dressing by colour seasons

[MariCooyong]

Most of us have ‘colour seasons’: ‘Autumns’ look good in warm colours that complement their warm colouring, ‘Summers’ look good in pastels that complement their pale colouring, etc. But is it possible for someone to look good in every colour?

Also, how much attention do you pay to your colour season, and do you ever break the rules, so to speak?

No. My whole wardrobe is built round my colours but I do have favorite colours and colours that don’t appeal to me very much. The latter I just don’t bother with. I love being able to just take things out of the wardrobe knowing it will look nice together. I’m not a shopper or that interested in fashion but I do like being well turned out.

I also did a HOC style class, my consultant is fabulous at what she does but it didn’t work for me. In fact it set me back a bit with enjoying my colours. It was so frustrating and for the life of me I still don’t understand what a Natural Romantic is 3 years in and when I see Instagram pictures of others who are Natural Romantics I just think …..why?

The shops are great for Springs at the moment, I came out with a fistfull of clothes in leaf green, shocking pink and bright blue. Usually, I face a shop full of muted colours that are totally wrong for my skin tone. H & M I'm looking at you!

Newscasters, sport presenters on TV tend to dress in line with their colour palette, I especially notice how some men wear brilliant white shirt and a strongly contrasting tie, most likely winters. Softer muted shades of the same with much less contrast. The occasional spring in a light turquoise tie.

Endlessly fascinating.

By the same token I find shopping for clothes in autumn a struggle because everything is in muted autumnal colours.

I often get frustrated when I see a lovely top in M and S that is only available in a few colours, none of which suit me. I think they are missing a trick and shoulde be able to offer colours across the seasons.

Yes there are loads of lovely Spring colours around at the minute. I got some great T shirts from John Lewis at £15 each, a gorgeous green jumper from Sainsburys and my best bargain- a beautiful coral top from Morrisons at £8. Considering Kettlewell tops are normally £35+ it's definitely worth looking out when your colours are in fashion.

I'm a soft autumn. I found having my colours done to be transformative- best thing I've ever done style-wise! It makes shopping so much easier when you can hone in on what you know will suit you. I do occasionally veer off but generally stick quite close to my best shades.

I have a friend who recently had a post-pandemic personal styling session at a large department store. She bought a whole new work wardrobe, but most of the clothes are in terrible shades for her. It was such a missed opportunity! Any stylist should really have training in colour analysis as it's such an important element.

I'm fascinated by all this.
I've never had my colours done but when I used to wear Prescriptives make up I was a summer colouring on their colour wheel. But for drama I could wear the contrasting colours which were coral shades in lipstick I seem to remember.
I know I'm a soft colourway but I seem to be able to veer from darker shades of greens/ blues in winter to pretty much all lighter shades in spring/summer. So I can switch from soft autumn shades to soft summer shades with the seasons.
I wear a lot of dark navy in winter with a soft cashmere scarf in pink/denim blue/ soft leopard print. I do wear black but always in a v neck or low scoop neck & in soft fuzzy textures like Cashmere/wool. Black leather is too hard & shiny next to my face. I tend towards monochrome dressing with slightly bohemian styling in the summer.
So the Free People aesthetic really appeals to me. My hair seems to veer from golden blonde through to warm caramel shades & ashy blonde & all shades in between. All seems to look ok next to my colouring. My hairdresser reckons I must be a neutral colourway for this to occur but I'm really not sure.
I can definitely wear brighter colours with a tan. So lime green, bright coral, violet are all ok then.
So my point is I'm not exactly sure whether I believe in all this colour typing.
But I'm perfectly prepared to think it may be useful for some as a way of finding their style if needed.

@Cantonet yes you make an important point as whilst colour seasons provide a guide ultimately it's down to you to make a judgement call, the colours that suit me best do change a bit depending if my highlights have been newly done.

Also very recently I was lucky enough to be at a photo shoot and was asked to try on a pale sage green jumpsuit that was definitely not one of my colours, but actually it really suited me when on.

I know for sure to avoid muted autumnal colours as they are not my friend.

@LolaSmiles Like you I don't know if I'm a Light Spring or Light Summer. What is your colouring ?
I was "done" years ago as a Warm Spring but I don't think I'm Warm Spring anymore as my hair has lightened. They say hair colour doesn't matter but it does.
My veins are both blue and green.

Many years ago, we had a lady come to my sixth form to do colours. My hair and eye colour suggests Autumn but I look awful in warm colours.
I think it doesn't work for all of us!

LadyEloise1
Fair neutral to cool skin, don't tan, burn easily but do get a light golden glow by the end of the summer.
My veins are blue, I suit both gold and silver jewellery as long as the gold isn't a super warm/harsh gold.

I tend to wear more bright colours in the summer, which matches when I get a little golden tint.

My preferred neutrals are off white, grey and graphite or charcoal.

I think I’m a cool summer, at least those colours work for me. I’ve recently grown my hair out so I have a white streak at the front and whereas before when I was a light brown or blonde I could get away with camel and cream, they now look awful on me.
My favourite colour is yellow so I keep that for accessories. I’d love to find a shade I could wear.

Me too.

Someone upthread referred to summers wearing pastels. I look pretty shit in really pale pastels. They’re winter colours. Like you muted colours suit me best.

DD says muted rose and indigo are old lady colours!

@LolaSmiles I'm fair skinned, born blonde but would have had a teeny tiny hint of red in my mousy hair, freckles but not the cute kind, I burn easily but eventually get a wee tan.
Blonde now.
Pastels - pale blue, pale green - peppermint, pink including fuschia suit me. Camel too. Lime green and peach suit also.
Mid to dark grey doesn't. Nor does lilac or mid purples.
I'm a real mixture.
Any thoughts re my season ?

You sound like a spring.

You should be able to wear a very pale yellow primrose. That colour really suits my summer colouring.

It’s about skin colour.

Ive got green eyes, chestnut hair, olive skin and green veins. I tan easily. I seem a classic warm palette. But I’m not, I’m a summer.

Well l had chestnut hair, now it’s mostly white.

@ArseInTheCoOpWindow thank you, I will look out for it.

@garysmum it's to do more with your undertone. Carol Brailey on Instagram and TikTok explains it very well

vm.tiktok.com/ZMYSbnnXn/ a great example of someone who thought they were autumn!

I'm a winter and the jewel colours definitely suit me. But I love mustard or gold as a colour so I do still wear it. Most of my clothes are navy and white so I wear mustard/gold as an accent colour, mostly bag or scarf. I do have a gold velvet coat that always gets compliments!

LadyEloise1
You sound like you're probably a light spring.
If camel is one of your good colours, you're unlikely to be a summer.

Summers also look good in greys and purples so that also sounds like you're more of a spring.

It's common for people to borrow from a sister season, which are the seasons either side (E.g. some light springs can borrow some shades from light summer, and some clear springs can borrow certain shades from clear winters even though winter and summer are cool seasons), but your home colours are likely to be your default go to ones.

LadyEloise1 I'd say light spring too, my daughter is one and looks good in warmer pastels and also khaki, she is natural honey blonde with hazel eyes

I had mine done with HoC a good few years ago. I was at a complete loss as I’d been a redhead with funny shade eyes, a sort of dirty turquoise. Like redheads are told aid skyways witnesses the autumn type shades, lots of green, especially loved deep bottle green, rusts, browns. They did sort of suit me . But then in my early thirties I turned white really quickly, over just about three years, not grey, bright pure white. My grandmother had fine the same & as I’d always thought hers looked wonderful I didn’t mind….kept telling myself platinum Blonde, Marilyn Monroe 😂
But what could I wear, my clothes all looked dreadful on me, I made Morticia look like she’d stepped out of a health spa.
So I looked up a fairly local HoC consultant, I’d read about them. Went along, felt a bit like a sore thumb, being very shy, as their were two others there who were close friends. That turned out to be good as I was last to be swatched so got to see the huge difference the colours made to the others, who turned out to be completely different seasons. In fact all three of us were, they were autumn & summer.
I was amazed to be told I was a Spring, but a Blue Spring. That means I lean very much to the winter end of spring, think early frosty March instead of bright sunny May. So more the blues, turquoises, navy rather than bright corals, orange etc. The lucky thing is my type of spring suits gold & silver jewellery equally.
I try to stick to it mostly, though can get away with black, as anything like dusty rose or even more so wine, plum etc send me straight back to looking like death not even vaguely warmed up.

What on Earth! Aid skyways witnesses! ..I’d always worn.
wish mumsnet would get an edit facility. Sorry