three zesty color combos that summon spring energy
dopamine dressing begins with a great shoe.
Today’s newsletter is sponsored by Freda Salvador. I remember being 20-something and coveting a pair of oxfords from their infamously cutthroat San Francisco sample sales…so it’s a dream that they wanted to partner on an issue of The Molehill color combo series! Here are the fall and winter issues if you’re new :)
This also means I’m giving away 25 month-long subscriptions—just drop a comment with your favorite current color combo and I will select winners at random by Friday.
LAST WEEK I SLIPPED ON a homely puffer jacket and cheap tangled headphones to go on a walk around the neighborhood. But alas, my Bluetooth was not connecting (why is it so janky?) so I couldn’t listen to my angsty songs (Primadonna by MARINA). I sighed with defeat and decided that this was my sign to commune with nature, without audio or visual distractions.
So I tried to notice the details in front of me.
I noticed the mishmash of house styles—bungalow next to farmhouse next to English colonial—but I liked the Spanish-style ones with stately saguaros best. And I noticed the lemon trees. They were absolutely overflowing with fruit. Every house had a box of free lemons on the curb to clear their excess inventory, in hopes that a resourceful passerby will be inspired to turn them into lemon bars. The sidewalks were dotted with rotting lemons, cracked open and half-chewed…I imagined a raccoon grabbing one with its tiny dark mickey mouse hands and taking a bite only to abandon it because it was too sour.
But even the rotting fruit somehow smelled fresh and invigorating. It didn’t smell like decay. There were no flies swarming around. Unlike the summer lemon, which grows a furry sheen of plaque-ish mold on its underbelly after a sweltering day, the winter lemon is cool and hardy.
It laces the crisp air with a squeaky clean citrus scent, even in a state of decomposition. This is how I know the big rebirth—Spring—is coming soon.
Here are three color combos that capture the spirit of spring, the season of dopamine dressing when we shed our dark heavy coats and add a little vibrancy back in our step.
Icy Lemon + Kelly Green + Heather Gray
Butter yellow has been the object of fashion’s adoration for quite some time, but I’m eager to discuss other shades of yellow (like banana milk). Color historian Katy Kelleher published a piece just yesterday about why she does not like the “sullied” character of lemon chiffon—it’s a must-read.
I’m calling this shade of yellow “icy lemon,” inspired by the cool hardiness of the winter lemon. More lemon zest popsicle, less lemon ricotta pancake.
It pairs nicely with the saturated confidence of a kelly green. I built this outfit around these green woven square-toed ballet flats, which elongate my foot and offer more textural interest than a smooth leather shoe.
What pairs better with woven leather than a long ribbed knee sock? Lean into the geometry of clashing lines.
I actually styled this outfit while on a Facetime call with my friend Rosa and she said I looked really cute. I did feel cute! The color spectrum between green and yellow is one of my favorites to explore, and my 1996 ugly-chic Prada skirt was the no-brainer choice of print to ground it all.
I think the genius of this shoe is the square tapered toe box. It looks the top 3/4ths of a sharpened Ticonderoga pencil, pointed but not pointy. You guys know I am partial to green, though I predict the red colorway will be a crowd favorite because the “pop of red” agenda was effective as hell and everyone wants a little red shoe peeking under their denim these days.
Alabaster + Sunwashed Blue + Lacquer Red
When I think about pieces in my closet that are spring-coded, these vintage painter overalls come to mind. They’ve been sitting dormant in my closet all winter, but I’m ready to start thawing them. Something about the worn quality of vintage striped denim, bleached and discolored from sunshine, makes me feel like a swaddled baby chick.
The utilitarian persona of the overalls is offset by the glamour of my puffed shoulder jacket…the tension between the two is what makes this outfit exciting to me. Under the glare of direct sunlight, alabaster is the best way to describe the glossy mineral character of the satin fabric. Perhaps my favorite detail though, is the lacquer red of my glasses, complemented by the red zipper on the overalls.
It plays off the signage of the building, a donut shop outside a bus stop. Like many mom and pop donut shops in California, this one is owned by Asian American immigrants—and the exterior colors happen to be red, white and blue. Just like my outfit. Both take a “classically American” color palette and complicate its meaning, by nature of our identities. (Yes, I was thinking about Willy Chavarria’s AMÉRICA collection while shooting these photos).
I opted for these open-weave flats because I felt my outfit needed some exposed skin. I like the way the V-shape vamp creates a triangle of flesh from my foot to my ankle. Combined with rolled-up jeans, there’s a sense of California ease that is baked into the Freda brand DNA. These are an ideal vacation shoe: casual enough for walking around and lounging by the pool, dressy enough for the 8pm dinner reservation.
And the dog purse needs no introduction. I recently talked to ELLE about stuffed animal purses and the rise of absurdist accessories.
Fuchsia + Chartreuse + Toasted Bagel
Once again, I got dressed feet first with this outfit and played with a classic Molehill color combo: pink and green shades that reference Prada.
A zingy fuchsia and moody chartreuse is a guaranteed dopamine boost. The rounded toe woven flat feels just like the square toed ones in terms of walkability and comfort, but it’s more of a classic ballet flat. If you’re craving novelty, the easiest way to make a ballet flat interesting is with an unexpected sock color—I wore these with an electric sky blue the other day for a different vibe than the fuchsia.
I wore an ankle-skimming polka hot halter dress and a sporty 00s Miu Miu jacket that matched the shade of my toasted bagel this morning. (The polka dot dress would look comedically on theme with these blinged-out black crystal dotted mary janes).
The hat and flower from my garden is a romantic touch cause I’m getting excited about Valentine’s Day outfits.
If this isn’t the essence of spring in a shoe, I don’t know what is:
Thanks for reading! I can’t wait to hear about everyone’s favorite colors right now.
I have a discount code just for Molehill readers: VIVCOLOR10 for 10% off new and returning full-priced styles. If you’re not a ballet flat person, the black Elba loafers are a high-quality walkable loafer that makes a basic tee-and-jeans outfit feel more 30% more sophisticated.
Oh, and here’s a photo of me in my first ever Fredas! A pair of suede heels from a southwestern Marfa-inspired collection from the late 2010s. I still love them!
xoxo viv
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terra cotta + pink!
Fuchsia - chartreuse - toasted bagel is my fave combo. It reminds me of Rugrats and the animated Nickelodeon hey day!