Thelma van der Werff - Colour Comfort

In an hour Thelma Van der Werff takes everything you ever knew about how and why you dress the way you do and turns it on its ear.

Using her deep knowledge about the psychology of colour, Thelma unwraps the events of your life that have literally `coloured’ the way you dress. Then she provides the practical solution on how to transform yourself using the knowledge she has just uncovered.

It’s a profound session with a `colour coach’, a whole new way of thinking about fashion, style and how you present to the world … a method Dutch-born Thelma has developed over the past two years and which is already creating a storm of interest.

European book publishers are clambering to be the first to bring Thelma’s ideas to the wider world, business people are approaching her to bring her ideas into the commercial realm and personal clients are booking in weeks in advance for a session.

Forget any ideas that this might be some kind of new image consultancy or that you need to wear colours related to a certain season of the year to enhance your complexion: rather Thelma works from the inside out to help you understand the hidden parts of your personality by looking at the habitual way you wear some colours, while neglecting others.

Are you overdosing on black and hiding who you really are, not living up to your true potential? Perhaps your wardrobe has become lost in a world of pink and you find yourself overly involved in others problems, whilst also dependent on their approval.

Wear too much blue and you can literally get the `blues’, while overdosing on red can leave you uptight and unable to relax and unwind.

Colour coaching is about the colours you wear – and the colours you avoid.

Why did you stop wearing that vibrant yellow when you were a teenager, or when did that sexy magenta silently disappear out of your wardrobe? Every time we stop wearing a certain colour or introduce a new colour is related to an emotional issue according to Thelma.

“When we stop wearing a colour, this signifies that an event has happened, something has upset us on an emotional level and by integrating this colour back into our lives consciously we are uplifting and healing any negative connotations that might linger with this colour and event.”

What parts of you got left behind in the grind of life and what needs to be reclaimed now to be the full, successful, sensual, ambitious man or woman you were meant to be?

Thelma has the answer and it won’t take years of psychology or in-depth probing to find out … the answer is as close as a discussion of your wardrobe.

“Everyone has the potential to be a star in their own field,” says Thelma. “And what are stars? They are shining and composed of white light and white encompasses all the colours of the rainbow.”

Colour, Thelma explains, is a vibration. The colours we wear or avoid literally colour our environment with the energy we are focusing on or denying.

It’s well known that the psychology of colour is used in different institutions like hospital and prisons to create an effect, but Thelma brings that knowledge into the personal realm. She’s already self-published two books about her work Why Are You Wearing Those Colours?’ andDress to Impress’ and is now training others in her method (www.colourcomfort.com).

“Have you noticed since 9/11 how many more men are wearing pink shirts? They are saying that maybe things aren’t so under control as they thought, that they feel more vulnerable and need more support.”

She sees the way new mothers or teenage girls before they hit puberty might overdose on pink indicating issues to do with parenting, mothering and the need for self-care and protection.

The designer black-clad urban dweller is indicating how she wants to belong to a group, not stand out while giving an impression of being in control At the same time overdosing on black can hinder someone living up to their true potential.

We might think we don’t wear certain shades because we don’t suit a certain colour, or the clothes are old or tight, but Thelma would beg to differ. She believes on a deeper level we’ve shut the colour out of our life for a deeper reason.

In her world we need to wear the full range of colours – in the right shade to suit our complexion and hair colour – to experience the fullness of our true nature.

“The colours we wear on our top half represent and influence our emotions, while the trousers or skirts we wear are about our motivation or drive in the world,” says Thelma.

She might suggest cutting back on the constant wearing of white pants and introduce more red into your wardrobe to get the exciting ideas swirling around in your head out to be manifested in the practical world.

“White is great for openness, simplicity, new ideas. It lets you keep your options open and allows you to be vulnerable, but wear too much and you can get stuck with always having new ideas, but never making them actually happen,” Thelma explains. “Red brings things into manifestation in the physical world.

“It’s all about finding a balance,” says Thelma. “We need all the colours because those we neglect indicate parts of our lives that are out of balance and need some attention.”

“I believe the world is starving for colour and what it can bring to our lives,” she says.

Thelma is running three-weekend colour coaching training programs for those who want to become a colour coach – a method she has simplified into an easy to use process.

Says Thelma: “Colour is like a nutrient, it supports different parts of your being, on an emotional, physical, spiritual and mental level. Different colours have various properties. A balanced diet is necessary for your wellbeing and the same applies to colour.

“Do not overdose on one or two colours, but enjoy the benefit from a wide variety.”