Discover your color palette and your style type.

Some Thoughts on the Style Types of Male Celebs

3/26/2018

When it comes to Style IDs, the same rules that apply to women -- what works and what doesn't -- mostly apply to men as well.

Based on what clothes flatter them, I've made some inferences about the Style IDs of a few male celebs who have caught my eye.

George Clooney

He looks great in very Classic clothes, right? But notice how he looks even better when you relax, or Natural-ize, the styling just a bit. Remove the tie, unbutton the top button, roll up the sleeves... he's more Natural, and more sexy. So, I say Classic with some Natural for him.

When he goes too far into Natural, though, it all falls apart:

Ouch. Yeah., no.

Lest you say, "But can anyone actually wear head-to-toe denim?", check out Jeff Bridges. Very much a Natural. Looks great in all denim, looks great in shaggy hair.

Jeff Bridges might be pure Natural. It doesn't get more masculine and rough-edged than this, does it?

A lot of gorgeous men are strongly feminine in their style types. (Just as a lot of gorgeous women -- including most runway models-- are strongly masculine in their style types.) Russell Brand looks great with long, luscious curls, lots of detail and circles near his face, and a drapy scarf. He has Romantic and possibly Ethereal, I think.

Draping or curls are feminine details, and men who can pull off one or both near the face likely have lot of Ethereal, Romantic, and/or Ingenue.

The drapy neckline is a good test for whether a man has a lot of feminine style essence. In the same way that many men but only some women can beautifully wear very short, slicked-back (i.e., Dramatic) hair, many women but only some men can wear draping near the face.

So-pretty Kit Harington, looking amazing with both draping and curls. I think he has a lot of Romantic.

Robert Pattinson

Very neat, slick hair looks unattractive, and so does the turtleneck; that suggests Classic and Dramatic are both unlikely.

I would have expected him to have quite a bit of Dramatic, because he's such a good vampire, and because he's quite chiseled. But I believe now that those sculpted features are probably Ethereal rather than Dramatic, and his ability to convincingly embody a vampire is probably enhanced by good makeup. I think he has some Natural as well; an open neckline is so much better for him than a closed one.

Idris Elba

Here's a gorgeous, strongly Classic man. He's much too masculine and mature in his features to pull off a scarf near his face or a boyish flat cap. At the same time, he's not rough-hewn enough to look awesome in denim. He's dreamy in Classic's tailored suit and tie, though.

And now it's time for one of my main celeb crushes:

Stanley Tucci!

See how good he is with a lot of busy-ness? Three-piece suit, stripes, separates -- this profusion of lines is great on him. Lots of detail is most characteristic of the feminine essences, but in this case it's Gamine. (Gamine is mostly a masculine essence, but because it's youthfully masculine, it has a touch of androgyny, and that androgyny shows up in Gamine's need for lots of detail.)

To really rule out the feminine essences, check Stanley with the drapy neckine a scarf creates, or with curls:

No, Stanley, no.

Lots of detail; small, sharp, shapes; crisp lines... that's Gamine.

I think he has Natural, too, because he's hot AF in open necklines and in Henleys. I suspect Classic as well, because he looks his best, IMO, with a lot of polish and tailoring -- even more than Gamine would normally provide.

Natural-Classic-Gamine for my dear Stanley Tucci.

Benedict Cumberbatch

Neat hair is better than messy (or too much) hair, right? The less detail he has, and the crisper his lines, the more striking he looks. So I ask, is that Classic or Dramatic?

I suspect it's Dramatic; Dramatics are good with "neck emphasis" (which usually means a high collar), and I think he's pulling that off in the center picture, above. I believe he has some Ethereal as well, because he makes a rather spacey and gentle impression. He doesn't have enough Ethereal, though, to make wisps better for him than straight, sharp lines.

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Bright Winter Makeup Word Cloud

3/19/2018

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I've been making word clouds from the color names on my seasonal makeup lists, to see what color words occur most frequently in the makeup for each season.

This week, I've done Bright Winter.

The Bright Winter Makeup List gives the names of several hundred products that have been matched to color swatches from the Bright Winter palette.

If you're a Bright Winter, your perfect makeup colors come from the colors in the Bright Winter palette.

Let's see those makeup color names!

Wow -- a lot of pink! And red, and cherry, and fuchsia. Pink is a light, cool red; cherry is a dark, cool red; fuchsia is a red so cool it's almost purple. Cool red tones dominate here.

Compare this word cloud to Dark Winter's:

Bright Winter makeup colors

Dark Winter makeup colors

In Dark Winter's cloud, on the right, the combination of plum + purple + wine is, to me, quintessentially Dark Winter, and really distinguishes DW's makeup color's from Bright Winter's.

Overall, Bright Winter colors feel lighter and brighter, as they should: both Winter seasons are rather dark, vivid, and cool, but Dark Winter is particularly dark, and BRight Winter is particularly vivid.

Let's compare Bright Winter makeup to Bright Spring:

Bright Winter makeup colors

Bright Spring makeup colors

Both seasons prominently feature pink. But coral is essential for Bright Spring makeup, on the right, while it plays a relatively minor role for Bright Winter. That makes sense: coral is a warm, light red or orange. Bright Winter does have some warmer colors, and coral-y tones are among them, but they don't predominate.

Notice also how relatively important black is for Bright Winter as opposed to Bright Spring. The Bright Spring palette has a black, but black usually won't feature prominently on a beautifully made-up Bright Spring face -- it's just not a defining color of that warm, bright, joyful palette.

Bright Winter, on the other hand, can be gorgeous with black mascara, black liner, and even (for certain women) blackish brows and eyeshadow. The overall palette is deeper and more dramatic.

If you suspect you're a Bright Winter, the makeup list is a great resource. If you're not sure of your personal color season, try affordable at-home draping.

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Style IDs for Best-Selling Perfumes

3/12/2018

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I wasn't a regular perfume wearer until I got really excited about fragrances for different style types and spent several months researching them.

Now, I'm crazy about the fragrances for my Ethereal Natural style identity.

My current obsession is Hinlay by Lorelyane. Even the bottle is Ethereal Natural. Just look at this gorgeous thing! Blunt-edged, geometric minimalism on the bottom; gently curving, intricate, abstract detail on top.

The scent is perfect for me, too: it's delicate and airy, but also earthy. Lotus, water , and floral notes emphasize my Ethereal quality, while musk and woody notes emphasize my Natural element. I feel so happy every time I spray this on myself.

Anyway, if you're already in love with fragrance, you may be wondering whether your favorite fragrance fits your style identity. Here, I'll analyze a couple of the best-selling fragrances.

Happy by Clinique for Women

This aptly-named perfume is very Gamine Ingenue. Apple, citrus, and mimosa make it bright, sweet, innocent, and cheerful.

Ed Hardy Women's EDT

This is a very feminine, "Disney Princess" fragrance -- Romantic and Ingenue. Mango, vanilla and tonka bean make it sexy and sweet.

Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker

This is great fragrance for a Dramatic-Natural-Classic. Patchouli and orchid make it rather traditional, and spicy and woody qualities. bring in D and N.

Be Delicious by Donna Karan

Like Ed Hardy, this is a very feminine fragrance. It adds a light, airy Ethereal quality with cucumber and grapefruit, so it's great for a Romantic-Ethereal-Ingenue.

Heat by Beyonce

This is a good fragrance for a Romantic-Natural-Ingenue: peach, magnolia, and neroli give it mouthwatering sex appeal, while musk, amber and sequoia bring in the Natural quality, and a strong use of almond gives it a bitter Dramatic edge.

Check out your personal Fragrance Guide!

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What Season is Jennifer Lawrence?

3/5/2018

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I think I know, but I'm not positive. Let me lay out my logic for you.

First off, when analyzing celebs' colors, I recommend using red carpet pics. They're taken under very bright lights and generally not Photoshopped or otherwise color-altered. So I'll look at a lot of those.

(Magazine editorial shoots are particularly unhelpful for color analysis; those are generally highly edited to create an artistic effect.)

The makeup above looks Soft Summery. Its not bad, though that eyeliner is darker than she is. (That's true of almost every pic of almost every celeb, unfortunately.)

This makeup looks a bit pinker (cooler) than she is, to my eye. And, again, the eyeliner and mascara are darker than she is. I'm going to rule out the very coolest seasons, True Summer and True Winter.

This block of black color is unconnected to her relatively makeup-free face here. I'm ruling out seasons that can wear black, so we additionally lose Dark Autumn, Dark Winter, Bright Winter, and Bright Spring.

I do find this hair color flattering for her, though it's obviously not her natural color. (Look at the roots.) Few people can wear lightened hair convincingly, but True Springs, Light Springs and Light Summers tend to be able to pull it off pretty well. I'm going to put a star next to those seasons.

Do I love her in a cool, light pink lippie, though? I don't know. I would expect this to be great on a Light Summer, such as Gwyneth Paltrow:

But I don't see it harmonizing with Lawrence's skin. It looks a little too cool. That makes me think Light Summer is unlikely.

I'd expect a True Spring to look pretty darn good in this vivid red. Do I love this for her? Not sure. Any sense of harmony I'm getting may simply be because the red dress matches the red lips, not because either of them matches her skin.

That saturated red, which could very well be a True Spring red, is so much more powerful than JLaw's skin is.

If that's hard for you to see, try squinting, or unfocusing your eyes:

The red is dominating her. Not good.

This appears to be complete Soft Summer look, including the hair, and I just don't love this for her skin. This palette looks a little muddy on her, like there's a film over her. It looks like it's concealing her authentic self instead of revealing it.

Wow. I like this lippie for her, and this blush. And the eye's not bad, either. (Though maybe too warm? Again, there's a faint impression of a film having been laid over her, though a warm one this time... )

It can be tough to tell a lippie's true color when it's on someone's skin, because the underlying skin color affects the appearance of the lippie's color. But my best guess about this lippie is that it's Soft Autumn or True Autumn. It looks warm, somewhat muted, a little orange-y but not a lot.

This makeup looks warm and muted; I think it's Soft Autumn or True Autumn (second choice.) I like it for her.

Try to ignore the super-light hair here, and just notice the effect of the pumpkin-y orange. Is it making her glow? Is it resonating with her natural skin tone? Especially look at the effect of the orange on her chest, where she's probably wearing less makeup than on her face.

I don't see the color making her skin look more alive. I'm willing to rule out True Autumn.

I think I've got it narrowed down to Soft Autumn and Light Spring. (Which are both warm and gentle, though in different ways; Light Spring is lighter and more vivid, while Soft Autumn is darker and more hushed. Easter colors vs. desert colors.)

I was feeling pretty sure about Soft Autumn, but look at this light warmish pink lippie and blush. (Ignore the inharmonious black liner.)

Could a Soft Autumn look authentic in this? I don't think so. Yet, I don't hate it here. And I don't hate the big block of light yellow next to her face (i.e., the dyed blonde hair.)

Is it possible Jennifer Lawrence is a Light Spring? Or is Soft Autumn correct? Or another season?

What do you think?

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Truth is Beauty

Some Thoughts on the Style Types of Male Celebs

Bright Winter Makeup Word Cloud

Style IDs for Best-Selling Perfumes

What Season is Jennifer Lawrence?

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