Which Color Type are you?

Do you know your power color?

Everyone has their favorite colors. Sometimes they change depending on the mood, the phase of life or the object.

If you have a bright red bike or car, that doesn’t necessarily mean you only see bright red when you open your closet in the morning.

There are colors that make us brave and colors we like to dress in when we want to feel safe and protected, or colors we wear because someone told us “Gee, you’re wearing that great turquoise top again, it looks amazing on you!”

If you want to be aware of what colors trigger you and what meaning that might have for your lifestyle, you can learn to understand and apply that in a color consultation.

*Do you already have an idea which could be your power color? I’ll be happy to check with you…

Color Psychology

Colors send signals and stimulate different emotions. Some color effects are quite individual, depending on the person, other colors release universally similar sensations in people. This is not only used in fashion, but also in interior design, advertising or even in sports.

Do you have an understanding of how to use the language of colors for yourself? Both the color tones and the combination possibilities?

By the way, this is not “manipulation” but rather clear communication.

Color Types

Why does the same colored garment look stunning on one woman* and rather unflattering on another? It’s no secret that every person has their own natural coloring. Analyzing and understanding this is at the heart of color consultations. In order for the result to be sustainable, one ideally uses various analysis steps. From the result, you can conclude which clothing colors, patterns, hair colors and make-up colors suit you best – in the truest sense of the word. *or man

Seasons (Model)

What are the four season types all about? Bauhaus painter and art educator Johannes Itten developed a color theory model for painting that assigned hues to the corresponding seasons as they occur in nature. Quickly adapted in American universities in the 1920s/30s, this doctrine found its way into fashion houses to promote the marketing of collections.

Starting in the 1950s, the Californian designer Suzanne Caygill took up this color theory and developed it further for the female world of fashion for decades. The methods of analysis and derivation of which colors were particularly attractive in garments became more individualized and dealt more with skin tone or undertone (cold/warm). However, the color families winter and summer from Itten’s theory were probably mistakenly interchanged, which has remained so in application to this day. Since the 1980s, the topic of color type determination has also become more popular in Europe and is now also used by men.

Is the model still up to date for color type determination?

Yes and no. Of course, it helps to classify the colors into corresponding families, which narrows down the color selection for clothing depending on the color type. But fewer and fewer color consultants today use this model exclusively, because it is too unspecific. In the meantime, there are several further developments and methods with which the optimal colors per type can be narrowed down more precisely.

In my consultations I work with the multi-step 2D+3D=EZ(c) method by Gilian Armour, which I learned and deepened at the Fashion Stylist Institute. The color model that underlies this method is based, among other things, on the three dimensions of color; color value, hue and color saturation.

In my opinion, there is no one right method or universal model. It is much more important that a sustainable and holistic analysis is made, on the basis of which the customer then receives an individual color palette and detailed recommendations. With this, she/he can then select and buy her/his clothes almost “with eyes closed”.

* Want to live a more colorful life? Feel free to contact me…

Can you find out your color type yourself?

There are some indications by which you can estimate your color type quite well. Fashion magazines and guidebooks suggest relevant categories. By the way, still very often for the four seasons model.

A small, almost scientific approach to classifying one’s own color type is also listed in the styling classic by Edith Head “Dress for Success” from the Sixties on several charts and tables.

From my own experience, I can say that I have experienced surprises time and again – including with myself – as to what actually emerged from a real, personally conducted color type analysis.

Guides for all can therefore only ever lead to more general statements than is possible in an individual consultation.

Why are some colors suddenly everywhere?

The fashion and textile industry regularly tempts with new color trends, which is especially noticeable because in each season many shop windows showcase the same color combinations.

The Pantone Institute of Color has established itself over the last 20 years in analyzing and prescribing the color trends of the coming seasons. A certain color is determined as “Color of the Year” and a trend color palette, which is declared as fashion colors for the year or the seasons spring/summer and fall/winter. These colors are increasingly used in fabric production, textile manufacturing as well as on the catwalks, advertising, etc. to stimulate the purchase of goods in these “new” colors.

By the way, the color of 2020 was Classic Blue. For 2021 , a light gray shade called Ultimate Grey and Illuminate (Bright Yellow) were announced.

If you know your personal color favorites, you are less dependent on having to follow these trend impulses. Nevertheless, it can be fun to pick out something in the current color palette that suits you particularly well.

Bonus question: what are the pros and cons of color consulting?

The benefits are obvious: who knows which colors make him look healthier, fresher and more dynamic, feels more comfortable in his skin and comes across better to his counterpart. The downside is (irony on) that you may notice that you’ve been in the completely wrong color universe so far and have to part with some clothes.