I Disagreed With My Color Analysis. So I Learned To Do It Myself

Even though color analysis has been around for a while now, I didn’t have a desire to figure out my season for a very long time. Because I’ve worked in design industry for 14 years, studied color theory during my bachelor’s degree, and thought I could do just fine without putting a name to my color palette when shopping for clothes.

While I still believe a designer can navigate the world without a “season”, this experience opened a door I didn't know existed. It made me think of new ways for how to enhance my appearance. It made me a better illustrator, and it also skyrocketed my respect for creative specialists working with skin, hair, and makeup.

The reason I did my color analysis this year is because in a few months I’m relocating to Southern California, and my wardrobe is due for a change. I’m also trying to be more adventurous with new experiences, and I went with a friend which made me more excited about the process than if I went on my own.

Going into this session, I understood that the determined color palette was supposed to harmonize with my natural features the most. That it was not about my favorite colors or the colors that define my personality or the colors I wear the most.

Unfortunately, that understanding alone was not enough for me to overcome my professional dogma that there’re no “unsuitable” colors. That color wheel is full of possibilities, and that harmony can be achieved even with the most in-your-face kind of shades. That everything works and constraints don’t exist.

Looking back now, I can see how it’s a me problem because I work with color every day and love a good color mixing challenge. In-person color analysis sessions aren’t designed with illustrators in mind, they’re meant to help people understand what works best for their features and why.

At the same time, as a client I would have preferred for a specialist to bring it up in the beginning of the session to clear the air and set the tone because depending on how the analysis is structured, the whole experience can be psychologically intense.

I also fine-tuned myself to stay open and jam along with the process even if I disagree because I understand how hard it can be for creatives to provide services to fellow creatives. My baseline for these cases is always to trust the process and ask questions from the space of curiosity and kindness. If my inner critic wakes up, I gently choke her until the service is over.

That said, I think the colorist I saw did an ok job to determine my season even though I disagreed with results and later learnt that it was indeed the wrong season. I am saying it now, several months after it happened. After going through it, sitting with it, watching videos from other colorists, and completing a professional color analysis program at The Style Academy Intl under direct supervision.

I also know now that the nature of personal color analysis is rooted in science and specific data points, and has nothing to do with creativity or subjective interpretation (even though I wish I could take liberty to handpick fun colors for people that work regardless of their actual season).

Of course, there’re always nuances because the way we perceive color depends on the way our individual eyes filter color, lighting, surrounding colors, and other factors. But even though color analysis sounds like a very creative service, the most creative part is in the name.

Going back to my experience, unfortunately I struggled to enjoy it. Not because the specialist did something wrong, but because for me to enjoy it I needed to understand it. My session was heavily focused on draping without explanation, and the only data point I was introduced to in the process was the undertone.

I believe like with any other service, color analysis can be divided into two parts: the quality of the service itself and the quality of the experience while the service is happening.

To me, the experience part would have been better if my colorist included me in the process and explained why she thought one color was a “yes” and another one a “no”. I did ask questions, but didn’t get answers which made it hard to follow along without hesitation.

The black and white nature of “yes” and “no was another thing that threw me off. I feel like color analysis is a deeply personal experience that requires a gentler approach. Especially when you deal with clients whose personal preferences live within an opposite spectrum of their true color season.

I would have preferred if she used language constructions that don’t immediately discard a possibility of using particular colors because a “no” can shut someone down from choosing a color in the future.

Now that I’ve completed my professional training to perform the analysis myself, I’m even more confident that any color can work for any season. My design and illustration background works magic for mixing in those “no” choices into seasonal palettes.

When I perform color analysis for people, I don’t just stop at determining the season. I want to hear about those personal preferences, favorite colors, loud or quiet. I want for my clients to embrace what they love without having to discard something just because their analysis doesn’t support it.

I start with explaining what we’re doing, what it is for, what it is not, which metrics is being analyzed, and how to bridge the gap between seasonal colors and personal favorites.

I use digital tools before switching to physical drapes because I find them more straightforward and easy to understand for those who don’t have a background in arts and design, and because drapes can feel differently to different people.

We first take a photo in natural light and work with it in Figma to check contrast, chroma, and undertone. Then, we double-check with physical drapes and make it fun.

I partially fine-tuned this experience to what I wish was done for me. I want for my clients to be excited about the process, to follow along and understand how something is being determined, and to not feel thrown off by the result.

(That said, I keep in mind that not everyone is as data-driven as I am, and before going color-intense, I always ask if that’s something they are ok with).

I also find that using both digital and physical drapes makes sure the season is determined correctly. Someone who’s been doing color analysis for a long time can figure out seasons within a few minutes of looking at clients, but I believe and know from my own industry that even the most experienced professionals can make mistakes, and that’s ok.

That’s why I believe that if the colorist who performed my analysis took a picture of my face and desaturated it to double check my contrast level, she would have landed in Dark Autumn where I belong. As a client, I wouldn’t have been bothered as it would have given me yet another data point to understand.

Instead, my session concluded in Soft Autumn. While it still lives in the correct Autumn family, it only works for people with low to medium contrast. If my specialist double checked, she would have seen that my contrast level is high.

Of course, I didn’t know all these details at the time of my analysis, but in my gut I still disagreed with the verdict. Soft Autumn’s color palette didn’t overpower my facial features, but it also didn’t enhance them and mostly washed me away.

It’s worth mentioning that I didn’t go down the rabbit hole of getting color analysis added to my skillset because I wanted to prove my colorist wrong. No. I did it because after my session was over, I left feeling disappointed, confused, and uneasy.

The disappointment part didn’t last long because I came into this session with a “color baggage” to begin with. But curiosity to dig deeper stayed, and I’m very glad I acted on it without overthinking.

Today, my personal perception of color analysis is completely changed. Even though I’m classically trained to perform it, I still think outside the box of seasonal palettes. I do find them useful as a starting point or a “safe” zone for looking harmoniously, but I think they’re also incomplete.

When I perform this service, my mission is to push boundaries and add on top of this starter. To use my illustration and design expertise to create a wider range of solutions. To embrace the favorites. To make the process fun, inclusive, and something to remember.

I also encourage my clients to ask questions and disagree, because in the end of the day it’s their image. Their colors. Their comfort. Their choice. My role is to simply show what else is there and possible.

If I accepted the results of my original analysis and took them true to heart, I wouldn’t dare look at glitter, shine, neon, bright, large geometric prints, highly saturated colors, and other choices that don’t define Soft Autumn.

Even though my Dark Autumn season doesn’t support very bright and loud shades, I still wear them because I love them. In fact, after going through this adventure, my wardrobe palette got even more experimental and bold.

In the end of the day, we still choose colors that speak to us, that mean something to us. Be it in season or not. Knowing your palette can open new doors to more colors and combinations to love (or hate), but it’s most definitely not an essential.

Just an experience that can be educational, explorational, pivotal, inspiring, or even nothing at all.