The True Summer color palette

Are you a True Summer?

True Summer is the middle of the Summer family, and coolness is the leading trait. Skin, hair and eyes all read cool, with no gold anywhere, and the coloring sits at a medium depth. Contrast is medium too: the hair is darker than the skin but nothing looks sharp.

Skin is pink beige, rosy or a neutral beige with a cool cast. It burns easily and tans slowly to a cool, pinkish tan rather than a gold. Any redness reads blue-pink. There is no peach or olive in it, and the veins at the wrist look blue.

Hair is ash blonde to medium ash brown, with no red or gold in the light. It often looks mousy indoors and cool grey-brown in sun. Many True Summers had light blonde hair as children and darkened to an ash tone in their twenties.

Eyes are grey, blue, grey-blue or a cool green, often with a soft edge to the iris rather than a sharp one. Cool brown eyes occur but are less common. Brows and lashes are usually a soft ash brown.

On the color analysis test, a True Summer reads cool on the undertone gauge, medium on depth, and medium on contrast. When no single trait leads, the tool splits cool mediums by contrast: a skin-to-hair lightness gap under 50 lands in True Summer, and 50 or above lands in True Winter.

If your hue lands in the neutral band with a cool lean, the same rule applies. Hair that is dyed dark can push a True Summer across the line into Winter, so read the result with your natural hair color in mind.

How to wear the True Summer palette

The palette above is the working set. Raspberry rose, periwinkle and cool teal are the signature colors, the three that make the skin look calm and the eyes clearer. Sky grey-blue, soft plum and sage green carry the range. Dusty pink is the everyday soft color.

The rule for a True Summer is cool and soft together. A color can be cool but harsh, like fuchsia, or soft but warm, like camel. Both work against the face. The right color makes the skin look even and takes the redness down rather than up.

Neutrals are cool white, slate, blue navy and a cool taupe. Cool white replaces cream, which reads yellow beside cool skin. Slate replaces mid-brown. Blue navy is the darkest color that belongs next to the face, and it does the work of black for suits and coats.

For men, this means cool white or sky grey-blue shirts, slate or cool taupe knitwear, a blue navy suit over black, and a periwinkle, raspberry or cool teal tie. A grey suit should be a clean blue-grey rather than a warm charcoal. Black shoes are fine.

Pair cool with cool at similar softness. Raspberry with slate, periwinkle with cool white, sage with soft plum. Medium contrast pairings suit the face, so a mid-tone top over a dark bottom looks better than white over black.

Colors to avoid

Warm colors are the main problem. Orange, golden yellow, rust, warm brown and camel all have gold in them, and gold makes True Summer skin look sallow and the hair dull. Even a warm cream can read yellow next to the face; cool white is the safer light.

Very bright colors are too harsh. Fuchsia, electric blue, emerald and true red carry more saturation than a True Summer face, so the clothes arrive before the person. Choose the softer version: raspberry over fuchsia, periwinkle over cobalt, cool teal over emerald.

Black and stark white are a compromise. Both are cool, but together they create a contrast the face does not have. Blue navy and cool white make the same outfit with less strain. If black is needed, keep it below the shoulders.

Makeup for a True Summer

Lips: raspberry, rose and cool pink. A berry stain is the evening lip. Satin and sheer finishes suit the softness; a heavy matte can look severe. Avoid coral, brick and orange-reds, which clash with the pink in the skin and turn the teeth yellow.

Blush: cool rose, applied along the cheekbone. A True Summer flushes blue-pink, so a cool rose blush looks natural. Peach, coral and terracotta look orange against the skin, and warm brown bronzers make it muddy.

Eyes: soft plum, grey-blue and cool brown. A grey or plum liner defines the eye without the hardness of black. A cool taupe on the lid suits daytime, and a soft plum in the crease makes grey and blue eyes stand out.

Brows: an ash brown or cool taupe pencil close to the natural shade. Warm brown and black pencils fight the coolness and add contrast. Keep the brow soft rather than sharply drawn.

Hair color

Ash brown, ash blonde and a cool light to medium brown all sit well with True Summer skin. Cool-toned highlights add lift without warmth, and a soft ash balayage adds movement while keeping the medium contrast. A natural mousy brown is often better left alone.

Warm reds, copper and golden blonde turn the skin an unflattering pink and make the eyes look dull. Blue-black and very dark brown add a contrast the face cannot match. If you go darker, stop at a cool medium brown.

Metals and jewelry

Silver and platinum first, then white gold. Brushed or satin finishes suit the softness of the season better than high polish. Yellow gold looks brassy against cool skin, though a pale rose gold works in small doses.

Stones: amethyst, blue topaz, rose quartz, lavender jade, grey or white pearls and cool-toned sapphire. Diamonds work in a silver setting. Avoid amber, citrine and coral, which are warm, and onyx, which acts like black.

True Summer vs Light Summer vs Soft Summer

Light Summer is the paler sister. Both are cool, but a Light Summer has lightness as the leading trait: lighter hair, lighter eyes and less contrast. Hold raspberry rose and powder pink side by side. Raspberry looks balanced on a True Summer and heavy on a Light Summer; powder pink does the reverse.

Soft Summer is the muted sister. Softness leads rather than coolness, so a Soft Summer has mushroom hair, greyed eyes and coloring that blends into one range. Hold periwinkle and dusty blue together. Periwinkle looks clean on a True Summer and slightly bright on a Soft Summer.

True Winter shares the coolness but not the softness, with dark hair and clear eyes against lighter skin. If black and white look sharp on you rather than harsh, the True Winter page is worth a read.

How to confirm your season at home

Stand by a window in daylight with no makeup, hair pulled back, and a white towel over your shoulders. Hold the four test colors from the palette above against your face, one at a time: raspberry rose, periwinkle, cool teal and cool white. Then hold up the four from the True Winter page.

The right colors make the skin look even, the eyes clearer and the redness settle. The wrong colors bring up harshness, yellow or the shadows under the eyes. Take a photo of each pair if you cannot see it live. The camera exaggerates the difference.

The color analysis test does the same comparison with numbers. It reads your skin hue, depth and contrast after white balancing on the whites of your eyes, so room light matters less than it does in the mirror. Retake in daylight if the lighting warning appears.

Frequently asked questions

What are the True Summer colors?

Cool, soft, medium colors: raspberry rose, periwinkle, cool teal, sky grey-blue, soft plum, sage green and dusty pink, with cool white, slate and blue navy as neutrals. Nothing in the palette is warm, and nothing is harsh. Coolness is the thread that runs through every color.

Can a True Summer wear black?

Black is cool, which helps, but it is harder and darker than a True Summer face, so it sharpens the shadows and flattens the hair. Blue navy, slate and charcoal do the same job with more softness. If you wear black, put cool white, periwinkle or raspberry between it and your face.

What is the difference between True Summer and True Winter?

Contrast. Both are cool, but a True Summer has ash hair and soft eyes that sit close to the skin in depth, and a True Winter has dark hair and clear eyes against skin that is plainly lighter. Hold raspberry rose and cherry red up to your face: raspberry flatters the Summer, cherry the Winter.

Which hair colors suit a True Summer?

Ash brown, ash blonde and a cool light to medium brown. Cool-toned highlights add lift without warmth. Warm reds, copper and golden blonde turn the skin an unflattering pink, and blue-black adds a contrast the face does not have.