RSSMakeup Model : Soft Autumn
March 28, 2009
Autumn colors are deeper than Spring to be sure. But they’re not darkened by adding gray(as Summer is) or black (because that’s Winter).
These are browner colors. They toasty and golden, coppered, and bronzed. The degree depends on which Autumn. If you could distill Autumn down to one color, it would be brown, which would include the variations of gold and orange.
Soft Autumn is not as deep and warm as the other 2 Autumns. They’re quietly warm like in the picture above. Their toned-down richness makes them closer to neutral. This means that they’re easily confused with Soft Summer, who also have a subdued strength in their coloring. Soft Summer is neutral too but is more cool than warm.
This season is so soft, in fact, that it approaches neutral but just lingers on the warm side of the line. Like who? Drew Barrymore. She can be a cool blonde but she looks better warmed up a little more. Lindsay Lohan, on the other hand, cannot be blonde nearly as well as red because her coloring is too committed to Autumn’s warmth.
Can you see how good it can be when you get it right? There’s no contest. Color Analysis works.
Lips: Clinique LongLast Glosswear Sunset ; Almay Ideal Gloss in Bronze Shimmer; Clinique Glow Bronze lipstick.
Blush: MAC Trace Gold. Don’t just fluff this color on. Apply it with feeling (meaning a firm stroke of the brush) to really get the color, not just the shimmer.
All Autumns should know that they can transform their many too-pink blush mistakes to a great burnished shade with Trace Gold. It works best for the Soft Autumns who wear warm pink better than the other Autumns.
Eyeliner: Clinique Chocolate Lustre.
Eyes: Cargo Warm Neutral Palette ; MAC Era.
Cargo Warm Neutral palette.
Eye hilite : MAC Shroom. This is an all-purpose under brow eye color. It would suit all the seasons, certainly all the warm ones. Paula’s Choice Beige is another completely versatile under brow hiliter for all the seasons, at a fraction of the price, and is really perfect because it has no shine.
The disclaimer : Don’t buy it if you don’t try it. These are color guidelines to give you a sense of what you should be looking at.
The colors are getting warmer now, but there’s some heat on the way and things are going to get a whole lot hotter.
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103 Responses to “Makeup Model : Soft Autumn”
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Lipstick is my nemesis. As a Soft Autumn, I find my skin is overpowered by lipsticks in the richer rusts, stronger oranges, and deeper browns of the Autumn palette. I don’t think makeup artists really understand how soft this coloring is. Many try to put me in pink. Just tonight a dark-haired, olive-complexioned makeup artist tried to recommend watermelon and other “warm” bright pink lipsticks for my skin tone.
I was wondering if you (or anyone else) had any other suggestions for lipstick shades for Soft Autumn. If you could suggest specific brand names and colors, that would be very helpful. If not, thanks for letting me vent!
Hi, JB,
You understand your coloring well. Softness is the defining feature of this color design. Makeup very often feels too colorful on you. Colors that “pop” are hopeless attention-grabbers. You do have some deeper colours in eggplant, rust, deep periwinkle, chestnut, but in every case, they are muted. Full intensity colour will conflict with your inherently low intensity natural palette.
Blushes are pale peach, salmon, tawny rose. Lip colour looks right when it is in the same color family as blush, though not necessarily of the same intensity. You certainly have warmth but the most salient feature, and the most important one to plan the whole look around (jewelry, fabric, everything) is softness.
Lip colours you might try are Lancome Beige Cashmere, Estee Lauder Futurist in Sultry Blush, Revlon Ginger Rose, MAC Ramblin Rose and Plastique, e.l.f. Super Glossy in Malt Shake, Maybelline Moisture Whip in Desert Bloom, LipSense by SeneGence in Apple Cider.
I hope one of them works… or can give some guidance to the salesperson.
Did you get a colour swatch book when you were analyzed? I find that cosmetics counter staff might not suggest colors that suit your natural tones but they are very good at matching their products to the book swatches if they’ve worked at that counter for awhile. Clinique probably makes many you could use, they have a big range of tawny/rosy.
I’m a soft autumn and have a difficult time finding just the right shade/tone of lipstick but have found a few that work!
Jane Iredale’s Ashley & Sharon, Bobbi Brown’s Tulle Brown and Aveda’s Sun – this one goes on kind of “rusty” but settles into a nice natural tone.
Thank you thank you thank you! I look forward to trying some of these colors.
I haven’t been analyzed as a Soft Autumn but I have been analyzed as an Autumn under the four-season color system and I’ve always known that I’m at the lighter end of the Autumn spectrum, and that my better colors are neutrals and jewel tones. Even my analyst, though, made me out to be a “warmer” Autumn than I am, suggesting all kinds of golds, mustard yellows, and rusts to go with my coloring, and as for my makeup, she was at a loss. She gave me a warm pink/apricot lipstick from the Spring palette for my test colors and when I returned to buy the lipstick, the staff literally laughed at me. “Are you sure you should be buying this lipstick?” I never went back.
I don’t mean to be hard on the salespeople. The one who looked after me last night was actually pretty good and offered to help me go through the testers at a later date. But the Soft Autumn concept is pretty subtle and might escape the attention of makeup artists expecting Autumn to be strong, rich, and muted. So far, that’s at least two makeup artists who have me confused with Spring, and most seem to have me confused with Summer.
I think it’s helped me to understand that we’re on the warm side of neutral, and at least in terms of lipstick, need our colors to be warm but soft instead of rich. That’s a pretty fine distinction and chasing down lipstick colors can be pretty hard. It’s even more confusing when the soft lip color is paired with a darker olive green hazel eye color like mine. And with all the lipstick colors out there, finding the right balance of “warm” and “soft” probably isn’t easy for anyone, trained or not. That’s where a website like yours is so valuable–this is the first time I’ve seen Soft Autumn explained so well. Maybe I can confine my search to a few select shades and help the salesperson help me where necessary! I look forward to starting. Thank you so much.
By the way, I also love the blush recommendations.
I really think you would like Jane Iredales’ Ashley – it’s so neutral but just a tad over the warm line, it feels good & stays on a long time. I’m def Ms. Picky and this is one of my favorites! Let me know what you think!
Thanks, Kelly,
I will most certainly look at these. I keep lists so that when I’m in a city, I have 20 products to look at. I appreciate it.
I hear you about the salespeople. I have nothing against them either. I have learned so much from makeup artists. I find they’re great at matching shades from a swatch book if they have worked with their line. BUT, they are not human coloring detectors. They dont’ have time, they have other pressures and demands, and they don’t fully understand the power of the PCA system. Give me any one of them, let me analyze their face so they can see it for themselves, and I would wager not a single one wouldn’t adhere to their own color books.
Does Soft Autumn have any pinks?
Digital photos sometimes tell quite a story. When I looked at a photograph of myself, I was shocked to see a lot of natural pink in my lip, well, more of a blush pink or soft reddish color, I guess, pale in spots but stronger in others. I don’t think I’m typed wrong. I accept the Soft Autumn typing–I think I’m predominantly warm–and I don’t think I’m a Spring, but I’m wondering if my makeup should try to bring out these “pink” tones. I know it’s not blue-pink because blue-pink looks faded on me and clownish in lipstick.
Does this sound familiar? Is there any other Soft Autumn in this situation?
Thanks for your input!
Hello,
I’m a soft autumn too. Pink shades are some of the best on me. Remember that soft autumn is a mix of soft warm and cool tones and I think that soft seasons are the most various, so maybe at times it depends. In my case I’m pretty much on the border with soft summer, I’ve been analized three times, twice as soft autumn and once as soft summer,(my skin is ivory, I’m blonde with green hazel eyes) but I’m sure I’m a little bit on the warm side. The best colors for me are the common colors with soft summer, like deep rose, warm pink, watermelon… but also the autumn pinks, like salmons and light peach. So maybe JB, you are like me!
Do you have the colors palette for your season? You’ll find all those pinks I’ve mentioned. On me the chanel lipgloss VOLAGE is really stunning and it’s a kind of light salmon-warm pink tone!!!
Ciao
Luana
Hi, JB and Luana,
JB, I couldn’t answer the question better than Luana did. There are pinks, and they’re gorgeous. They’re warm, soft, and rosy (rather than earth-toned). One of the best things about this season is that this makeup is plentiful. These are the colors that sell in droves because they seem like they’d be safe for everyone. They’re what you think of when you think of “nude”, but on the other seasons, they would appear dull or colorless or orange.
Luana’s other point is also right on … get your color book! Your clothes are in it, yes. But, look, so is your makeup AND your hair color. If you colour our hair, the base is neutral brown, the highlights are toffee, honey, butterscotch. Soft, warmer than cool, but not too color-intense like orange or copper or bronze.
Lora at http://www.prettyyourworld.com will sell you your swatch book without doing the analysis first.
HI, Luana,
You’re right. I’m a lot like you except my hair is golden brown (a little too brunette for dark blonde). Lipstick is still a mystery for me. I’m starting to think it’s because I have light pigmentation in my lips. I once stood in line at the makeup counter behind someone who had the opposite problem–she said she had TOO MUCH pigment in her lips and no matter what lip color she wore, it sank into her natural lip color and looked like no lipstick at all. I’m the opposite–no matter what I wear, it’s a PUNCH of color, and I look in the mirror and see a pale face with an unnatural color blotch in the middle. It just never seems to blend with my skin tone–
–anyway, I thought pink might be a bit easier on the eye, so I asked about it. I’ll look into Volage and give it a try. Thanks so much. In my mind, I can see my ideal color as maybe a sheer warm copper-pink with a bit of shimmer, but I can’t seem to find anything like that anywhere.
Thanks for your help.
Christine,
Thanks. Sorry to be a pain. Anyway, I think it’ll probably do me some good to explore the “pink” side of the Soft Autumn palette. It might even do me some good! Thanks for the clarity.
Kelly,
I haven’t been able to find Jane Iredale’s products where I live.
But I tried Plastique by MAC and it sounds like it has the same effect as your description of Ashley (neutral but a shade warm). Their description: “Soft muted peachy-brown with golden bronze shimmer (Frost).” It’s a good intensity, doesn’t overpower, but I wish it had a bit more of a shimmer! But I’m still keeping it on my list.
I tried on something called “Shag” by MAC today that was just about right. They describe it as a “muted coppery brown with bronze shimmer (Glaze).” The brown was just a little too flat for me but it might work for someone else.
Found a lip color–thank you, Luana. I went to find Chanel’s Volage and stumbled across Scintillance, another color in the same product line. I intend to buy it as soon as my pocketbook allows. It’s a bit expensive, but it’s going to be my go-to neutral peach. Thanks to everyone for some incredibly nice lipstick suggestions.
I think in future I’m just going to avoid lipstick, period. I’ve never had good luck with lipstick of any color. I think it’s just too heavy and opaque a product for my face. I’m going to look for sheer formulations and lip glosses instead, or even stick with a bare or neutral lip while emphasizing eye makeup. I also noticed Christine’s recommendation above about Clinique Glosswear in Sunset. I actually own that color, and I can vouch for it.
Hi JB, I’m very happy you have found your lipgloss, I’m going to try Scintillance too, if it works for you I’m sure it will work for me as well.
Thanks Christine for all your suggestions, your web site is very interesting and I keep reading it very often.
Ciao from Italy
I love MAC lipsticks too – as a soft autumn, I personally cannot wear anything frosty, shiny, etc. – the makeup wears ME instead of vice versa. Speaking of pinks – I do get a lot of compliments when wearing MAC Cosmo – it’s a pretty netural pink. Also, the majority of lip colors in the Aveda line work for us soft autumns too – and they are all natural.
Great tips, Kelly,
I just analyzed a Soft Autumn a week ago and you’re right. Warm rosy pinks are fantastic. I like Aveda makeup a lot but there is some sort of colour undertone that all of it seems to have, or at least the lip colours. As I think about it, I believe you’re right, it is the Soft Autumn – appropriate look. I’m going to have a close look at it. Thanks!
I believe I am a soft autumn as I have very neutral coloring, light brown hair with warm highlights and my eyes are blueish green with gold surrounding the pupil. My biggest problem is finding the right shade of foundation. If I wear a cool based one I look too pink and if I wear a yellow based one I look yellow. Also, alot of the neutral shades are way too peachy. Any advice? Thanks.
Hi, Laura,
Gold surrounding the pupil might be Autumn. In Spring, it’s more yellow than brown or orange, and it is a ways away from the rim of the pupil. Autumn eyes can also have random flecks and smudges of brown that are not attached to the pupil.
Your question about foundation is common, second only to “my face and neck are a different colour, which do I match?”
There are 2 things that might help. One is that in your truly right colours, yellow casts that SEEM to warm the skin clear away in many people, leaving the true skin colour which may be cool.
The other is, of course, to just get properly analyzed. I see a number of Summer women who appear a little yellow, even in their right colours, but it’s a cool foundation that blends away. Nobody can tell anybody’s undertones without being analyzed. They might be able to tell warm from cool, but to define the degree of each by just looking? No way.
What else comes to mind? Using companies that make very neutral colours. Lancome Photogenic is good at this, I think. If you use a Neutral shade and it’s peachy, I guess the first question is “How neutral is it really?” . Clinique’s Repairwear makes an 03 and an 05 Neutrals and they are cooler than warm, and certainly not peachy. I really don’t like peachy foundation.
On my cool skin with a yellow overtone, I mix a Neutral (Repairwear 03 Fair Neutral) with a warmer colour that is still a real skin colour (Elizabeth Arden Intervene 03 Soft Sunbeige). The 2 seem able to clear the yellow but provide the necessary warmth.
Need help finding an analyst?
Very nice site.
Drew looks stunning.
I am a Soft Autumn too and I’m going to MAC next week.
Could someone recommend a MAC lipstick, that is a not too dark peachy pink and that is not a frost-like finish.
And maybe a blush too?
I use Benefits Coralista, but I find it emphasizes any redness in my sensitive skin…
Thanks a lot.
Gabby
Hi, Gabby,
You just never see Drew looking like that, ay? Like so many women, either she, or her stylist, thinks she has to be blonde. It doesn’t send nearly the spark that other shades could. I’m not even sure it suits her personality.
My makeup stack is in my studio so I’m trying to remember what’s in the Soft Autumn case (I won’t get there till the weekend). The only thing I can recall that I really loved, back when I thought I was an Autumn, was Lancome in Beige Cashmere. It was just so good and pleasant to wear. It might have a little frost. MAC Plastique is too frosty and probably more True Autumn. Nice colour though.
Do you know this site?
http://karlasugar.blogspot.com/2009/09/mac-lipstick-recap.html
I think this woman is spectacular with the legwork she’s saved me. You seem to know the colour you want so this post might interest you. I’ll look in my drawer this weekend and add to this if I find something great.
Don’t buy too much at the M.A.C. counter if you can help it.
Christine, thank you so much for the link! This site is great! I already found some lipsticks I need to try.
As to the MAC counter I am really hoping to leave it at one lipstick and one blusher…but I can’t promise…
Gabby
Hi Christine!
First of all I’d like to thank you for a great site.
I was wondering if you could give me some advice, as I’m a bit color confused. : )
I have naturally light blonde hair (a warm blonde, no ash tones), green eyes with yellow flecks in them, and a very light skin. My skin tone is very neutral, but warmer colors blend more with my coloring, whereas blue makes me look rather pale.
I was color analysed by a woman according to the 4-season system, and she did a very thourough job, covered my hair in a cape etc. It was pretty clear that I was warm, but she was a bit sursprised that I turned out to be an autumn, not a spring. Although this didn’t surprise me, as I’ve always been drawn to soft/muted colors, and felt strongly that bright colors are not for me. But of course there are a lot of autumn colors that are way too “loud” for my light coloring, and so when I read about the 12-season-system I felt pretty confident that I’m a soft autumn.
However, some people now tell me that because my dominant characteristic is light (it’s the first thing you notice about me), and because I am warm, I would have to be a light spring. But I’ve tried the light spring colors and can just say NO, they are all to clear and bright for me, and they don’t seem to blend with my coloring. All the muted and soft autumn colors, on the other hand, really blend with my coloring and seem to bring out my green eyes (mossgreens, rust, all browns, tomato red etc).
So my question to you is this: can I be an extremely light autumn, or does my lightness and light blonde hair automatically make me a spring?
Louise
Hi, Louise,
The most frustrating thing about colour analysis is that there are no rules to the game. People have trouble believing it. We’ve been taught that there are step-by-step ways of finding out your season based on your appearance and your colouring. The more people I analyze, the more I cannot believe that to be true.
I agree that the Light/Soft/Warm/Deep/etc. system is very clever and remarkably useful. It’s just not always always right. Some folks border 2 seasons. Some are very difficult to analyze.
ANY season can have ANY hair and eye colour. There is so much variability among people that no one rule will cover each individual in that season. You can have Light Springs that look very Spring- like, very yellow. Others are on the cooler side of the season, and resemble Summers.
Nothing about you makes you automatically anything. Nobody can prove that you’re not a Bright Winter till they watch your skin react to colour.
Your season is not determined by how you look sitting there, or how someone meeting you at an airport would describe you. It’s is only about how your skin reacts to colour and what the colours that make your skin most perfect have in common. Are they light? How light? Are they light and clear (Light Spring?) or light and muted (Soft Summer?). Then you factor in the third parameter of colour, which is warm/cool? How warm? Just a little or very warm?
I’d love to help you out. You need to be correctly analyzed to sort it all out.
Hi Louise,
I’m a soft Autumn too. I think that soft seasons are the most various, you can find light eyes and pretty dark eyes in this season even if the medium colour is the most common. Think that Olsen twins are Soft Autumn, and they have light eyes. The difference between Light Spring and Soft Autumn is the skin. Light Spring has a translucent skin, Soft Autumn a soft velvet skin, more opaque, like Olsen twins for example. So you’ll probably be a Soft Autumn pretty close to Light Spring, there are Soft Autumns close to the border with Soft Summers( like me), others close to Autumns.
However if you look at Light Spring palette you’ll find many colors in common with Soft Autumn, like light moss, light peach, Khaki and many others.
I hope it can help
Luana
Great comment, Luana,
I thought about “translucent skin”. What I think of is skin that is almost see-through and acts as a mirror for the colour it wears. It can give the appearance of being moonlit. Almost like vampire skin.
The only time I can recall seeing it is on True Summers under the age of 20. Otherwise, I find it a bit like undertones – in that, of the people I know who don’t wear makeup, I couldn’t pick out translucent skin or undertones on any of them. The Light Spring woman I can think of, who edges towards Light Summer, has clear eyes but not really translucent skin.
Light Spring and Soft Autumn do have the similarity of light colour and warmth, but they have 2 distinct differences, right? Autumn is warmed by brown, or the mixture with the complement which makes shades of grey. Autumn is also soft colour. These are light earthy colours.
Spring is warmed by yellow and, most important, the colours are clear. These are more sherbert colours. The Sci\ART colour palettes look quite different. The makeup for the 2 seasons is not the same at all.
Love these conversations.
Hi Christine, I liked your post. I’m not a color analyst, but maybe I’ve put a wrong word, instead of translucent I would have written clear, with my non professional eye I notice difference between the “clear”skin of a light Spring like Scarlett Johanson and the velvet but more opaque skin of a soft Autumn like Olsen twins. Now I know it is because the reason you said.
I had bought the book Color me Beautiful Looking your best and I have the complete palettes of each season. Concerning some common colors between seasons, do you mean that for example the light peach of Light Spring is different from the light peach of Soft Autumn? This is a very interesting subject.
Thanks
Luana
Luana,
It IS an interesting subject, isn’t it? I always wish that I could do a proper analysis on all the women who write to me with colour questions, because you would be fascinated if you could see it actually taking place on real skin. Women respond so innately and easily to colour.
In my head, Light Spring’s peach is cantaloupe-ish. Light but crisp. Soft Autumn’s peach is much more mellow.
I dug out the Sci\ART swatch books. You are quite right, there are some shades that are extremely similar, but none are identical. If I closed my eyes and had someone test me, I could always pick out the Soft Autumn. It is earthier, a little browner, less playful. Soft Autum never gets very orange at all. Though there are apricot, salmon, and coral, they are subdued and, well, soft. Spring’s colours in general are much zing-ier. Could be hard to reproduce in a book but it would be an important concept for the client to understand for choosing clothing. Tangy colour is the LAST thing the Soft Autumn should wear; it goes against the very essence of the season.
Hello Christine,
thanks for your reply, it is much more clear now. I only have another question. I’ve been analyzed three times, twice as Soft Autumn and once as Soft Summer. I’m pretty sure I’m a Soft Autumn because there are some colours of Autumn like camel, moss green, lime and teal that really suit me, but most of the colours that suit me very well are the ones in common with Soft Summer, in particular deep rose, watermelon, dusty pink, warm pink and all the teal(I know this is a universal colour)and purple shades. Is there a particular difference in these colours in Soft Autumn palette from Soft Summer palette?
Luana
Luana,
The same change as applies to Soft Autumn when we were talking about peach.
So, colour has 3 variables. Its light/darkness, its warm/coolness, and its clear/softness. Any season differs from any other in 2 ways. Summer and Autumn are both muted, soft, smudgy, but Autumn is often browner and Summer is often grayer.
Autumn is getting darker, with brown to begin with. And Autumn is getting warmer.
It’s a gradual transition, a graduation. Soft Summer is darker than True Summer. There are the beginnings of earthy colour, but it’s still predominantly Summer’s greyed effect and coolness of colour. Soft Autumn is truly earthy browned colour, though gently so, and it certainly warmer, but again just gently.
Hi Christine,
I was posting under Warm Autumn in July and August, but I’m posting here now because I found out that I am a Soft Autumn. I had a Sci\Art consultation and it was amazing! The analyst was terrific. She explained why drapes looked good or bad. She was so thorough. What a great experience! I highly recommend it.
I fall in between Soft Autumn and True Autumn, with Soft Autumn being a bit better. I definitely don’t suit any cool colors. All the Summer and Winter drapes were awful, especially dark, clear Winter colors and pure white. Spring wasn’t terrible, but there was no doubt that I was an Autumn. It took alot of time (and drapes) to decide which Autumn. We ruled out Dark Autumn–I’m a 3.5 on a light-dark scale of 0-10. It really could have gone either way between Soft and True Autumn, but a couple Soft Autumn drapes were the best colors I’ve ever worn, a sage-olive green and a cinnamon. Also, I can’t go too bright, and Soft Autumn has no brights.
The analysis didn’t include a makeup application, but she gave me great advice. Accordingly, I’m going out shopping today with my swatches for a golden brown eyeliner and a lipstick. I had the foundation (Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer, Porcelain), blush (Lorac, Peach), and mascara (Color Me Beautiful Sensitive Eyes, Brown) right.
When I first did the color analysis, I thought I was a summer. Now people are telling me that I’m a soft autumn. I know I’m really yellow but I wear gray, black, and blue very well. Could you tell me the colors that really define the difference between a soft autumn and a soft summer?
Hi, Charlie,
In general, Autumn’s colours look warmer while Summer’s look cooler. Autumn’s are muted with brown and Summer’s with gray (usually). But I can see the confusion between these two, because both are muted and both are medium in darkness. You’re left with the degree of warmth or coolness, but it can be challenging.
I’m not sure it can be resolved without properly coloured drapes and someone who knows what to look for. Without the Colours Book, it would be difficult to shop and keep the shade distinctions in your head. I couldn’t do it.
But let’s name some more specific colours and see if it helps:
Light colours : Soft A : cream, camel, mocha, coffee colours, mushroom
: Soft Su : ivory, stone, seashell, cocoa
Mediums : Soft A : avocado, honey, turquoise, jade
: Soft Su : dusky mauve, amethyst, sage, willow, soft raspberry
Darker : Soft A : mahogany, chestnut, walnut, rust
: Soft Su : greyed navy, forest green, deep periwinkle, raisin
So, it’s subtle, ay? Who has clothes in all these choices?
I went lipstick shopping.
If it’s helpful, Soft Summer would wear Estee Lauder Soft Amethyst or Clinique Gloss Voluptuous Violet. Eyeshadow could be Clinique Iced Mauve or perhaps the Double Date Duo.
Soft Autumn would wear EL lipstick Tender Mauve, Vintage Mauve, Cocoa Rose. Eyeshadow could be Clinique Toasted Almond, Beige Shimmer, French Vanilla.
Hi Christine,
I had a Sci\Art color analysis and I’m a Soft Autumn (see my Nov. 5 post). I’ve been carrying my color book around everywhere. I want to add more brown and muted green shirts and sweaters to my wardrobe. Unfortunately, almost every brown or green top I see is darker than the darkest brown or green in the color book.
Just to be crystal clear, the darkest brown I should buy is milk chocolate not dark chocolate, right? Also, what about a paisley shirt with dark chocolate brown and gold? Still too dark?
It’s so much fun finally knowing that I’m a Soft Autumn! It feels right.
Caroline – you can wear any colour in your Colours Book. Having said that, depending on how light or dark you are, you may feel more comfortable in the lighter or darker shades – actually, as I type that and think about it, I would say it applies more to makeup. In clothes, people can move around their book pretty freely. You have mahogany, rosewood, deep purple and aubergine, but I would agree that dark chocolate is too cool.
Patterns can be tricky. My rule is that if 75% of the colours are right and the others are not too far wrong, and the style and print is in keeping with your most flattering designs and fabrics, then it will be fine. I think the shirt sounds fine, a nice way to add a touch of drama. If it FEELS good to be in it, that’s a good sign.
Do you notice, now that you understand your best look, how crazy some (most) of the clothes out there are? Summer colours in Autumn prints. Autumn prints with Spring shine. They look insane. The clothing industry is as disorganized as the cosmetic industry. We’re so used to it, but once you know your season, it surely does clear your head and your vision.
So much good information here.
Any makeup advice or tips for a blue-eyed Soft Autumn? I have the Aztec Sun and brown flecks.
Hi, Shirley,
I see many light eyes in this group. I don’t find the makeup different than for other eye colours. I don’t buy into the idea that different eye colours can pop with different makeup. There might be something to it but I think it’s primarily gimmick to sell more stuff, which I have a huge aversion to. If you wear your right colours in clothes and makeup, any eye colour will pop if the Season analysis was correct. I’ll look for Soft Autumn and post again soon.
Christine,
The more I shop for clothes with my colors book, the more I see what you mean by the clothing industry being disorganized. Why design a shirt with the perfect soft autumn sage green, but then ruin it by adding blue pink accents? I saw a cute toffee brown top but in a super shiny fabric. What are they thinking?
When I had my color analysis, I was told that my hair needs to be a shade or two lighter. This was obvious when the grey cap was removed and the perfect drape colors weren’t quite as perfect. My hair is dyed a neutral medium brown to cover grey. My skin is 3.5 on a 1-10 light-dark scale. I’m considering light reddish brown or maybe light golden brown. What are your suggestions? Is it true that gold will bring out rosacea red tones in my face?
Once again, thank you!
I agree, Caroline!! It becomes so painfully clear, doesn’t it? You look at the clothes and can’t figure out who they’re supposed to be for.
Re: the hair colour. Light red brown and light gold sound to me like Soft Autumn. Remind me again which Season you are?
I wanted to say something else about blue eyes in Soft Autumn. I don’t buy into green/blue/purple eye colours to bring out your own colour. Too cartoonish and kid-like. When you know where to go with browns and greys, you’ll pop your eyes all you need to, especially in the right clothing colours, and you will look like a grownup.
BUT.. there are 2 ways to intensify an eye colour that I do believe in :
1. Warm against cool. So a cool blue eye with a warm brown shadow is very powerful. Just so happens your browns are warm in your Colours Book.
2. Complements. So, complementary colours are opposite on the colour wheel, each intensified in the presence of the other. Yellow and purple, and so on. The complement of blue is orange, bringing us back full circle to using warmer (oranger) browns. Isn’t it great how it always just works out? I think there’s a blog post in here.
Some products? MAC Soba, Clinique Bronze Satin, NYC Toast of the Town, Quo Tone Fatale for eyes.
Lips : Lancome Defile, Revlon Ginger Rose, Lancome Ginger Rose.
Hm… my eyes are dark grey and amber (multicolored hazel), and I’m a Cool Winter. How would I go about playing mine up?
Christine,
To answer your question, I’m a Soft Autumn. So I guess I can go with either light reddish brown or light golden brown hair.
Your post yesterday about eye color and eye makeup is interesting. I have medium brown-green-gold hazel eyes. I usually play it safe with brown eyeliner. I avoid pink browns (cool browns). I’d love to find a golden brown eyeliner that’s not shimmery. Do you know of any?
Caroline,
I know the colour you mean, but I don’t know the product. I think Clinique Roast Coffee is too dark. I’ll look around.
Also, to answer your previous question, yes, I do find that excessive yellow in the hair brings more redness to the face for the cool seasons. You should be able to tolerate some yellow. When I think of the right hair colour for Soft Autumn, it’s your base neutral-warm brown (sounds like what you have), and if you put a highlight in it, use butterscotch or honey. Something tawny, not metallic. Gold may be too yellow. You need to be true to your soft and flowing overall look. In your season, in hair that’s too yellow or orange, I find it looks more aging than particularly flushed, but every face is its own story.
Ashley,
What I meant to convey in that post was that in your right colours, your eyes already have huge intensity. There is no need for Vegas effects to bring them out more. The effect is extremely powerful and very subliminal, just as makeup should be.
When a season has a warm skin/cool eye contrast (or the opposite), simply the effect of an eyeshadow that’s true to the skin will automatically contrast the eye…so you’re still just wearing your right eyeshadow, nothing more.
In the Soft Autumn’s case, it’s coincidence that her right eyeshadow (brown) is the complement to her eye (blue). You certainly run with it if it works, but you’re not really making anything happen.
For you, since there’s grey in your eye and in your palette, I’d repeat that grey as an eyeliner in the darker form, or an eyeshadow in the lighter shade of grey in the eye. Repeating colours is also a very strong optical effect. You have many fabulous greys.
You can use complements a little when playing with the shade of grey, but Winter’s simplicity is one of its strongest features so avoid too many effects. Yellow’s complement is purple, so a purple-grey shadow may bring out the yellow. The problem, though, is that there isn’t really a purple grey in your palette. That’s True and Soft Summer, because it looks like dusty purple. Your purples, and you have many, are more red. If it were intensely grey enough it might work, but it would be hard to find, especially in a shade that wouldn’t show up purple, but then I’m not a fan of noticeable purpleness on a face.
Ah, OK. Purpley and reddish colors make my eyes look green rather than grey.
Hi Christine!
I would love your advice on two things.
Since beeing a Soft Autumn I have shopped for some clothing and found it particularly hard to find autumn colours that are light enough for me.
For example the browns are mostly a dark bitter chocolate and the greens are very dark too.
Is there a trick how I can wear these dark colours too? Cause where I live it’s cold now and the stores only sell dark colors in winter.
I tried to mix some of the dark colours with lighter ones. But sometimes I have nothing to match. So I tried to wear some golden jewelery with it.
And here comes my second problem. I love golden jewelery and I bought some really pretty (of course fake lol) things in a clothing store.
But some golden things seem so yellow to me! Like too much.
I have the impression that they make my skin look redder and clash with these ruddy tones.
Is there a trick how to recognize the right gold tone?
Cause often the lightening in these stores is so bad.
And I don’t want to give up on the idea of it, cause gold really brings some lightness to my wardrobe I really need and fake jewelery is always available, also in Winters.
Here is the effect I mean with the golden jewelery and the ruddy tones. Altough on her it doesn’t actually clash like it does on me.
But maybe you can get the idea.
http://images.askmen.com/galleries/actress/becki-newton/pictures/becki-newton-picture-2.jpg
Thank in advance for your advice. Gabby
Christine,
I understand what you’re saying about wearing the right clothing colors and eyeshadow not adding much affect, but as a blue-eyed soft autumn I find I need my brown shadow when wearing purple. Without it, it seems my eye color is a murky gray-teal. Or might I have the wrong purple clothing???
“I thought about “translucent skin”. What I think of is skin that is almost see-through and acts as a mirror for the colour it wears. It can give the appearance of being moonlit. Almost like vampire skin.”
“The only time I can recall seeing it is on True Summers under the age of 20. ”
Wouldn’t translucent skin be the domain of clears and lights? That kind of “every vein visible” complexion? I’m that pale (albeit with ruddy cheeks) and certain blues and greens reflect back on my face making me look sickly.
Help!
I have deep warm green eyes, very dark brown hair, almost black, and very light peach skin. I always thought I was a winter, due to all the contrast, and have been happily wearing cool toned makeup, grey-covering hairdye, and clothes for years. Last week I went to the Prescriptives (make up people, v. big in europe) and had my skin colour printed, and an exact match in foundation made up. (something I had never managed to find) Well now I can say my skin undertone is red-orange. I almost cried when the lady said i was warm, but there was no mistake i watched her try the 4 tones on my skin. She said ‘ you are warm, just not yellow’ so my skin is a ‘level 1(light) warm red-orange medium’ so the second lightest peach in other words.
My question is, does this make me a soft autumn (peach) when rust and kakhi look awful on me… or a clear spring (contrast) when yellow looks awful on me?
Or even a warm spring? Nicoles make up looks closer to what I would normally wear, pre- world crashing consultation. You can see my pics on facebook if you have the time, I’ve just joined youe facebooksite.
Shirley,
This might be a hard one for me to call without seeing it. I don’t want to mislead you. My instinctive answer is to say, and I know you’ve read it, “If the colour you’re wearing is right, the eye colour is amplified”. But what you describe as murky or gray-teal is not necessarily bad, depending on what it’s being compared to and what it is the purple is finding in your eye. I’m not sure I fully understand what you mean here – are you saying that with no shadow, or a purple shadow to match the clothing, the eye colour is murky?
Your eye colour will be at its electric best in every one of your right colours, though maybe some more than others. I’m a little worried you have the wrong purple.
Kathy,
When I say translucent, I don’t mean clear. Winters have fairly thick skin, I find. It may be perfectly cleared of any blotches or imbalances, but it never seems so very fragile. Spring also doesn’t seem that thin to me, be it True Spring or Bright (Clear) Spring, or Light Spring.
Light Summer is getting there for the translucency thing, but I agree that they will reflect turquoise and cantaloupe quite awfully well. It’s in certain True Summers that I see both, but by no means in all of them. They are a wildly varied group.
Hi, Gabby,
Admittedly, you haven’t many very dark colours. You have deep periwinkle, eggplant, purple, raisin, and mahogany. The beauty of your tones is in the natural neutral selection and the rich midtones. Just as important as upholding the colours themselves, it is important to always keep in mind the concept of low, gentle, mellow, soft contrast.
If the dark colours you mention are outside your realm of BEST colours, I don’t think there’s any real way to wear them without introducing too much darkness and contrast. But, I know what you mean about how hard it is to find clothing. The industry doesn’t offer colours for all the groups evenly, and it is quite seasonal. So, like with black on the lighter seasons, wear it away from your face, and with your better colours to offset some of the darkness. You are not Summer, so you don’t need to be monochromatic, meaning different shades of the same colour. You can wear 2-3 colours together, as long as they’re all midtone and low contrast. Think of sea/sand/earth/sky for this season.
If you haven’t seen the articles below, they may help:
http://12blueprints.com/wrong-colours-away-from-the-face/
http://12blueprints.com/soft-autumn-jewelry/
You’re quite right, yellow gold is way too yellow.
Have you seen the earrings posted on the 12Blueprints fan club page on Facebook? They’re so beautiful. They’re at J.Crew. Let me know if you don’t see them, and I’ll find a link.
Hi, Daire,
While I respect the value of foundation testing, I’m not certain I can use the information to narrow you down to a season. Other than to say you’re not likely to be a True Winter or Summer, every other season has some degree of heat. I’m a Dark Winter and wear a cool foundation, and so would every Dark Winter I know, but is every single Winter and its blends cool in foundation, probably … the thing is, there’s so much variability among people, it’s difficult to generalize.
I can’t see how you’d distinguish any of the 3 Springs from the 3 Autumns on foundation alone. They’re probably all warm.
The degree of contrast is somewhat helpful, but it’s also a trap and an example of why it is so hard to do this without analyzing the real person. Though books often show an average for the Season, it’s amazing how few real people fit into the average. Also, it’s not what you look like, it’s how your skin reacts to colour. Some True Summers are very contrasting.
It sounds to me like you’re neither of those Seasons. I did look at the photos but, honestly, I have learned that I cannot be right every single time unless I drape each person and watch their skin change and respond to the very carefully coloured drapes. I can guess but it doesn’t help you for me to speculate and narrow it down to the best 3. Some people are very hard to analyze, even with the drapes – though from your pictures, you do not strike me as being too challenging. Your skin is great and would probably be beautifully reactive, which is why you have such strong feelings about certain colours.
Daire –
Years ago a Prescriptives MA matched me as an “R” level one (lightest shade, red undertones — though compared to the yellow/orange, red/orange, and blue/red families, red just looks neutral). I’d always worn warm (yellow-toned) foundation until then and when I look back at old photos of me, I look sallow. I think look better in warmer lipstick and blush, though.
“If the colour you’re wearing is right, the eye colour is amplified”
How does this work for brown eyes? The only color that really amplifies my eye color is a milk chocolate brown — the color of my eyes. And having red hair kind of intensifies my eye color, but I don’t notice color in general doing anything in particular to my eyes.
Christine,
OK–here’s my theory: purple is a product of red and blue and is neutral so my eyes are confused as to whether to go cool or warm and end up being murky. I have only brown and gray eyeshadows (and champagne highlighter). I use the brown shadow and my eyes go cooler. With the gray shadow they turn blue-green, but with much less intensity. This only happens with purple clothing.
Is my theory all wet? Confused? Have the wrong purple??
My features look a lot like Holly on 12Blueprints. Our face and eye shapes are the same and cheekbones. My complexion and hair (dark blonde) are both a bit lighter.
Hello Christine,
I’ve read with interest the aricle about Soft Autumn jewels, I was wondering if a Soft Autumn can also wear amethyst.
I have Amethyst colour in my soft autumn swatch book, but I don’t know if I can wear it as jewel.
Dear Christine,
I really enjoy your blogs. I find them enjoyable and informative. I have some questions about Sci\ Art and the Soft Autumn colors. First, I was wondering if the Sci\ Art color text book has all of the complete color palettes printed in it? I cannot afford to buy the personal book of color at this time ($67 is too much for me) but I could manage the book ($39.95) if it had all of the color palettes printed in it. Secondly, I was wondering which shade of blue jean is appropriate for blending well with the Soft Autumn colors? Sometimes I feel that I look off when wearing jeans.
Thank you. I really value your input.
Laura
You’re right, Kathy. With brown eyes, there are no special combinations I can think of to intensify the eye. That is not to say that brown eyes are not glorious with the right liner and clothes and cosmetics in the right season, but it will be a brown eyeliner. I analyzed a True Autumn woman yesterday. She wore a brown eyeliner, but her eyes took center stage in an otherwise stupendous colour palette.
The problem, Shirley, is two-fold. One is that we haven’t figured out the season so we don’t fully understand the nature of the eye colour or how it responds. Secondly, there are hundreds of browns and greys out there, some cooler, some redder, some duller, and so on. It’s not just a question of complements.
I enjoy looking at eyes and can often get a clue to season from pictures, which I can never do from faces. It’s the line patterns, not the colours. Send me a photo, VERY close, VERY focused, privately and I’ll tell you what I see.
Luana,
I think Amethyst is stunning on Soft Autumn. Stay true to what you read about metals, settings, weight, and feeling, which I know you will. Amethyst is naturally a soft colour (low contrast) and not too dark, so it fits well with the rules of Soft Seasons.
Hi, Laura,
The textbook has none of the palettes, if we’re discussing the same one. I think mine was more like $75, a blue spiral-bound book with a DaVinci print on the front.
Jeans and denim are fine because Autumn brings in a feeling of natural, practical, heavy textured, working fabric. It should not be too faded, as the Light Seasons would wear, nor too dark. Just mid-toned, a little worn in to introduce some softness, and with the right colours on top. I might not put it near the face.
Hi Christine,
Is it possible to be a Soft Autumn but not suit any Summer colors? I am a True Autumn who’s soft and muted. I only suit warm colors, but they must be muted and in the medium-light to medium-dark range. If you look at the photo and description of Maura on page 32 of Carole Jackson’s original Color Me Beautiful book, you’ll see what I mean.
I was given the Soft Autumn colors book, but I only use the warm colors. Should I have been given True Autumn with instructions to avoid the darks and brights?
Forgot to add, neutrals aren’t great on me either. They’re better than cool colors, of course, but warms are the best by far.
Hi Christine
I enjoy reading your sight. I have been wondering the same thing Caroline just mentioned about Soft & True Autumn. I too have had a Sci\Art Consultation. A wonderful experience. The process was explained well and it is great to see how the various colours look on oneself. I came out a Soft Autumn. I have naturally medium gold blonde hair, olive green eyes and pale skin with freckles (I wear Estee Lauder 1W1 Bone).
In the analysis of the 4 seasons there was no doubt I was an Autumn. Summer was too cool, Winter too dark & cool and Spring too bright. While it was clear Soft Autumn was better than True Autumn it was because I couldn’t take the more intense & brighter colours of the True, but I still have the warmth. In fact like Caroline no cools through the analysis worked on me, including none from the sister season Soft Summer. Some neutrals were fine though. I love the colours in the Soft Autumn book of colours and my best colours of olive green and a yellow were included. Golden yellow is a good colour on me, just not too strong, but more so than what is in Soft Autumn. Is it possible, if I am at the warmer end of Soft Autumn that I can go into some of the less intense, less bright True Autumn colours. I feel that I could also benefit from getting the True Autumn colours book.
I understand with True Autumn that hue is important and Soft Autumn chroma is important. Is it possible that for some people they are of equal importance?
Cheers
Ok. That should be site not sight. lol!
Another thing I’ll add is that I don’t like how silver jewellery looks on me but it says Soft Autumns being more neutral can also wear silver. I have always found gold jewellery looks better on me, even into the more yellowy golds.
Caroline,
We’re delving into questions that are very specific to your colouring, but I can only answer theoretically.
When you say “muted” …. well, how muted? Only draping can answer that.
With “neutral” and “warm”… each Season of the 12 has neutrals, but they’re all different, each one.
And warm, yes, but how warm? A little or a lot? Warmed with gold or with pale yellow? Only with draping will it be known.
I don’t intend to be vague but I do mean to be precise and not misleading. That’s the problem with PCA without personal draping. It’s a question of degrees, particularly when we get to 12 Seasons, where the distinctions are sometimes obvious and often subtle.
So could a Soft Autumn not suit any Summer shades? In the system I use, a Soft Autumn would wear NONE of the True Summer shades. They are extremely distinct. A True Summer might share a few shades with a Soft Summer that lives on the cool side, but that’s it. Soft Autumn is very far away from Summer.
If you were placed in the correct season, there will no shades to avoid. Every single one will work. You might prefer some, but all of them should create the perfect skin effect.
I don’t understand about “the Soft Autumn book, but only using warm colours”. Arent’ they all warm?
I have temporarily lost my copy of CMB. I’ll look at Maura once it surfaces.
Tina,
I love a Sci\ART analysis because the client UNDERSTANDS their colouring AND why the decisions are made as they are.
Brilliant question. Certainly, people don’t sit smack in the center of their Season. Some do, especially for the True Season folks. The Neutral Season individuals seem to float a bit more, either to the cooler or warmer side of their Season. This is why you can have 2 people who look quite different in the same Season. So, yes, you could wear some of the gentler True Autumn colours if you want to. The clothing industry is almost as big a mess as the cosmetics industry in their colour organization. Sometimes, you have to buy something close or nothing at all.
Your final comment is true. True Autumn is darker, golder, more metallic, more contrasting. The skin and eye magic will never be captured equally in 2 Seasons. Even if you’re 45% True Autumn, the magic is ONLY in the correct Season. Second best is way behind, but not so far back as some of the others that were rejected earlier in the PCA process. In this case, there will be more forgiveness for the gentle True Autumn shades than in a Soft Autumn who veers to the cooler side.
Hello Christine,
regarding Caroline post, I have both the swatch books(Soft Autumn and Soft Summer) of CMB system. Some colour swatches are exactly the same. I can’t tell you exactly the name of the colour because there is not written. But there are many. The swatches are made of tissue, so no doubt that are the same colour.
I think Tina and I are in the same boat.
Christine, in the Sci\Art Soft Autumn colors book, there are some blue-greens and what look like pink-browns. I think of those colors as being on the cool side. Am I wrong? Also, the last page has silver jewelry as well as gold jewelry. When my Sci\Art analyst held up a silver drape and a gold drape, the gold was far superior on me. I definitely cannot wear both gold and silver.
To answer your other questions, my draping revealed that I’m muted but frankly, I don’t know how muted, except to say that bright colors were unflattering. Not sure as to degree here. As for warmth, the drapes showed that I’m best in colors warmed with gold rather than pale yellow.
I think I fall into the 45% True Autumn, 55% Soft Autumn that you mentioned to Tina so I can wear gentle True Autumn colors. Do you think I ought to order the True Autumn colors book or are those gentle True Autumn colors in the Soft Autumn book too?
Thanks Christine for your response.
It makes sense that 2 neutrals could fall at either end of the spectrum for that palette. That is the case for me with Soft Autumn. I probably would say 60% Soft Autumn and 40% True Autumn but still 100% on the warm side. No cools were proved in the analysis. So the analysis result was correct for me. I’m definately a Soft Autumn, but I can wear some of the gentler True Autumn colours.
I will probably eventually get True Autumn’s book of colours, even if it is to satisfy my curiousity. I’m thinking that perhaps the inner 2 or 3 circles on each strip may be the gentler colours that a warmer Soft Autumn could use? Caroline had a point though, are the gentler colours of True already included in the Soft Autumn colours book?
Also I’ve noticed Soft Autumn’s colour book doesn’t really go into the oranges (stays around pinky-oranges). I can do a soft muted orange so assume this is more of a True colour.
Caroline, it does sound like we are in a similar situation with our colours. I agree some of the blues-greens and pinks look coolish. Perhaps they are neutral colours?
Christine,
thank you so much for the link to the article about Soft Autmns jewellery, it helped a lot!
Actually I noticed that I have always been drawn to the Soft Autumn jewellery but have not bought any because I thought it wouldn’t look “decorative” enough, as it’s so natural and understated.
After reading your article I went to the mall and tried some things and they really looked good on me!
I got a necklace with a jade pendant and some earings with brown stones.
Both items have silver metal, because all the gold I could find was very yellow and I was kind of afraid of it.
On the other hand I find pure silver unflattering so I chose it mixed with stones.
I wonder what is the difference between Soft Autumn jewellery and Soft Summer’s? (Couldn’t find the Soft Summers article.)
I noticed that in general there are not many things for the Soft Autumn where I live. (Maybe it’s because it’s wintertime?)
Most colours I saw were dark, muted and cool or neutral and of course a lot of black.
I did see some autumn colours but most of them were very dark, probably good for deep autumns.
In fact the only blouse I found in a nice soft warm beige had a shiney fabric (Why??) and that always lookes really ad on me!
So I was a little bit desperate and the necklace and earrings were the only things I bought.
What I have always wondered about is that I have been draped before with the Four Seasons System and the result was a Summer.
I was naturally tanned back then and could really see, how the summer colours were the best.
But I never really felt happy with them and found that my eyes looked boring or clashed with the blue greens. (I have green eyes.)
Then I had my colour done again by just sending my photos to an analist via e-mail and the result was Soft Autumn.
And I have to say it feel’s right on me and my eyes don’t look boring anymore.
But I’m so curious how the resulft before happened? I mean, how could the drapes “lie”?
Gabby
Caroline,
Why not have both books? You’re only out a little money and you may find you understand your colouring much better. The blue-greens and pink-browns may look cool, but look at them beside Soft or True Summers and they won’t be so cool. Colour is about comparison. Everything is relative to something else.
The Neutral seasons can wear gold or silver, but for you who is so close to a purely warm Season, gold probably will be superior. Go with that feeling. I have some silver hoops that weave a single gold strand through them and it works well. You could do a gold piece with a silver accent.
How muted? Less than True Autumn. That’s the only answer you really need. Your colours are closer to gray than the next more muted Season.
Gabby,
The drapes didn’t lie at all, they just weren’t able to fine tune your colouring enough with only 4 Seasons. Soft Autumns have some tolerance for Summer colours because they’re a Summer blend. The other 2 Autumns look really bad in Summer though, because one is purely warm and one is dark, very much contrary to Summer’s energy.
Soft Summer Jewelry is the next article, but I’m still working my way through the 12. Takes time, my most precious commodity.
You’ll find our clothes and jewelry over time. It’s all out there, more at different times of year. Just takes your antennae to be up and watchful. You know what the trip to the mall is like…you’ll find a ton of stuff except the specific thing you went for. The jewelry you did buy and your silver/gold decisions sound like you are on the right track.
Christine,
thanks for your very quick answer.
With the drapes it was really weird, because absolutely none of the autumns drapes looked good on me.
Even when the whites and beiges of the four seasons were compared, summer’s colours looked relatively best on me.
It was later in real life that I realized that sonething is wrong. I felt that some summer colors, especially cool pink and blueish red made me look grayish. While the blues and purples seemed to make me yellowish.
I never understood why until I took the analysis with the 12 types system. I did this because I felt not at home with my summer colours and I though the analysis would tell me, which summer I am, light, soft or cool.
Instead I was told that I am a soft autumn.
So why didn’t at least some of the 4-Season-Autumn-drapes look better than the summer ones.
I am asking because this really made me very insecure.
Although I started trusting my own feeling and I feel good with the Soft Autumn.
I find it hard to get clothes in my colours but make-up I find really easy, so I’m happy for that.
No more pink blush and lipstick, I switched for some coral and light chocolate brown and it makes me look so much better I think.
So for now, I am still wearing some of my old greys and navys and combining them with the right jewellery and make-up.
(I started to love jewellery right now, especially as I can mix my old silver jewellery with some soft autumn stones and this works quite fine.)
So thanks again for your help!!!
Gabby,
Your question regarding why some of the 4 Season Summers didn’t work – You really can’t compare skin reactions between the 4 and 12 Season systems. The colour tone distinctions are very subtle. There are 3 dimensions of colour that are being altered at once in the 12 Season system. The 4 Season drapes are far too absolute to make judgements. It’s common for the Neutral Seasons to look good in NONE of the True Season drapes.
Any thoughts about fragrances for the 12 Seasons (Soft Autumn in particular)?
Delicate, soft florals like L’Air du Temps or Chanel No. 5 might be good for Springs or Summers but don’t seem quite right for Soft Autumn. Neither do spicy, bold scents, which seem better suited for Dark Autumn. Citrus screams Summer to me. Oriental fragrances like Shalimar suit Winters, right? I’m not sure where sweet fruity scents like Jo Malone Nectarine Blossom and Honey fall, or where foody vanillas like Laura Mercier Creme Brule would go.
I’d love to hear fragrance-12 Season correlations, especially Soft Autumn! I’ll start with Chanel Coco for Dark Autumn.
Christine,
I saw a wonderful lilac dress that I really like. In my color swatch book I have a light amethyst that looks like the rich lilac dress( kind of wistiria), but I’m not totally sure because it’s a little bit lighter,
do you think it can work on me?
Thanks
Luana
Hi Christine, I love your website! I would like to know if it’s possible to fall between two seasonal types. I cannot seem to determine whether I’m a soft summer or a soft autumn; both apply and don’t apply equally in various ways. My natural hair color is medium ash brown which glints slightly gold in the sun. My eye color is medium brown with an olive caste and a dark blue rim. My skin is extremely fair porcelain and neutral, but with sensitivity and pinkness. The overall impression of my coloring is more brown than grey, and I have yet to find a grey color that doesn’t look ghastly on me. However, warm hair tones and makeup tones quickly turn orange and unflattering on me and I look healthier and more natural in neutral to cool toned brown hair and plum lipstick colors. Having said that, I can also pull off muted warmer shades, such as light peach lipstick colors or light peach eye shadows. Thus, my question about being two types, soft summer and soft autumn, simultaneously? Many thanks for your wonderful website and help!
Christine,
thanks again for your answer!
Yes, it has been like you said, I felt that I don’t look good in any of the drapes. The summer ones were just the best available, but not what I would call my best colours. The analyst had a different oppinion though… Now I think that she must have seen I don’t fit in any of the four true seasons. But I get she could not admit, that the system she used was not useful because that would mean returning my money…well, I know what I think of her now.
I have another question regarding make-up. I know that Soft Summer is about matt colours and I totally agree! I have always hated a very shimmery look on myself.
Now I was looking for a good eyeliner yesterday and I bought one called Teddy from MAC. It is a bronzey dark brown.
I didn’t really notice how it was shimmery until I got home.
I am also not sure anymore about if this really is good for Soft Autumn.
Maybe anyone here can hel me out?
This is it: (Teddy is the fourth from the right.)
http://www.maccosmetics.com/product/spp.tmpl?CATEGORY_ID=CAT151&PRODUCT_ID=323
Caroline,
I think you started a great topic here!
I was so lost on the perfume market for a long time.
I tried to find some advice and the only one I could find was “light colouring – light scent”, “deep colouring – heavy scent”.
As I am medium going into light and I have always liked fruity scents I always went for light fruity-florals, often summer editions of perfumes.
But I was never truely satisfied.
Then I read in Carole Jacksons “Colour Me Beautiful” from the 80s, that Summer is the floral type, Spring is good in light, sweet smells from flowers or fruits, Winter is good in spicey scents and Autumn is good in fruity or woody perfumes.
I gave it a try and found out that I really enjoy woody scents. I like them mixed with fruits or florals and not overly heavy, which also fits with the “light-deep-colouring-rule”.
So as Soft Autumn is a mix of Autumn and Summer and is medium in colouring, that could mean that a mix of woody or fruity notes with some floral, that is neither very light nor very heavy would work.
Let me know whether this works for you too!
Luana,
be careful! In my swatches there is an amethyst colour too, but whenever I have bought something close to this colour I found out at home that it was a cool color really.
I now hold such shades close to a grey and a warm brown in the store, if it seems to fit better with the grey, I leave it.
Gabby
Hi, Andrea,
Short answer : nope. Correctly and thoroughly done, the Sci\ART system (indeed any good PCA system) will analyze every single person within the number of Seasons available to them. Having said that, some people so lie on the 45%/55% line that without the very specifically-coloured drapes, there would be no telling. No matter how precise the verbal description, colour is always visual and the final analysis must be made that way.
Thanks so much for your response, Christine! I really appreciate it. After reading and re-reading your descriptions of soft autumn and soft summer, as well as playing with a bit of the makeup suggested for each type, I do believe I can now see that I lean more toward soft summer. Because I have hazel eyes and hairdressers are so keen on warm highlights for any shade of brown hair these days, that touch of warmth in my eyes and those highlights (thanks to my hairdresser) tend to send makeup artists on the search for sutumnal or spring type of colors for me. But with all else removed, the soft summer colors truly look the best against my skin tone. An interesting system that deserves more attention! Many thanks again for your fascinating web site.
Gabby,
thanks for the advice, but I asked about lilac because amethyst colour really suits me, I have many dresses in amethyst for this reason, especially light amethyst, but i don’t know about lilac.
Christine
I’m working on getting you a picture of my eye.
Another question: Which tonal season(s) would the color red-violet belong??
Glad to help, Andrea. You do know about 12blueprints.com, right? These Makeup Model posts were written before I had the comprehension of PCA that I have today. The newer site is technically more correct.
Shirley,
Red-violet is absolutely Winter’s realm.
Caroline,
I just thought I’d pick up on the fragrance trail!
According to Carole Jackson in “The Makeup Book”, these fragrances suit the following seasons:
WINTER: Amber Mist (Avon), Anne Klein II (Parlux), Aromatics Elixir (Clinique), Ciara (Ultima II), Fendi (Fendi), Gloria Vanderbilt (Warner), Magie Noire (Lancome), Obsession (Calvin Klein), Oscar (Oscar de la Renta), Paloma (Paloma Picasso) and Shalimar (Guerlain).
SUMMER: Anaïs Anaïs (Cacharel), Chanel no 5, no 19 and Cristalle (all Chanel), Enjolie (Charles of the Ritz), Glorious (Warner), Joy (Patou), Le Jardin (Max Factor), Liz Claiborne (Liz Claiborne Cosmetics), Luctèce (Houbigant), Ombre Rose (JC Brousseau), Private Collection (Estée Lauder), Rive Gauche (YSL), Silences (Jacomo)
AUTUMN: CAbochard (Grès), Coco (Chanel), Halston (Halston), Gucci III (Gucci), KL (Lagerfeld), Opium (YSL), Poison (Dior), Ruffles (Oscar de la Renta), Teatro alla Scala (Krizia), Youth Dew (Estée Lauder)
SPRING: Aliage (Estée Lauder), Anne Klein (Parlux), Beautiful (Estée Lauder), Charlie (Revlon), Colors (Benetton), Fidji (Guy La Roche), Giorgio (Giorgio Beverly Hills), L’Air du Temps (Nina Ricci), Lauren (Ralph Lauren), Norell (Revlon), Paris (YSL), Privilege (Revlon), White Linen (Estée Lauder), Wind Song (Prince Matchabelli), Ysatis (Givenchy)
I know at least a few of these fragrances are discontinued, but most are still around.
If fragrances are anything to go by, I would be a Summer with Autumn influence, i.e. Soft Summer. All my life I’ve loved Rive Gauche, Chanel no 5 and 19, Joy and Private Collection. But I’ve successfully worn a few Autumn fragrances also: Cabochard, Coco, Gucci III and Poison. I can’t pull off any of the Winter fragrances except for Obsession, and the Spring fragrances are just blah on me. That said, I came to the conclusion some time ago that I’m a Clear Winter (after having gone through every season except for Summer, which Christine is convinced I’m not), so I don’t quite know what to make of this list of fragrances and their correctness. I do know however, that among the newer types of scents out there I do very well with some amber added – not the heavy amber of Winter, nor the toffee amber of Spring, but the slightly warm and soft amber that I think would suit Autumns well. I really like Estée Lauder’s Intuition and Armani’s She.
OK, that my five cents worth. Happy New Year everyone!
Hi, Kristina,
That was an ambitious post!
I have never tackled perfume, though I think about it. It is just SO personal. No question, though, certain scents fit better on certain people. Other scents might seem pleasant, but are better on someone else, just as certain colours are better on your walls than your body. I find perfume difficult to verbalize but I enjoy the blogs by women who are good at it (nowsmellthis, graindemusc, and others).
I’ve been wearing Nina by Nina Ricci lately and feeling very comfortable with it. I like its simplicity and sweetness, without being too candy-like.
Chanel No. 19 is the closest I’ve had to a signature fragrance for the past couple decades, and summer is the one season I can easily eliminate without any draping. Oddly enough, I make it smell earthy, mossy and a bit horsey — more typical of a warmer season.
Thanks, Christine…yes, I’m a big fan of 12blueprints.com!
Oh, I love discussing fragrances…!
On me, Chanel no. 19 is all white flowers and soft leather gloves. A bit grassy at the very first, but then quickly settling into something beautifully soft and feminine. In fact, no. 19 is far softer on me than no. 5 ever becomes. No. 19 is the kind of fragrance that melds with me, whereas a lot of fragrances are very “on top” of my skin, like it’s been “added” instead of being a part of my own chemistry, if you see what I mean. My first love was Rive Gauche and I wore it exclusively for 10 years. Checking through Ms. Jackson’s list, I would definitely be a Summer of some sort. So like I said, I’m not sure what to make of it. My mother is a Warm Autumn, she smells divine in Shalimar. My two Winter sisters are very much into Oscar and Magie Noire, so no mystery there! And although I love all those three scents, they just clash with my skin.
Christine: Nina is beautiful. Very soft yet distinctive. I’m sure it suits you very well.
Kathy: what a wonderful description of Chanel no. 19. The “horsey” bit made me smile:
Do you ladies read the perfume blogs? There are 4 or 5 that you would appreciate. The writers have exceptionally good taste and a wonderful descriptive ability.
My favourite is J’adore of Christian Dior, I don’t know which season it belongs, but I think perfume is very personal.
Yes, I do read quite a few perfume blogs! One of my favorites is Bois de Jasmin (http://boisdejasmin.typepad.com). The only “problem” with perfume blogs is that I keep wanting to try new scents, never quite content with the latest favorite and always thinking there might be something even more alluring out there… (I guess Makeupalley affects me in much the same way.)
Yes, fragrance is indeed very personal. What’s great on someone can be awful on another. I think personality has a lot to do with choosing the perfect scent also. I can see it in my daughters: my oldest is a no-fuss, happy go lucky kind of girl and she likes many masculine scents like Ralph Lauren’s Polo Sport. My youngest is more sensitive and romantic, and she loves Dior’s Pure Poison and florals in general.
J’Adore seems like a Spring type of person. I think Charlize Theron portrays it very well. Then again, with my Warm Autumn mother’s favorite Shalimar in mind, anything is possible, I guess.
Kristina,
thank you for sharing! Your post is very interesting!
So I’ll throw my 5p in, too.
While I do agree that perfume is a very personal choice I would love some advice!
I feel so lost on the market! I even feel that there is nothing out there for me, since my parfume has been discontinued.
Everything seems to be targeted to teens or at least no one past the age of 25.
And while I like the trend that perfume is becomeing more light an inoffensive I hate it that it is so unbalanced.
Either the compositions are sickly sweet or very masculine(herbal/woody).
As a teenager I have always loved the smell of Opium and Poison but never bought these, because I felt they were to heavy for me.
I feel so until today.
So mayby there is something in it, as I am attracted to Autumn-type-perfume, but I want a lighter version of ot. Still warm, but softer.
(I’m a soft autumn.)
So, I would appreciate some orientation according to the 12 seasons.
Does anybody know if anything like this exists? Maybe in a book?
Happy New Year!
Gabby
Hi Gabby!
May I ask which was your favorite perfume, the one that has been discontinued?
You like Opium and Poison but feel they might be too strong for you. You might want to try the lighter versions of the scent (EdT, body lotion), maybe that would solve it! My youngest daughter is, at least I think she is, a Soft Autumn (or possibly a Soft Summer). Pure Poison, the latest version in the white bottle, is absolutely amazing on her.
When I think of Soft Autumn scents I tend to think of amber, but maybe that’s just me. If you’re in a store, do try Estée Lauder’s Intuition and Armani’s She, they’re very pretty. Warm, sunny, but not heavy and not overpowering (at least not to me, but everyone’s different).
If you tend to like old school scents, check out Balenciaga’s Cristobal. It’s lighter than Opium and Poison, yet it has a lovely ambery depth.
I tend to prefer classic brands such as those or Chanel or Guerlain. That way I can be pretty sure the scent will be around for more than one season. Another scent that is hard to find but is said to be really beautiful is Coriandre by Jean Couturier. It’s a chypre, but a soft one (softer than Gucci III).
Kristina, I’m a Soft Autumn, but I couldn’t wear the perfume you mentioned. My favourite perfumes are floreal, I don’t like amber or oriental perfume, the only perfume I can wear in the Autumn perfumes you mentioned is COCO Chanel. Better the Summer fragrances for me like Anais Anais and Chanel N.5 and Cristalle.
Luana,
Oh, I see. Well, like I said earlier, I don’t quite know what to make of perfumes in relation to one’s season. I’m getting cooler and darker by the day, my contrasts are increasing, yet I still like and get compliments when I wear Chanel no.19, which is a very soft and feminine scent that wouldn’t strike me as a Winter type of scent at all!
And speaking of that: I wore two Summer colors the other day, cocoa and rose beige (cool colors, not warm). My husband gave me a compliment the minute he set eyes on me – “Wow, those colors really suit you, you look great!”, and he’s NOT the kind of guy who says things like that every day. Looking in the mirror I had to agree. I looked like I’d come back from a two-week spa vacation.
“You do know about 12blueprints.com, right? These Makeup Model posts were written before I had the comprehension of PCA that I have today. The newer site is technically more correct.”
Will you be doing makeup recommendations on there eventually?
Well, y’know, Ashley, I’m working at defining the line between what I can give away, and what has to live in my head and be exchanged for an income. I want to make a life out of this, so there has to be some exclusivity.
Also, when I recommend makeup shades, I’m often shopping with a particular client in mind. Though the colours would suit anyone of that Season, shades come out to me that I see when I have a face in my head.
Hi Christine -
Read your blog top to bottom! Thanks for all your help!
I am rediscovering my palette. I thought I was a winter for many years because of dark brown hair and clear blue eyes. Now I am 55. As I went gray, I successfully highlighted my hair with golden blonde – everyone said it “belonged” to me – but – my color crisis began!
I’ve been pouring over the internet and think I’m a soft Autumn! Golden/butterscotch highlighted hair, a slightly sallow complexion, blue eyes with tiny flecks of gray and brown. I put on a soft lemon yellow sweatshirt the other day and LOVED IT! When I look back over the photos of me as a winter, the strong jewel tones washed me out! My make-up looked garish!
Now I’m trying to find someone who can tell me definitely what I am but I am having trouble finding someone. I live in Chicago – any ideas?
Thanks,
Kay
Kay,
I sent you the Analyst Directory from the Sci\ART site in a private email. If you did not find what you need, don’t hesitate to contact me again.
Hi Christine-
I’ve gotten a couple books on the subject and spent quite a bit of time here and at Pretty Your World attempting to figure out my season. Unfortunately, I still have three options: Soft Autumn, Warm Spring, and Soft Summer.
I was, for quite some time, mostly convinced I was a Warm Spring. But often, something could be too orange or too yellow (like gold), making my sensitive skin’s ruddiness more apparent, and that didn’t strike me as being particularly correct. And there were other issues as well. So each time I found something wrong, I would dive back in and re-analyze myself, looking at a range of pictures and trying on clothes, and always ending up back at Warm Spring.
A couple of days ago, I had an epiphany that I might be a Soft Summer, but the bit of red in my hair brought me quickly to also considering Soft Autumn.
I know that these seasons line up awkwardly at best, but I have seen pictures of women (or men) in all three categories that I can, and have, shared coloring with. I’ve never even really known what to label my hair as. People (including myself) have perceived it as red, almost red, strawberry blonde, rich medium brown, almost blonde, and ashy brown, or some mix of the above, and it can coincide with the lighting and what I’m wearing and sometimes… it doesn’t. The same goes with my skin and my eyes. I have extremely pale legs, and often, the rest of my skin looks pale as well (Spring). But it can also have the slightly hardier look of a Soft Summer or Soft Autumn as well, and it can certainly be very red as I’ve had issues with acne for as long as I can remember and my skin is just plain sensitive on top of it. My eyes can be grey, grey blue, green blue, or grey green, and they have a light yellowish amorphous ring around the pupil.
I am totally at a loss, and I’m a starving college student so paying for an analysis is just way out of the question right now. So, my actual question is if there is one particular color I could find to drape myself with to tease out which of the three I truly am? And I currently use my bathroom for this process, where there’s a window high in the room that floods it with natural, but not direct, light. This is the optimal environment for testing colors, right?
I am so sorry for the exceedingly long post…