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      • home color analysis
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    • SPRING
      • Bright Spring
        • Your Bright Spring look
        • Bright Spring Celebrities
      • True Spring
        • Your True Spring look
        • True Spring Celebrities
      • Light Spring
        • Your Light Spring look
        • Light Spring Celebrities
    • SUMMER
      • Light Summer
        • Your Light Summer look
        • Light Summer Celebrities
      • True Summer
        • Your True Summer look
        • True Summer Celebrities
      • Soft Summer
        • Your Soft Summer look
        • Soft Summer Celebrities
    • AUTUMN
      • Soft Autumn
        • Your Soft Autumn look
        • Soft Autumn Celebrities
      • True Autumn
        • Your True Autumn look
        • True Autumn Celebrities
      • Dark Autumn
        • Your Dark Autumn look
        • Dark Autumn Celebrities
    • WINTER
      • Dark Winter
        • Your Dark Winter look
        • Dark Winter Celebrities
      • True Winter
        • Your True Winter look
        • True Winter Celebrities
      • Bright Winter
        • Your Bright Winter look
        • Bright Winter Celebrities
    • color analysis faq
      • frequently asked questions
      • Please explain WARM and COOL.
      • Please explain BRIGHT and SOFT.
      • Please explain CONTRAST.
      • Is color analysis just for white people?
    • for men
  • Style Analysis
    • Book your virtual style analysis
    • ♂ DRAMATIC style type
    • ♂ NATURAL style type
    • ♂ GAMINE style type
    • ⚥ CLASSIC style type
    • ♀ INGENUE style type
    • ♀ ROMANTIC style type
    • ♀ ETHEREAL style type
    • Blends of 2 types
      • ⚥ ♂ Classic Gamine -- The Prep Schooler
      • ⚥ ♀ Classic Ingenue -- The Class President
      • ⚥ ♂ Dramatic Classic -- The Art Critic
      • ♂ ♂ Dramatic Gamine -- The Punk Rocker
      • ♀ ♂ Dramatic Ingenue -- The Childlike Czarina
      • ♂ ♂ Dramatic Natural -- The Amazon Queen
      • ⚥ ♀ Ethereal Classic -- The Delicate Sophisticate
      • ♀ ♂ Ethereal Dramatic -- The Sorceress
      • ♀ ♂ Ethereal Gamine -- The Sprite
      • ♀ ♀ Ethereal Ingenue -- The Fairy
      • ♀ ♂ Ethereal Natural -- The Earth Goddess
      • ♀ ♂ Gamine Ingenue -- The Girlish Mod
      • ⚥ ♂ Natural Classic -- The Prep
      • ♂ ♂ Natural Gamine -- The Tomboy
      • ♀ ♂ Natural Ingenue -- The Outdoorsy Sweetheart
      • ⚥ ♀ Romantic Classic -- The Sexy Sophisticate
      • ♀ ♂ Romantic Dramatic -- The Vamp
      • ♀ ♀ Romantic Ethereal -- Aphrodite
      • ♀ ♂ Romantic Gamine -- The Firecracker
      • ♀ ♀ Romantic Ingenue -- The Demure Seductress
      • ♀ ♂ Romantic Natural -- The Babe Next Door
    • Blends of 3 Types
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Classic-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♂ ♂ Dramatic-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Dramatic-Classic-Ingenue
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Dramatic-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♂ ♂ Dramatic-Natural-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♂ Dramatic-Natural-Gamine
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Dramatic-Natural-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♀ Ethereal-Classic-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Dramatic-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Ethereal-Dramatic-Gamine
      • ♀ ♂ ♂ Ethereal-Dramatic-Natural
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Dramatic-Ingenue
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Natural-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Ethereal-Natural-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Natural-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♂ ♂ Natural-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Natural-Classic-Ingenue
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Natural-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♀ Romantic-Classic-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Dramatic-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Romantic-Dramatic-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Dramatic-Ingenue
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Romantic-Dramatic-Natural
      • ⚥ ♀ ♀ Romantic-Ethereal-Classic
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Ethereal-Dramatic
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Ethereal-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♀ Romantic-Ethereal-Ingenue
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Ethereal-Natural
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Natural-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Romantic-Natural-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Natural-Ingenue
  • Shop
  • Book a Virtual Style Analysis!
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  • home
  • Blog
  • Color Analysis
    • Virtual Color Analysis
    • your season's makeup list
    • What Season Are You?
      • home color analysis
      • Color Analysis Quiz
    • SPRING
      • Bright Spring
        • Your Bright Spring look
        • Bright Spring Celebrities
      • True Spring
        • Your True Spring look
        • True Spring Celebrities
      • Light Spring
        • Your Light Spring look
        • Light Spring Celebrities
    • SUMMER
      • Light Summer
        • Your Light Summer look
        • Light Summer Celebrities
      • True Summer
        • Your True Summer look
        • True Summer Celebrities
      • Soft Summer
        • Your Soft Summer look
        • Soft Summer Celebrities
    • AUTUMN
      • Soft Autumn
        • Your Soft Autumn look
        • Soft Autumn Celebrities
      • True Autumn
        • Your True Autumn look
        • True Autumn Celebrities
      • Dark Autumn
        • Your Dark Autumn look
        • Dark Autumn Celebrities
    • WINTER
      • Dark Winter
        • Your Dark Winter look
        • Dark Winter Celebrities
      • True Winter
        • Your True Winter look
        • True Winter Celebrities
      • Bright Winter
        • Your Bright Winter look
        • Bright Winter Celebrities
    • color analysis faq
      • frequently asked questions
      • Please explain WARM and COOL.
      • Please explain BRIGHT and SOFT.
      • Please explain CONTRAST.
      • Is color analysis just for white people?
    • for men
  • Style Analysis
    • Book your virtual style analysis
    • ♂ DRAMATIC style type
    • ♂ NATURAL style type
    • ♂ GAMINE style type
    • ⚥ CLASSIC style type
    • ♀ INGENUE style type
    • ♀ ROMANTIC style type
    • ♀ ETHEREAL style type
    • Blends of 2 types
      • ⚥ ♂ Classic Gamine -- The Prep Schooler
      • ⚥ ♀ Classic Ingenue -- The Class President
      • ⚥ ♂ Dramatic Classic -- The Art Critic
      • ♂ ♂ Dramatic Gamine -- The Punk Rocker
      • ♀ ♂ Dramatic Ingenue -- The Childlike Czarina
      • ♂ ♂ Dramatic Natural -- The Amazon Queen
      • ⚥ ♀ Ethereal Classic -- The Delicate Sophisticate
      • ♀ ♂ Ethereal Dramatic -- The Sorceress
      • ♀ ♂ Ethereal Gamine -- The Sprite
      • ♀ ♀ Ethereal Ingenue -- The Fairy
      • ♀ ♂ Ethereal Natural -- The Earth Goddess
      • ♀ ♂ Gamine Ingenue -- The Girlish Mod
      • ⚥ ♂ Natural Classic -- The Prep
      • ♂ ♂ Natural Gamine -- The Tomboy
      • ♀ ♂ Natural Ingenue -- The Outdoorsy Sweetheart
      • ⚥ ♀ Romantic Classic -- The Sexy Sophisticate
      • ♀ ♂ Romantic Dramatic -- The Vamp
      • ♀ ♀ Romantic Ethereal -- Aphrodite
      • ♀ ♂ Romantic Gamine -- The Firecracker
      • ♀ ♀ Romantic Ingenue -- The Demure Seductress
      • ♀ ♂ Romantic Natural -- The Babe Next Door
    • Blends of 3 Types
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Classic-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♂ ♂ Dramatic-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Dramatic-Classic-Ingenue
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Dramatic-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♂ ♂ Dramatic-Natural-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♂ Dramatic-Natural-Gamine
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Dramatic-Natural-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♀ Ethereal-Classic-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Dramatic-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Ethereal-Dramatic-Gamine
      • ♀ ♂ ♂ Ethereal-Dramatic-Natural
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Dramatic-Ingenue
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Natural-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Ethereal-Natural-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Natural-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♂ ♂ Natural-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Natural-Classic-Ingenue
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Natural-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♀ Romantic-Classic-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Dramatic-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Romantic-Dramatic-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Dramatic-Ingenue
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Romantic-Dramatic-Natural
      • ⚥ ♀ ♀ Romantic-Ethereal-Classic
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Ethereal-Dramatic
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Ethereal-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♀ Romantic-Ethereal-Ingenue
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Ethereal-Natural
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Natural-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Romantic-Natural-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Natural-Ingenue
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Please Explain: BRIGHT and SOFT

Bright and soft refer to how much a color is itself, and not grey.  

A color that seems to have no grey in it is bright.  The technical term for this is saturated.

Consider this red:
Picture
It's a neutral red - meaning it's not particularly bluish and not particularly yellowish.

And it's neither particularly light or particularly dark.

But it is exceptional in one way: it's very, very bright. Which is to say it's very, very red. It doesn't look a bit faded or greyed. Think of it as pure pigment, or red laser light.

Now, here's the red, but moved a few steps away from purity and toward grey:
Picture
It's not lighter or darker - if it appears so to you, it's an illusion.

But it is somewhat less... itself.

Color analysis people will say it's softened, or muted, or faded, or muddied, or less clear, or duller. The proper way to say it is it's less saturated.  But these are all ways of saying the same thing: the color is closer to to grey.

(Don't worry yourself too much about what moves a color closer to grey. Technically, you do it by mixing in the color's opposite, which in this case would be pure green. But focusing on that fact can just confuse you. For me, it's easier to imagine that one does it by adding grey to the color. And so we say that a color has been greyed.)

If we move this same red very, very close to grey, we get this:

Picture
Again, it's not more bluish or more yellowish. And it hasn't been lightened or darkened. But it's barely recognizable as red now, because it's been softened - or we could say greyed - so very much. At this point, it looks more like a grey with some red in it.

Here is the same red in a range of saturation, with completely saturated - completely bright -  on the far right,  and completely desaturated - completely soft - on the far left.
Picture
So how do you apply this understanding to your season?

Well, all of your season's colors are at approximately the same level of saturation. Some of your colors are lighter and some are darker, but they're all equally faded (or not faded).

So when you understand how bright or soft your season's colors are, it helps you decide whether a new color is right for you.

Summer colors and Autumn colors are generally soft rather than bright. And as the names might imply, the colors of Soft Summer and Soft Autumn are the very softest of all 12 seasonal palettes.  If you are a Soft Autumn or a Soft Summer, faded colors bring you to life - and your worst colors are those that are too bright.

Here are some Soft celebrities looking vibrant and healthy in beautifully faded colors:
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture

Spring colors and Winter colors, on the other hand, are bright instead of soft. And as you'd expect, Bright Spring and Bright Winter have the very brightest colors of all. If you are a Bright Spring or a Bright Winter, your least flattering colors are faded and dull. Even the neutrals in your palette are clear and sharp.

Here are some Bright celebs looking balanced and well in exciting, saturated colors:
Picture
Alek Wek
Picture
Rose McGowan
Picture
Picture
Megan Fox

If you know you're a Soft, always ask of a color: "Is this soft enough?" Everything you put on should be a greyed version of itself. Faded denims and brushed metals are your friends.

If you know you're a Bright, always ask of a color: "Is this bright enough?"  Does it vibrate your eye? Think Crayola. Reflective or shimmery fabrics  and glossy finishes are helpful for you.

If you don't know your season yet, you might narrow in on it by noticing whether you look healthy in brighter colors or softer colors. If bright fuchsia or neon green are good for you, you may be a Winter or a Spring. If gentle beige or dusty lavender are kind to your skin, you may be an Autumn or a Summer.

P.S. Understanding brightness and softness is also important for picking prints. When two colors are very small and very close to each other, they blend together in the viewer's eye. So a plaid woven from bright red and bright blue will still read as rather soft to someone looking at it from a foot or two away. For this reason, Springs and Winters generally do well to avoid plaids  and other patterns of blended colors, while Autumns and Summers usually look fab in them.
"My closet has totally transformed into something I like, but don't think about much. How amazing is that? I just walk in, grab something for the occasion and the weather, and go. Because it's all the same color season, it all blends. Because it's all the right style (my style, so who cares if it's 'in'? It looks good on me) I can rest assured it looks about right. It's really amazing.

"I waste a lot less time and money now with shopping. I can walk into a store and rule out 90% of the inventory. I now try things I never would have dared and happily pass over things I used to think I had to have. Shopping is just a hunt now, not a source of guilt. I feel like I'm a lot less wasteful and more mindful this way."
  • home
  • Blog
  • Color Analysis
    • Virtual Color Analysis
    • your season's makeup list
    • What Season Are You?
      • home color analysis
      • Color Analysis Quiz
    • SPRING
      • Bright Spring
        • Your Bright Spring look
        • Bright Spring Celebrities
      • True Spring
        • Your True Spring look
        • True Spring Celebrities
      • Light Spring
        • Your Light Spring look
        • Light Spring Celebrities
    • SUMMER
      • Light Summer
        • Your Light Summer look
        • Light Summer Celebrities
      • True Summer
        • Your True Summer look
        • True Summer Celebrities
      • Soft Summer
        • Your Soft Summer look
        • Soft Summer Celebrities
    • AUTUMN
      • Soft Autumn
        • Your Soft Autumn look
        • Soft Autumn Celebrities
      • True Autumn
        • Your True Autumn look
        • True Autumn Celebrities
      • Dark Autumn
        • Your Dark Autumn look
        • Dark Autumn Celebrities
    • WINTER
      • Dark Winter
        • Your Dark Winter look
        • Dark Winter Celebrities
      • True Winter
        • Your True Winter look
        • True Winter Celebrities
      • Bright Winter
        • Your Bright Winter look
        • Bright Winter Celebrities
    • color analysis faq
      • frequently asked questions
      • Please explain WARM and COOL.
      • Please explain BRIGHT and SOFT.
      • Please explain CONTRAST.
      • Is color analysis just for white people?
    • for men
  • Style Analysis
    • Book your virtual style analysis
    • ♂ DRAMATIC style type
    • ♂ NATURAL style type
    • ♂ GAMINE style type
    • ⚥ CLASSIC style type
    • ♀ INGENUE style type
    • ♀ ROMANTIC style type
    • ♀ ETHEREAL style type
    • Blends of 2 types
      • ⚥ ♂ Classic Gamine -- The Prep Schooler
      • ⚥ ♀ Classic Ingenue -- The Class President
      • ⚥ ♂ Dramatic Classic -- The Art Critic
      • ♂ ♂ Dramatic Gamine -- The Punk Rocker
      • ♀ ♂ Dramatic Ingenue -- The Childlike Czarina
      • ♂ ♂ Dramatic Natural -- The Amazon Queen
      • ⚥ ♀ Ethereal Classic -- The Delicate Sophisticate
      • ♀ ♂ Ethereal Dramatic -- The Sorceress
      • ♀ ♂ Ethereal Gamine -- The Sprite
      • ♀ ♀ Ethereal Ingenue -- The Fairy
      • ♀ ♂ Ethereal Natural -- The Earth Goddess
      • ♀ ♂ Gamine Ingenue -- The Girlish Mod
      • ⚥ ♂ Natural Classic -- The Prep
      • ♂ ♂ Natural Gamine -- The Tomboy
      • ♀ ♂ Natural Ingenue -- The Outdoorsy Sweetheart
      • ⚥ ♀ Romantic Classic -- The Sexy Sophisticate
      • ♀ ♂ Romantic Dramatic -- The Vamp
      • ♀ ♀ Romantic Ethereal -- Aphrodite
      • ♀ ♂ Romantic Gamine -- The Firecracker
      • ♀ ♀ Romantic Ingenue -- The Demure Seductress
      • ♀ ♂ Romantic Natural -- The Babe Next Door
    • Blends of 3 Types
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Classic-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♂ ♂ Dramatic-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Dramatic-Classic-Ingenue
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Dramatic-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♂ ♂ Dramatic-Natural-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♂ Dramatic-Natural-Gamine
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Dramatic-Natural-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♀ Ethereal-Classic-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Dramatic-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Ethereal-Dramatic-Gamine
      • ♀ ♂ ♂ Ethereal-Dramatic-Natural
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Dramatic-Ingenue
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Natural-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Ethereal-Natural-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Ethereal-Natural-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♂ ♂ Natural-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Natural-Classic-Ingenue
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Natural-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Classic-Gamine
      • ⚥ ♀ ♀ Romantic-Classic-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Dramatic-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Romantic-Dramatic-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Dramatic-Ingenue
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Romantic-Dramatic-Natural
      • ⚥ ♀ ♀ Romantic-Ethereal-Classic
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Ethereal-Dramatic
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Ethereal-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♀ Romantic-Ethereal-Ingenue
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Ethereal-Natural
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Gamine-Ingenue
      • ⚥ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Natural-Classic
      • ♂ ♂ ♀ Romantic-Natural-Gamine
      • ♀ ♀ ♂ Romantic-Natural-Ingenue
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