WHAT’S YOUR COLOUR SEASON? AN EASY DIY SEASONAL COLOUR ANALYSIS
What does colour season have to do with your appearance?
Does wearing certain colours make you look overtired and make your skin look dull?
Have you ever ordered the most beautiful dress online only to have it arrive, try it on and be disappointed with how it looks on you?
Do you tend to get a lot of compliments when you wear a particular colour?
Why do certain colours look amazing on one person and not another?
Wearing colours that don’t work for you can make you look washed out, tired and even older. Yes – older! Colour analysis can be very helpful with selecting colours/shades that will flatter you and highlight your most beautiful features: skin tone, hair shade and eye colour.
There are many different colour analysis systems out there to try. Most of us have heard about one method: Seasonal Colour Analysis. Basically, each of the four seasons in nature have a colour palette designed specifically for your natural colouring.
Seasonal Colour Analysis
It’s been a while since I’ve even thought about the Seasonal Colour Analysis. Determining my season colour palette was introduced to me by Mom as a child after she read about it in a fashion magazine. It was so exciting figuring out what of the four seasons we each were. I never really grasped the basic understanding of it and although fun at the time, it has been a mere afterthought.
The Four-Season Typology has been dismissed, by me included, as an old trend that is narrow and somewhat useless. It is wildly outdated, with the colour basis coming about in the 1900s and hitting peak popularity in the 1980s. The model placed you in one of four categories: Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter based on your hue (cool/warm) and value (light/dark). There are obvious challenges with such limitations and nuanced palettes as not all people easily fall under one of the four. Since then, the ranges of colour classifications have expanded to 12 and 16 typologies.
The 16 Season Typology – Does it work?
Although not the perfect correlation, determining your season and its subgroup actually does have good rationale and can work well. It looks at your undertones and colouring of your skin tone, hair and eyes, helping you identify traits on your face and match flattering shades.
Determining which colour season can be tricky!
Instead of taking a quiz, we have created steps to help you understand the aspects behind matching your natural colouring. Going through the steps should help you understand how to select colours that will compliment your appearance.
What’s Your Season?
Step 1 – Determine if you are COOL or WARM
Here are a couple of ways to determine if you are cool or warm. Make sure you are doing this in natural light.
* Tip: The right colour will blend well with your skin and the other will look uneven and speckled.
Tally up!
Cool = You are either SUMMER or WINTER.
Warm = You are either SPRING or AUTUMN.
Step 2 – Determine if you’re Light or Dark
If you are Cool:
If you are Warm:
Step 3 – Find your Subgroup
So, now, you should know what colour season you are. Let’s determine which subgroup you are strongest in. All seasons are listed below and divided into three subgroups to personalize further.
Summer
Find your full Summer Stylebox!
Winter
Find your full Winter Stylebox!
Spring
Find your full Spring Stylebox!
Autumn
Find your full Autumn Stylebox!
Disclaimer: Please note this blog post is meant for fun and NOT a professional analysis
Resources:
Perform your own four season colour analysis, Colour Me Pretty
Simple & Easy: How Seasonal Color Analysis Works (+ the Different Methods Explained)
Color Theory Basics & The 4-Seasons, Pretty Your World
Truth is Beauty, Colour Seasons
The 12 Color Seasons, A Comprehensive Guide