Do you believe that neon lights should be avoided? I love bright colors, but I’m afraid that as I get older I’ll get into “crazy” areas. How do you know when enough is too much? – Susie, San Francisco
Neon, those blindingly bright colors otherwise associated with traffic cones, sports stars and Las Vegas lights, is making something of a comeback lately. That’s partly thanks to Greta Gerwig’s ‘Barbie’, complete with Margot Robbie’s neon skate turn, but also to the endless specter of the 1980s and 1990s, when aerobics gave way to acid rock. Type “neon” into Tagwalk, the fashion search engine, and you’ll get 132 looks from the spring men’s and women’s clothing shows alone.
Among the designers embracing the ultrabrights for spring were Gucci, where the new designer, Sabato De Sarno, offered fluoro tailored jackets with a bit of beaded trim; the Atletico, with its plump bright pink ostrich feathers; and Tod’s, which showed a range of neon yellow shirt dressing. All this would indicate that neon is not just for young people, ironists or triathletes trying to increase their visibility.
And yet, wearing neon, which includes the family of colors also known as “hot,” “electric,” and “acid,” can feel like turning into the human equivalent of a highlighter.
After all, there is no neon color that occurs in nature. Neon itself isn’t even an official part of the color wheel, because it’s chemically created. It is in fact a relatively recent invention. The first neon light did not appear until 1910; the first neon paint was created in the 1930s by the Switzer brothers, Robert and Joseph; and the first Day-Glo fabrics started appearing around 1950. Since then, neon has often gotten a bad rap, associated with Vegas-level artificiality, vulgarity and kitsch.
But the obvious synthetic techno aspect is also the reason for that Andy Warhol called neon “one of the great modern things,” and that so many artists, including Bruce Nauman, Tracey Emin and Glenn Ligon, have embraced it. The American Chemical Society even declared the discovery of Day-Glo fluorescent pigment a National Historic Chemical Landmark in 2012.
That means neon has a lot to offer beyond just shade – or a lot of shade that can be cast in the shade – and making it part of your wardrobe requires care and attention. If you wear it, it’s not like anyone can miss it. You have to be prepared for what comes back.
Vanessa Barboni Hallik, the founder of Another Tomorrow, the eco-conscious fashion brand, confessed a love for neon when I asked her about it. She suggested a “dumbbell approach” when considering how to incorporate the bright colors into a wardrobe.
The simplest strategy, she said, is simply to add some electric accessories — fluorescent shoes, for example, or a bright pink shell — to a neutral base, like a dark suit or camel dress, for a lift without the serious commitment. Think of it as using highlighter shades for highlights in your wardrobe, instead of becoming the highlighter yourself.
But Ms. Hallik said: If you’re going there, maybe you should really go there: opt for an all-electric pantsuit or a dress. There’s a reason a movement called #ambitionsuitsyou emerged in 2020, encouraging women to wear bright pink suits. The brainchild of fashion brand Argent, founded to promote equality in the workplace, the movement represented the new power suit: feminine, practical and – because it was neon – impossible to ignore.
Your style questions, answered
Every week on Open Thread, Vanessa answers a reader’s fashion-related question, which you can send to her at any time e-mail or Tweet. Questions are edited and condensed.
