At our core, we believe a pop of color can brighten any day. After all, we’re the ones who introduced rainbow suede loafers and a new means of self-expression to feet around the world in 1958. Our latest collection of colorful, WorryFree™ suede shoes feature our classic Wren Loafer. We’ve curated 16 limited edition colors so you can pop your personal style.

This Winter, we’re embracing bold color by learning from the experts—a handful of artists and designers with an eye we admire.

Meet Julia. She is a graphic designer and collage artist based in Los Angeles. She styled the Koi Orange Wren Loafer and is teaching us about triadic color schemes through her art and style.

How did you become an artist and designer?

Growing up I was constantly drawing and painting. It transitioned slowly from stick figures to bubble letters to still lifes to portraiture to patterns and everything in between. In college my initial major was textile design. There were aspects of it that I loved but it didn’t fully feel right. So I switched majors to graphic design. My first class was computer illustration where we learned how to make repeating patterns in Illustrator. That was the moment I knew I had found the best of both worlds.

Describe your artistic aesthetic.

Retro-rainbow.

How do you use color in your art?

Any possible way I can! I do some hand cut collages, but most of my work is digital so I’m really able to play around in Photoshop adjusting the colors in every little section. I try to incorporate multiple colors into my designs and one way I like doing that is through triadic colors. You can basically take a triangle, overlay it on the color wheel, and whichever three colors the points are touching make up your triadic color scheme.

How does your art and color preferences influence your personal style?

I think fashion is another form of art and expression. If I’m super colorful and loud in my art (which is an extension of me), why not do the same with how I dress?

Color can affect mood. You styled our Koi loafer. What kind of mood do you feel in orange?

In orange I feel happy – it’s almost as if it adds a little bounce to my step.

For someone who is new or a little scared to wear color, do you have any tips or tricks on how to add color and brighten up an outfit?

If you’re not ready to fully dive into a brightly colored outfit or anything with a bold pattern, I’d suggest starting small with colorful accessories. It could be an orange pair of shoes, a blue bandana you wear as a necktie, or a bold pair of pink pom pom earrings. Once you start small, I bet you’ll be tempted to pull from that statement piece to start incorporating more color for the rest of your outfit!

What’s your favorite color?

Yellow! I even collect vintage yellow ceramic smiley faces. (They’re just so fun!)

What’s your favorite place to get inspired by color?

Flea markets and antique stores. There are so many unexpected color combinations around every corner!