Ask the Image Expert Sherry Maysonave is the founder and president of Empowerment Enterprises, one of America's leading communication-image firms. Sherry conducts corporate seminars and coaches executives, professionals, and politicians in achieving excellence in communication and image. She is also the author of Casual Power: How to Power Up your Nonverbal Communication and Dress Down for Success Wearing Navy and Black Question:Is it ok to wear black dress pants or a black skirt with a navy blouse or shirt? Kristen Answer: No, I do not recommend combining a navy blouse with black pants or skirt unless the navy is a brighter or lighter blue than the typical navy or midnight-navy hues. Otherwise, the outfit would come across as looking a bit dull and off somehow. All other shades and tones of blue (royal, powder, pastel, steel, aqua, and French) mix beautifully with black. Ironically, black shoes and hosiery can be worn with navy clothing, skirt, pants, or dresses. In the fashion world, black shoes and hosiery are actually preferred over navy shoes when wearing navy garments, unless the selected garment is of a “royal navy” hue and the shoes match exactly. Navy dies tend to vary in tone significantly when applied to leather products, such as shoes and bags; thus, it’s often difficult to match navy shoes to an outfit. The shoe rule of thumb, saying that ideally your shoes are as dark or darker than your hem length, allows for black shoes to be worn with navy. Back to your dilemma. Regarding the garment colors of an outfit, black mixes successfully with almost all colors, except for classic navy. With that, there are more empowering options for you. Best of luck to you, Sherry Maysonave Also see: The law firm I work for just adopted business casual dress policy. What should I wear? Should I buy new post-pregnancy clothes? Ask your image questions Personal Power: A case study from 'Casual Power'