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Distinguishing Bright Winter from Bright Spring, Part II

6/17/2013

Perhaps just one color from each season isn't enough to help you Brights sort yourselves out.

Perhaps it would be helpful to look at (people I believe are) real Bright Springs and Bright Winters, and notice what's different between the two groups?

Yes, people with any hair color and any eye color can be any season... but people within a certain season sometimes share a certain overall look.

I chose what I think are harmonious pictures of four Bright Springs and four Bright Winters. Let's compare.

Four women I believe are Bright Springs.

Kerry Washington

Rose McGowan

Selita Ebanks

Rachel Weisz

Look at these gals. Scroll down quickly and glance at the Bright Winters. Then scroll back up. See the difference in the skin?

These four women seem to have a golden quality to their skin. The depth of the skin tone varies; Rachel's is very fair with just a drop of yellow, while Selita's is a deep golden caramel. Yet there's a flattering (not sallow) yellow-gold-orange glow in each of these complexions.

Four women I believe are Bright Winters.

Sophie Ellis bextor

Zhang Ziyi

Lauren Miller

Alek Wek

What I notice in these four women, compared to the Bright Springs, is the absence of warmth. It's almost a silvery-grey cast. No yellow, no gold. Yet they look balanced, not pasty or ashy. Lauren is almost porcelain; Alek's skin is deep cocoa brown. In both, there's a hint of cool pink or peach that may be added by blush. But no golden glow.

So: When Bright Springs look yellow-gold, it may seem right, not jaundiced. When Bright Winters lack warmth, it may seem healthy, not cadaverous.

What I suppose we're getting down to is the fundamental temperature difference of the seasons. Yes, Bright Spring has a touch of Winter, but it's still primarily warm. Bright Winter has a touch of Spring but it's still primarily cool.

I realize in this post I may sound like I'm contradicting what I normally say about seasonal analysis. But, to paraphrase myself from that post, there are patterns and tendencies in seasonal coloring. If you're trying to figure out your correct season, you'll use whatever means are available to you. In the case of choosing between Bright Winter and Bright Spring, it may help you to rely on some general truths about Bright skin.

If you're having trouble diagnosing yourself, consider investing in color cards to drape yourself at home.

You may also like:

Distinguishing Bright Winter From Bright Spring, Part I

Drape Yourself at Home

12 Comments

Distinguishing Bright Winter From Bright Spring

6/7/2013

25 Comments

The two palettes are clearly different. Look at them side by side and there's no doubt. Bright Winter is darker, crisper, bluer; Bright Spring is livelier, cheerier, yellower.

But getting down to individual colors is tricky. There aren't many hues that are found only in one palette but not in the other. Both have pinks, yellows, greens, blues, purples... The differences are mainly in the temperature of the hues - cool or warm? - and it can be hard to convey those differences in a blog.

I will focus on just two colors, two that are inarguably distinct in hue - one from each palette.

First is Bright Spring's very saturated adobe orange. Think rust or pumpkin, but clear, not dull.

Found in Bright Spring, NOT in Bright Winter.

The Bright Spring palette has a few colors like this, and they're nothing like anything in Bright Winter's palette.

Here's Rose McGowan in such a color:

Bright Spring Rose McGowan. I love everything about her palette here.

If you are lovely in some version of this warm, deep, but clear orange, you're more likely Bright Spring than Bright Winter.

The colors that most easily distinguish Bright Winter from Bright Spring, in my opinion, are its periwinkles. Periwinkle is purple-blue. Bright Winter's are like this:

Found in Bright WInter, NOT in Bright Spring.

Now, Bright Spring has several colors you might call purple.

Bright Spring purple can look like this...

...or like this. (This will read as purple in some contexts.)

Some are crayon purple; others are quite magenta-ish, almost red.

But none of them are purple-blue.

Here's Courtney Cox in a similar color:

I've not formally opined that Courtney Cox is a Bright Winter, but others say she is. It's likely, don't you think?

If you suspect you're a Bright but aren't sure which one, compare these two colors. Make sure both versions are very saturated, not faded or grayed or dull.

For more help figuring out your season, see here. Good luck!

25 Comments

Truth is Beauty

Distinguishing Bright Winter from Bright Spring, Part II

Four women I believe are Bright Springs.

Four women I believe are Bright Winters.

Distinguishing Bright Winter From Bright Spring

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