Soft Summer Personal Color Analysis

What the Soft Summer season is

Soft Summer is the most muted variation of Summer, on the border with Soft Autumn. The contrast is the lowest of all, and the palette has the most neutral, smoky look.

It's the sub-season for those with blended, harmonious characteristics, flattered by soft, slightly gray tones, without strong or pure colors.

Soft Summer is the most muted of the cool palettes. Soft Summers have features that blend into one another: the hair isn't quite blonde or quite brown, the eyes mix gray, green and brown, and the skin has a subtle cool undertone that's close to neutral. Nothing jumps out, and that's exactly what makes this kind of beauty so elegant. The temperature is cool, but what really defines Soft Summer is low chroma: colors with plenty of gray in them.

The Soft Summer palette gathers dusty, medium-depth shades: dusty rose, dusty orchid and raspberry red; denim blue, dusty blue and mist blue; muted jade, eucalyptus green and pale sage; rosewood, tea rose and petal pink; and grays from charcoal to stone. Yellows appear in pale, creamy versions, always as a detail. It's a palette that recalls an old painting or a beach at dusk, when colors lose their glare and gain depth.

As the lowest-contrast sub-season, Soft Summer is also the one most thrown off by pure colors: bright, primary or neon shades have nothing in your coloring to anchor to, so they end up standing alone. On the other hand, subtle, analogous combinations that might look washed out on other seasons look sophisticated and carefully put together on you.

Soft Summer color palette

Core colors

Neutrals for your wardrobe base

How to wear Soft Summer colors

Soft Summer neutrals are complex and grayed: taupe gray, soft navy, blue-gray, gray-green, deep plum and off-white. They form the backbone of your wardrobe and bridge every other color in your palette. For basics like trousers, skirts and coats, these shades replace black and brown far more harmoniously.

The most flattering approach for a Soft Summer is analogous dressing, pairing colors that sit next to each other on the color wheel at a similar intensity: dusty blue tailored trousers with a dusty orchid blouse, a dusty rose skirt with a mauve sweater, a muted jade dress with a sage cardigan. Monochrome outfits in different shades of one color, like three blues, also work every time. Strong contrasts, such as intense navy with optic white, cut through your natural softness and are best left out.

At work, charcoal or soft navy tailoring with an off-white or mist blue shirt looks elegant without feeling stiff. For evening, choose dresses in dusty rose, rosewood or plum in matte or satin-finish fabrics, like crepe, washed silk and fine jersey; heavy metallic shine and very reflective sequins tend to be too much. For prints, go for blurred florals, watercolor patterns, tonal paisley and low-contrast plaids.

Soft Summer makeup

Soft Summer makeup works best when it looks blended and matte. Foundation should be neutral or slightly pink with a natural finish; very dewy, high-glow effects draw too much attention. On the lips, the best matches are cool rosewood, mauve, grayish nude, dusty rose and soft blackberry, and the palette also has a medium raspberry for when you want more color. Avoid orange lipsticks, bright reds and caramel nudes, which clash with your skin.

Blush should be dusty rose or soft mauve with a matte finish, blended without visible edges. On the eyes, taupe, dusty rose, mauve, plum and gray-green shadows create an elegant smoky effect; the secret is to blend well so there are no hard lines. Choose gray-brown, plum or charcoal eyeliner and dark brown or graphite mascara. Chunky glitter or very pure colors, like electric blue, break the harmony.

Best hair colors for Soft Summer

Soft Summer hair should be a soft color with a cool or neutral base and a low-contrast effect. The best options are ash light brown, ash dark blonde (dirty blonde), ash medium brown and fine cool-beige highlights that add light without creating stripes. Avoid golden, copper and red reflections, which pull your look toward Autumn, and also black and very dark browns, which create too harsh a contrast. Very light, platinum highlights also tend to look artificial on this sub-season.

Soft Summer accessories and metals

Metals with a soft, satin shine suit Soft Summer's gentleness: matte, brushed or antiqued silver, rose gold and, if you like gold, a pale gold with a matte finish. Highly polished, shiny pieces draw more attention than your face. Gray pearls, rose quartz, light amethyst, labradorite and aquamarine echo the palette. For glasses, matte gray, grayed tortoiseshell, mauve, blue-gray or brushed metal frames are the most harmonious.

Soft Summer: frequently asked questions