Lips
- Rose
- Mauve pink
- Soft berry
- Cool pink
Blue-based rose and berry; avoid orange-red and brown nudes.
Summer · cool, soft & misty
Summer Color Palette & Color Analysis
The Summer color palette is cool and softly blended: dusty rose, powder and denim blue, lavender, sage and a gray-tinted navy. Nothing is loud, and nothing is golden.
Summers have a rosy or neutral-cool undertone and coloring that looks gentle rather than stark. Their best colors look like they have been seen through a light morning mist — which is exactly why harsh black and bright orange feel wrong on them.
- Cool undertone
- Light to medium
- Soft, muted
- Silver & pearl
- Dusty Rose#BF8999
- Soft Blue#91ABC9
- Lavender#B4A0C9
- Sage#9CABAA
- Soft White#F1F1EF
SummerCool, soft & misty
Palette
Summer palette colors with HEX codes
The 36 colors of the Summer palette our analysis uses. Select a swatch to copy its HEX code.
Signature
Neutrals
Full palette
Signature
Why the Summer palette is softer
Take one cool pink and add a little gray at each step. A Winter wears the left end; a Summer looks best in the middle, where the color is still cool but no longer sharp.
- Clear
- Softened
- Summer zone
- Summer zone
- Grayed
- Too gray
Clear & saturatedMuted & grayed
This is the core of Summer color analysis: the colors are cool, but their chroma is moderate. Go too bright and the color wears the person; go too gray and the face loses life. Soft Summer sits furthest toward the gray end, True Summer in the middle and Light Summer at the lightest, airiest step.
Who is a Summer
Summer color analysis: the signs of a Summer
Summer skin often has pink, rosy or neutral-cool undertones and may flush easily. Hair tends to be ash blonde, mousy or cool light-to-medium brown, sometimes with natural gray-blonde highlights; it rarely shows strong golden or red tones. Eyes are often gray-blue, soft green, cool hazel or gray-brown.
The overall impression is low to medium contrast. Even Summers with darker hair tend to have a blended, gentle look rather than the sharp outline of a Winter.
When a Summer wears a strong orange or mustard, the skin can look sallow or ruddy. When they wear a dusty rose or soft blue, redness calms down and the eyes become the focus.
Outfits
Summer outfits that look effortless
Tonal dressing is the Summer superpower: two or three related cool shades worn together.
Capsule pieces
- Soft white shirt
- Soft navy blazer
- Cool taupe trousers
- Dusty rose knit
- Denim-blue dress
- Lavender blouse
- Pearl gray coat
- Mushroom leather bag
Outfit formulas
- Tonal blues
Powder blue shirt, denim trousers and a slate cardigan.
- Rose and gray
Dusty rose knit with pearl gray trousers — soft, polished, never stark.
- Evening berry
A soft berry dress with silver jewelry and a mauve wrap.
Wear with care
Colors to wear with care
Wear with care: Orange
Try instead: RaspberryWarm orange fights a rosy undertone. Raspberry gives the same energy in a cool key.
Wear with care: Mustard
Try instead: SeafoamGolden yellows can look sallow; seafoam or a soft lemon-free green is kinder.
Wear with care: Stark black
Try instead: Charcoal BlueBlack can overpower soft features. Charcoal blue or soft navy give structure without harshness.
Wear with care: Neon lime
Try instead: EucalyptusNeon brights are too saturated for Summer’s soft chroma.
Makeup & jewelry
Summer makeup, hair and jewelry
Cheeks & eyes
- Cool pink blush
- Taupe
- Plum
- Slate
Cool pink blush, taupe and soft plum shadows, slate or gray-brown liner.
Hair & metals
- Ash blonde
- Cool brown
- Silver
- Pearl
Ash or beige blonde and cool brown; silver, white gold and pearls. More in what hair color suits me.
Celebrities
Summer celebrities
- Kate MiddletonCool brown hair and gentle contrast; a common Soft Summer example.
- Taylor SwiftOften cited as Light or Soft Summer with her natural ash-blonde.
- Jennifer LawrenceFrequently grouped with Summer when her hair is ash blonde.
- Sarah Jessica ParkerBlended, muted coloring; often called Soft Summer.
- Gwyneth PaltrowFair, cool and light — a classic Light Summer example.
- Emily BluntSoft brown hair and cool skin, regularly listed as Summer.
Based on public photos and widely shared opinions; not official analyses.
12 seasons
The three Summer types
Frequently asked questions
Short answers to the questions people ask most about this topic.
What colors are in the Summer color palette?
Cool, soft shades: dusty rose, mauve, raspberry, lavender, powder and denim blue, sage, seafoam and soft teal, with neutrals like soft white, pearl gray, cool taupe and soft navy.
How do I know if I am a Summer?
Summers usually have cool or rosy undertones, light to medium coloring and a soft, blended look. Silver and dusty rose flatter, while orange, mustard and stark black look harsh.
Can Summers wear black?
Usually not near the face. Charcoal, soft navy, slate and cocoa-gray give the same polish without overpowering soft features.
What is the difference between Summer and Winter?
Both are cool. Winter is high contrast and saturated; Summer is lower contrast and muted. A Winter wears pure white and fuchsia, a Summer soft white and rose.
Is Summer the same as a "cool" color palette?
Summer is one of two cool seasons. "Cool Summer" is also another name for True Summer, the coolest of the three Summer types.
What is the best white for a Summer?
A soft white or pearl, slightly grayed. Bright optic white can look stark, and cream looks too yellow.
See which season your photo points to
Upload a clear, front-facing selfie in daylight. The free analysis estimates one of the four main seasons and shows four colors to start with.
Upload a selfieFree analysisNo account needed