Greens by Season: Color Analysis Study
Hey there, stylish friends!
Let’s dive into one of the most under-rated, under-utilized colors: green. Everyone can rock a variety of greens, but here’s the thing: there’s no one-size-fits-all green. No, not even Olive Green.
The perfect shade of green for you depends on your seasonal color analysis. If you don’t know your colors yet, no worries! You can get professionally analyzed with us from anywhere with the ColorKit™!
So, let’s get to it. Here’s a quick reminder of the “code words” for each season:
Spring: Light, warm, and bright
Summer: Light, cool, and soft
Autumn: Deep, warm, and soft
Winter: Deep, cool, and bright
Each season has three sub-seasons, and finding your perfect green will depend on where you fall within these categories.
Ready to find the perfect green for your sub-season? Check out the graphics below!
Spring: Light, Warm, and Bright
Light Spring: Peppy, fresh greens like Pastel Yellow Green and Light Emerald Turquoise will enhance your delicate, neutral-warm features. Don’t worry too much about finding the “warmest” green possible. You have the gift of neutrality, making mint-leaning greens and turquoises especially stunning on you.
Warm Spring: You can go much warmer compared to Light Spring, as your stronger coloring can maintain balance. Light Yellow Green or Bright True Green are especially stunning on you. While Emerald Turquoise may appear to be a “cool” color, it has a touch of complexity and all the saturation you need to shine your brightest. You’ll be surprised how fabulous it looks on you!
Bright Spring: You are on the neutral side of warm, and your comparatively higher contrast means that you can go quite light as well as quite saturated with your greens. This means that some “cool-leaning” greens like Emerald Turquoise are perfect for you, as long as they are clear and bright (compare this color to Classic Teal from Summer).
I thought Spring was a warm season. Why are there so many cool-toned greens shown here?
The three code words for Spring colors are Light, Warm, and Bright - but any single color must satisfy only two of those words to qualify as a Spring color. For example, Emerald Turquoise isn’t particularly warm at all, but it’s light enough (little to no influence of black) and bright enough (little to no gray content) to suit a Spring just as well as Pastel Yellow Green (which is light, warm, AND bright). Beware of color perfectionism - there are thousands of beautiful colors that suit your season that you may never see on sample palettes like these! Learn to use the code words with authority, and you’ll never fret over color names, matching your swatches, or following the “rules” ever again!
Check out Rosalie, who is a Warm Spring. Notice how smooth her skin goes in Emerald Turquoise, and how her eyes sparkle in Dark Yellow Green (which is a Warm Autumn color, her sister season):
Summer: Light, Cool, and Soft
Light Summer: Go for all the clean, light shades of teal. These slightly bright shades will bring out the best in your fresh, cool-neutral complexion. You can go slightly more “peppy” than your Cool or Soft Summer counterparts. You share Light Emerald Turquoise and Light Teal with the Spring season.
Cool Summer: Your perfect greens are also shades of teal, from Icy Mint all the way to Deep Teal. These colors will harmonize with your cool undertones. Think of the colors of a stormy sea: complex and blending into one another from light to dark.
Soft Summer: Choose muted, smoky teals, which will highlight your hazy, neutral-cool coloring. Fun fact: your selection of “cool greens” are the same shades Autumns use as “warm blues”! These are what we like to call “chameleon colors” — same color, different role in two seasons. Isn’t that fascinating?
Why does Summer have more greens than Spring?
Because Summer is a soft season, more color variations are available in the visible spectrum, from near-white, to grayish, to near-tropical, blue-ish, and nearly every version of teal from dusty to rather deep. Spring greens must be bright (no gray influences) and/or warm (yellow influences) - which allows for fewer variations and less nuance.
Check out Dominique, who is a Cool Summer. Notice how Deep Teal (second from the left) appears to have turned a subtle spotlight onto her beautiful face!
Autumn: Deep, Warm, and Soft
Soft Autumn: The most delicate greens of Autumn are your happy place. Your WOWs are going to be the “ground greens”: Moss, Jade, Turquoise, and Army Green. Warm and Deep Autumns don’t have the gentle complexity needed to wear the most delicate greens from head to toe - but you do!
Warm Autumn: All of the variations of earthy green will highlight your warm, rich complexion beautifully. You do not need to limit yourself: go bold with Zesty Lime, subtle with Army Green, or vibrant with Turquoise. Pair these with your browns and yellows for an unforgettable look the other seasons can’t replicate!
Deep Autumn: Your greens come out in the deep woods when the sun starts to set. Your higher contrast coloring comes to life with a swath of dark green and a pop of gold jewelry. While Pine Green tends to lean cool, it’s teal-adjacent enough work for you. Pair it with Olive for a fashion forward combo that’s uniquely suited to you!
Why do Autumns get the most greens?
Fun fact: there are more visible hues of green than any other color in the light spectrum! No matter what color you add to green, it’s still GREEN (even if you add a bit of red to green, it turns a bit brownish, and is still green!). Because Autumn is a soft season, they can take a wide variety of blended warm greens like the ones we see in nature, as well as the off-greens from teal all the way to bronze.
Check out Jacquie, who is a Deep Autumn. Her skin instantly brightens and smooths in Olive Green!
Winter: Deep, Cool, and Bright
Bright Winter: Your best greens are jewel-y and neutral-cool, like Emerald Green and True Green. These shades will make your vibrant features pop. It honestly doesn’t get more stunning than a Bright Winter in her greens. Prepare yourself for compliments!
Cool Winter: A broad range of greens like Icy Mint, Emerald Green, and Pine Green hit all three “zones” of your Winter colors (icy pastels, “jewel tones”, and inky darks). Cool Winters have the most “range” of the Winters, able to carry off any of the three “zones” in head-to-toe pieces, as well as in combinations. Build your wardrobe to showcase this range, and you’ll never get bored!
Deep Winter: Deep, dramatic greens such as True Green and Pine Green will perfectly complement your neutral-cool, saturated coloring. I promise - your bold greens are not too much on you, they are the exact right amount of color. Stand in your natural intensity and take up space as the bold beauty you are. Offset your dark greens with silver jewelry and you won’t be able to stay away from the mirror!
What’s the difference between an “icy” pastel, and a regular pastel?
Icy Pastels have a high white content, and regular pastels have a high gray content. A Winter should avoid regular pastels, as they are draining and will make you appear tired. Icy pastels aren’t as widely available, but they are worth the hunt. When you see one in the wild, you’ll know it’s something special! Pro tip: lightly dye a favorite white piece with the tiniest touch of pink, blue, or purple. It should still look nearly white when you’re done. Continue wearing it as though it were still white! This adds variety to your wardrobe without changing up your routine.
Check out Sarah, who is a Cool Winter. Notice how her eye contact becomes magnetic in Emerald Green (far right)!
Remember, these are just guidelines to inspire you to search out your best greens! There are so many colors in the world, and these suggestions are to help you narrow down the options.
Just keep your season’s keywords in mind as you search for your signature green!
If you haven’t yet confirmed your season or sub-season, the ColorKit™ is here to help (at a sweet discount just for you, no less!). This innovative hybrid color analysis service allows you to get your colors professionally analyzed from the comfort of your own home, making it easier than ever to discover the shades that make you shine.
