The 12 seasonal colour types
Seasonal colour analysis sorts your natural colouring into one of twelve palettes. Once you know your season from the quiz above, this is the palette that tends to make skin look brighter and more even. Find your type and the shades that suit it.
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| Season | Undertone | Character | Colours that suit you |
|---|---|---|---|
| Light Spring | Warm-neutral | Light, delicate, low contrast | Peach, warm pastels, light coral, aqua, camel |
| True (Warm) Spring | Warm | Medium, clear, fresh | Coral, golden yellow, warm green, turquoise, ivory |
| Bright (Clear) Spring | Warm-neutral | Bright, clear, high contrast | Bright coral, warm bright blue, hot turquoise, clear red |
| Light Summer | Cool-neutral | Light, soft, low contrast | Powder blue, lavender, rose pink, soft grey |
| True (Cool) Summer | Cool | Medium, soft, muted | Soft blue, rose, mauve, slate, soft burgundy |
| Soft Summer | Cool-neutral | Muted, low contrast | Dusty pastels, sage, soft teal, mauve, cocoa |
| Soft Autumn | Warm-neutral | Muted, low contrast | Soft earthy tones, sage, salmon, camel, soft gold |
| True (Warm) Autumn | Warm | Medium-deep, rich, muted | Pumpkin, mustard, terracotta, olive, warm brown |
| Deep (Dark) Autumn | Warm-neutral | Deep, rich | Rust, forest green, deep teal, chocolate, tomato red |
| Deep (Dark) Winter | Cool-neutral | Deep, clear, high contrast | Burgundy, pine, navy, true red, black |
| True (Cool) Winter | Cool | Medium-deep, clear | Royal blue, emerald, fuchsia, icy pink, pure white |
| Bright (Clear) Winter | Cool-neutral | Bright, clear, high contrast | Icy brights, true red, hot pink, cobalt, black and white |
How seasonal colour analysis works
The system reads three qualities of your natural colouring. Undertone is whether your skin, hair and eyes lean warm (golden, peachy) or cool (pink, blue-based). Value is how light or deep your overall colouring is. Chroma is whether it is soft and muted or bright and clear. Those three answers place you in one of the four seasons and then one of its three types, which is why the quiz asks about your skin, hair, eyes and contrast.
Frequently asked questions
What are the 12 colour seasons?
The 12-season system splits the four seasons (Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter) into three types each, based on whether your colouring is mainly warm or cool, light or deep, and soft or bright. That gives types like Light Spring, Soft Summer, Deep Autumn and Bright Winter.
How do I find my colour season?
Look at three things: your undertone (warm and golden versus cool and pink), the depth of your natural colouring (light versus deep), and how bright or muted it is. The quiz above walks you through it in four quick questions.
What is the difference between 12-season and 16-season colour analysis?
Both build on the same four seasons. The 16-season system adds extra in-between types for more precise draping, but the 12 types above cover the main palettes most people fall into.
Can my colour season change over time?
Your underlying undertone stays the same, but greying hair or a tan can shift how deep or soft your best palette looks, so it is worth re-checking every few years.