey, that might be my second core soon, allthough I think that for me, it should be little warmer too. (heather grey?)
I like to wear olive with warm colored jewelry too, like warm yellow gold, warm red gold, copper, bronze or leather.
Yes! Waiting for the Monday post!
Love olive green, but it must be a cool olive green to work with my undertone. Unfortunately, it’s not an easy shade to find.
Thanks for this update. Deep olive/ Moss is one of my ‘best colours’ as a ‘Deep and Warm’ colour palette and I’ve recently added 2 basics in this colour. The best colours I do find it works well is a Navy or even a deep purple, as it accents beautifully also. Another colour to try as a contrast is Fuschia, as this used to be on my favourites but since discovering undertones and appropriate colours, I’ve gone towards deeper warm purple instead.
Accessories I think you can opt for silver, especially with natural stones like Amber (olive or golden yellow). Personally I love Gold or bronze accessories, as they provide more depth to olive.
I think Olive can work as a great contemporary additional neutral, it just depends on the depth and tone of the Olive.
Loving the series, Thanks xx
I don’t know how to tell the difference between warm and cool shades of the same color. Any advice?
Cindy, Imogen Lamport at Inside Out Style Blog has done a LOT of posts about the undertones of color. I did this search on google to find a bunch of posts where she talks either about the difference between warm and cool undertones generally or applied to specific hues. She includes lots of image examples showing a range of cool to warm undertone within a hue that can be very helpful to start visualizing the concept.
site:insideoutstyleblog.com undertones
It can be difficult for some people to see the differences at first, but once you start seeing it, it will become second nature. Of course sometimes it’s just really, really hard to tell. It’s complicated by the fact that when dealing with fabric garments, there are so many elements that play into how the color will look. And I swear some manufacturers are just messing with us when they produce items, like a grey that has a weird mix of blue, yellow, brown, and black in it! But I do think it’s incredibly useful to have the warm vs. cool undertone concept in mind when looking at colors.
Yay!! Thank you so much Sally. So very kind of you to be so helpful!
They’re messing with us, and it’s cheaper! I remember when we used to get beautiful sweaters – even at moderately priced stores like Eddie Bauer, that would be rich, lustrous colors… Sigh…
hugs,
Janice
Very good!
I love this, Olive is one of my core colors. I’m a redhead with olive green eyes and it just complements my skin, and hair beautifully. I often pair Olive with coral, orange, mustard, turquoise, and red, for accent colors. I love the neutrals you have paired with my favorite neutral, olive! Thank you Janice
Good stuff, thank you, Janice for figuring this all out. I have an old dark olive skirt with pockets that I love, but sadly alone in my closet. Until I saw this post never thought of wearing it with other dark colors like navy or grey or black! Thank you! How about sticking in your olive post something in an old red brick/blood orange color? Janice, pub-lease live forever! Thank you for your wonderfully inspiring and addicting blog!
hugs hugs hugs!
Janice
The Kween scarf is stunning when you click on the link. It can be worn folded in four different directions, each with different color combinations. One of the most versatile pieces I’ve ever seen. A great choice!