Summertime Pattern Mixing

I find myself trying to hold onto summer as long as I can. Although Fall is my absolute favorite time of the year, it comes and goes far too quickly. Utah’s fall only lasts about three glorious weeks and then the dark cold winter creeps in. Before you know it, the roads are icy and your shoveling snow off of your driveway. Personally, I do not look forward to teeth-chattering cold for six months (I’ll keep my fingers crossed for a mild season). I can appreciate the snow for its silvery beauty, but driving in it is a whole other story. Let’s just say my vehicle isn’t very “snow friendly”. Every time a storm passes through, I basically have a heart attack if I have to drive anywhere. White knuckled and road rage inclined, I say a little prayer every time I arrive to my destination safely. I absolutely love the holiday spirit, and Utah is really great about hyping it all up, but I could do without the inches of snow through town. So, this is my last attempt at holding onto summer. Bright patterns and neon pinks–save me from the inevitable winter!
Usually when mixing patterns, the rule of thumb is to pick one color that both your patterns have in common, and use that color to compliment each pattern. But I think it’s necessary to break the rules every once in a while. You don’t want to get too crazy and end up looking like a clown, but sometimes when you break the rules, it looks even better than when you follow them. For example, leopard and gingham. One of my very favorite combos is navy blue and white gingham with leopard print. I basically use leopard as a neutral any way (I swear it goes with almost anything). In this case, my flamingo skirt has black, white and various shades of pink, while my top has a light, faded blue, and white. Although they don’t sound like they would go together, somehow, miraculously, they do!