Neon Looks Awesome, Won’t Make You Cry

Welcome to spring! Color has finally returned to the world and I’m officially over black v-necks (for at least a few months)! Apparently everyone else felt the same way because this spring neon is everywhere. Neon is great as long as you keep everything else pretty neutral. That is, while a pop of neon is cool, a full-on neon yellow suit with a florescent green tie will just make you look like Jim Carrey in The Mask.

With that in mind, I’m well aware that busting out a lime green dress or florescent blue button-up can be a bit intimidating. I mean, color is totally scary. To ease the brightening process, I’ve come up with a few neon items that will seamlessly blend into your wardrobe and, yes, even look good with your 16 pairs of black boots.

You probably already know you need a messenger bag, simply to carry your multiple copies of the US constitution everywhere. A neon messenger bag (or any purse/bag/wallet for that matter) is a great place to start your neon campaign. Few expect your bag to perfectly match your outfit, so a brightly colored messenger bag is pretty perfect. However, make sure you don’t spend too much on this one. Unlike a high quality black or brown fall purse that you might last years, a trendy neon bag is probably not a long-term investment worthy of several hundred dollars.

Neon nail polish is just straight up fun. Even if you’re not wearing anything too adventurous, neon nails can give you just an extra little hint of style. The major pitfall here is wearing your nails super long while they’re neon and therefore looking like a hand model in a 1980s press-on nail commercial. Luckily, most of you guys have short nails so you have nothing to worry about. Also sometimes neon yellow looks like nail decay on pale chicks so I usually wear mine green or orange.

I know I said these would be easy-peasy ways to incorporate neon, but I swear neon pants are easy! You can just swap them right in for skinny jeans. If you already are wearing darker colored jeans, this shouldn’t be too big of a deal. Otherwise, as long as you keep the rest of your outfit neutral (all those grey v-neck and beige sweaters you’ve acquired over the years), your pants will just stand out as the fun part of your outfit. See those black booties up there in the picture? I told you that you could wear this stuff with your black boots!

You already know how confortable, dapper and adorable oxfords are. Now, someone decided to trim them with neon. I don’t know who started doing this or who decided it could be a thing we all get to enjoy, but I want to kiss them on the mouth. These are some magical shoes that will almost definitely maybe bring all the girls to the yard.

I won’t blame you one bit if you’re not quite ready to work neon in to your day to day. Still, why not rock a neon swimsuit! Even if you don’t live in a part of the world that experiences “seasons” (as I do) you can still debut your bright new swimwear indoors or in a hot tub until if gets over 55 degrees. While there are plenty of nice look one-piece or two-piece neon swimsuits, I really like the idea of wearing a black or neutral top and neon bottoms. This is particularly handy if you prefer to wear a sports bra-type top for swimming and thus might have more limited swimsuit options.

I can’t get through an article without bringing up blazers, and that’s because blazers are the best thing ever. Despite being a classic fall staple, a good blazer can add a breath of fresh air to your spring wardrobe. For a more femme styling, a bright colored blazer works perfectly over a flowy tank with a pair of cropped jeans or dark shorts. For a more butch look, button the blazer over a lightweight button-front shirt with straight leg jeans or slacks. Make sure that when you’re buying a spring blazer you stick to a lightweight fabric and stay away from heavy fall wools.

If watches are a status symbol, then a neon watch will let people know just exactly how cool your status is. While neon is certainly a casual choice for a watch and should be avoided for more formal events, I see no reason you couldn’t work it in to heavy rotation in your day-to-day. I personally think that an analog watch in a neon color is the perfect blend of classic and modern.

Finally, if you absolutely, positively cannot fathom wearing neon out in public, you can always wear them where (almost) no one will ever see. Come on, live a little!

The key with any neon is just to keep things neutral and don’t worry too much about it. Besides — and this might make some fashion biz folks roll their eyes — I sort of think if an item is bold enough, you can sort of wear it with anything. Except red. No seriously, don’t wear neons with red.