Is there a colour...

[lizajuk]

...you won't wear to dance in?

Through superstition. Is there any superstition or common practice in countries of dance?

Or because it just doesn't look good under lights or for troupes


Or doesn't seem appropriate for your style?

Any other reason.



research going on here? Thanks.

[TanyaLV]

Hello! I don't wear pink! Barbie complex I guess.......as it is, I hear "I Dream Of Jeannie" comments alot, which isn't bad, but I do avoid the color! And pink is sooooooooooooooooooo pretty!

[beafarhana]

There are colours that I won't wear in real life because they make me look like death warmed up, like buttercup yellow (it's really pretty on other people, but not on me), orange or khaki. On the whole, I tend to avoid them when I'm thinking of costuming, too, out of habit.

[Bellydancingcaroline]

I don't like Orange, in general, not just bellydance. I try to avoid black, or other vampire shades as on a pale lady, it can make you look like the undead. Also, I don't like velvet (the feel of it), to me, it's like someone running their nails down a blackboard.

[ashadanzatrice]

anything neon. my paleness is kind of neon enough already!

[Gia al Qamar]

Anything pale, no yellow, absolutely no white.
I also despise navy and really ugly green (like avacado) so I wouldn't wear a costume in those colors.
Orange makes me look like I am going to dance at Home Depot.
Gia

[CamilleMalaena]

any shade of browns and dark colors because the colors would either make me look naked, invisable, and/or it won't make me stand out as distinguishing me from the general public. If I have to wear an animal print, it would have to have some sparklies on it or it would have to have a light background or accent color. Something like this.

[CamilleMalaena]

Originally Posted by Gia al Qamar

Anything pale, no yellow, absolutely no white.
I also despise navy and really ugly green (like avacado) so I wouldn't wear a costume in those colors.
Orange makes me look like I am going to dance at Home Depot.
Gia

Oh GREAT! I'm never going to look at an orange costume the same! Now when I see a dancer in orange I'm going to think that she needs to wear one of those orange aprons to complete the look!

[Salima]

I can't use orange and neon-green. Neon-green changed the colour to smoky-yellow in special light and i seen very ill.

[kenya]

I can wear every costume color except black and brown. I love pastels like buttercream, baby pink and mint green. In my everyday life anything goes except drab colors.

[steffib]

I don't wear black - it is not a color that works for me, I don't like myself in it. Nope. No black. Not even for strict tribal - when I started the troupe, it was part of the charter that I don't have to wear black. There's always navy blue for me ;-)

No neon or otherwise screaming colors - I don't like 'em, and they make my skin look pre-digested.

[Bellydancingcaroline]

Yeah, neon colours. I don't get why people wear them. I somehow expect them to 'glow in the dark' when the lights go down. You'd just see the costume dancing !

[mish_mish]

I hate hate hate peachy or coral colors on me. They just look awful.

[lizajuk]

I'm not just asking about like and dislike personally 'cos one man's meat etc....but a practical reason why a colour just doesn't work for anyone and everyone generally and if a certain colour is "incorrect" in any way for a dancer.

[CamilleMalaena]

I think that bright, over-the-top, screamingly obnoxious colors would work better for me because, I don't want to blend in with the background.

Depending on the situation, I wouldn't mind neon! I would be fun to be a shaking and shimmying costume! hee hee!

[SamiraShuruk]

I love wearing black in my regular clothing. But in costumes it looks so elegant and refined - and I don't feel it works with my dance style.
There are tons of colors I can't wear because they're just not flattering. I also avoid kelly green- as it enhances the "oh look, here comes the redhead Irish belly dancer" effect.

[outi]

My rules:

I avoid brown, because it just doesn't feel festive or glamorous enough. Khaki, too. Interestingly I don't use so much those colors in my normal clothing any more, either.

Usual guides:

Colors with cold undertone, tend to be more safer in stage - especially if there is limited lighting options. Just like it's with make-up.

Black as an only costume is not the best choice, because it can blend the dancer to the background, but in other cases black works well. Same with dark navy.

Depending of the country:

In India red is good color, because it's the color for celebrating or something like that.

In Japan avoid white, because it's for funerals. Ozma can say if this is still true.

In Finland using certain blue and yellow in a costume is not really good, because they are the colors in Swedish flag. (Our neighbor)

[DeviSafir]

As far as Supersitions go.. White for VERY confidant dancers only.. Kind of like you earned it.. is what my teacher says.

Fo me - no black or really dark colors, They just seem to not look good. I like pink and the brighter the better ! I used to hate orange until I mixed it with a pink bra and belt ! Now it is one of my favorite costumes. Also this year Belly Dancer USA costume is pink and lime green. Contrasting colors really pop on stage http://people.tribe.net/devisafir/ph...b-aac288191ea1

[kina]

I don't like it when dancers where pastels, under bright lights, it all looks white. I personally won't wear anything green (so Tanya, you take the greens, leave the purples and pinks for me!) I never wore pink before I started dancing, now fuschia is a favorite.

I think that the universerally flattering color is turquoise, works for every skin tone.

[tahiradancer]

Originally Posted by Gia al Qamar

Anything pale, no yellow, absolutely no white.
I also despise navy and really ugly green (like avacado) so I wouldn't wear a costume in those colors.
Orange makes me look like I am going to dance at Home Depot.
Gia

HEY! It's Great Pumpkin, NOT Home Depot, thankyou very much!

*goes off to pet the pretty Oragne Velvet dress she bought from Gia. . *

On a more serious note, while IRL I live dark colours, the truth is that they many times do not show the sublties of movement which make this dance so distinctive.

{{{HUGS}}}}

[leylalanty]

In situations where the lighting is not bright, copper, brown, beige, and some pastels fade into the background taking the dancer with them. Copper, brown, beige, and pastels work under stage lighting or under bright sunlight at outdoor gigs. Pale pastels can really fade in intense stage lighting. In restaurants, etc., where there is low lighting or just plain overhead lighting, they are blah. Under some stage lighting where there is a lot of red, certain shades of green can look like a muddy brown.

[dunyah]

Maria Aya says not to wear the colors of the Greek flag (blue and white) when dancing for Greeks. It's a no-no because the flag is considered sacred.

Americans, on the other hand, would have no problem with a dancer wearing red, white and blue!

I've heard some say not to wear a certain shade of green for Muslim audiences, but I don't know that for sure. Maybe Outi would know, since she lives in Egypt.

As others have said, lighting is a major factor in deciding which colors will look good. The backdrop is important too.

My personal taste tends toward bold colors.