Be | Amazed
Secrets of the Science
Albert Munsell’s The Color Tree, 1907
Understanding the wonderous world of colour is fascinating, inspiring and life changing. Colour is light and energy; influencing us mentally, physically, and emotionally. It affects how we look, how we feel and how others perceive us.
Our approach to colour is based on the scientific principles of Albert Munsell. His system of colour identification developed in the early 1900s is universally recognised as the language of colour.
My time with you will demonstrate how certain shades are capable of being super flattering, while others are very unflattering due to the optical illusions that occur on the face. The latter draw attention to wrinkles and shadows; while your harmonious shades are natural beauty enhancers, making you appear healthy and fresh-faced.
Can we all wear every colour? Well, yes pretty much! BUT it is all about wearing the right tone of the colour; how you wear it, and where you wear it.
Our 6 Palettes
Albert Munsell was an artist who invented a colour classification system which defines colour into 3 dimensions:
1. Value (Depth – Light | Deep)
2. Hue (Undertone – Warm | Cool)
3. Chroma (Clarity – Soft | Clear)
The Munsell theory of colour describes colours based on human perception.
Our palettes are based on the Munsell system. By using one or more of these descriptions for every colour, it enables us to categorise colour and forms the basis of our analysis.
Applying these categories of colour to your physical features means that when you wear similar shades of colours, they will harmonise with your features. This creates a positive visual effect and impact, making you look radiant!
Your Palette
Dominant Palette
From our six palettes above we firstly prescribe you your dominant palette. This includes a mix of both neutral and accent colours, and gives you 30 shades of colour.
For example, Reese Witherspoon is a Light for her dominant palette. You will see the difference it makes when we match the right shades of colour to her unique colouring. Reese has a delicate look; blonde hair and blue eyes. Of all our palettes, this is the one that we instantly see as harmonising with he colouring. Lighter shades of colour will always enhance her look and brighten her face. When she wears deeper, darker colours they can easily overpower her, you find your eyes are drawn away from her face and she looks washed out.
Light
Deep
Secondary Palette
With our tonal system we can then refine this further for you, determining your secondary palette. The secondary palette in this case for Reese would either be Warm or Cool. It is so important to know your undertone and essential for choosing makeup to know this too! This gives you an additional 6 shades of colour. Reese would have the additional shades from our Cool palette, making up a wallet of 36 swatches. With her cool undertone you can see she looks so much better in the cooler Primrose Yellow, rather than the warmer tones of the Mustard Yellow. Her hair has cool highlights too which look perfect, but the warmer yellow jars with both her skin and hair.
Tertiary Palette
Finally, we choose for Reese between our Clear or Soft palettes. This consists of another 6 swatches which make up her tertiary palette. We really are tweaking the palette now.. as you can see she is wearing both dresses in a colour that suit her, but Reese has a clarity to her look. This means clearer, jewel-like tones of colour rather than those with a grey softness to them will work in a more flattering way with her features. Clothes combinations using her colours in a contrasting way will always elevate her look. A softer more blended, colour or few colours, isn’t as exciting on her. With this palette, when wearing a single colour it also needs to be brighter, like the dresses above. Adding the contrast of lipstick works so well too.
Clear
Soft
The Full Works
This gives Reese in total, for a full analysis, 42 shades of colour from 3 different palettes – Light, Cool & Clear.
Your palette, whether you want to know just your dominant, your dominant and secondary or with your tertiary palette added as well, will all be worked out FOR YOU; WITH YOU. You’ll learn how to WEAR colour, and have plenty of colours to choose from without it being overwhelming.
To make it super EASY I’ll give you a link to a personalised SECRET WEB PAGE. Here you can view your DIGITAL PALETTE and essential GUIDELINES for combining your colours for a stylish look. You will also find Pinterest boards full of INSPIRATION for clothes, makeup, hair and jewellery, all suited to your palette.
Digital Packages
For Ladies
For Men
Tonal & Seasonal Analysis
The Differences
Tonal analysis takes a slightly different approach to the Seasonal system.
They do translate, but the main differences are:
- Tonally, we go into more detail within your palette so you understand your Dominant, Secondary and Tertiary colouring. Seasonally you may be told your Dominant eg. Spring and perhaps Secondary, Light Spring. Our words are descriptive, you can understand why each one has been chosen. Instead of Light Spring we would say – Light & Warm. We would also then specify if you had Clarity, or a Softness to your features.
- Our starting point is to establish the most important aspect of your colouring, which we call your Dominant. Whilst for some people, this may be the degree of warmth or coolness of their look, often it will be something else such as the depth (Light/Deep) or clarity (Soft/Clear) of their colouring. Once we have identified which of the six Dominants you fit into, we then dig deeper to establish your secondary and tertiary characteristics.
- As a global company, the seasons in the UK do not often represent the same elements as a season in another country!
- Tonal analysis works with our natural changes as we age. Many people become cooler or softer, and so your palette will change with you. Seasonally, you stay in one category for your lifetime.
Andie MacDowell
Andie MacDowell was a Warm, Clear & Deep (True Spring). The red tones in her dark hair, warm complexion and bright hazel eyes created contrast.
This is one of the biggest palette changes someone can go through. Her eyes still retain a little warmth, as does her skin, but hair has a dramatic effect for this colouring type on how skin appears overall.
Her look still has clarity and depth, and if analysing her seasonally for the first time with her grey hair, she would now be a True Winter. Very different from trying to keep her in a totally opposite, True Spring palette. The previous autumnal colours will no longer suit her at all, swapping them for the Cool, Clear & Deep palette of colours will look amazing.
Warm, Clear & Deep to..
Cool, Clear & Deep
Babs Leach
Babs (my Mother-in-Law) had very dark hair and eyes, and a cooler undertone – she was a Deep, Cool & Clear.
With her now warm highlighted hair and changes as her eye colour has softened, her overall colouring appears warmer and she has far less contrast.
She retains the depth as her dominant feature, but her palette shifts slightly in the secondary and tertiary palettes. Now the Deep, Warm & Soft palette works with her colouring to make her look radiant.
The cooler and brighter tones do not work at all now!
Deep, Cool & Clear to..
Deep, Warm & Soft
This flexibility in the Tonal approach is key.
There are no wow colours and we don’t rate each of them.. because the colours are all fine-tuned to match your features.
I won’t just show you your best colours, I’ll show you how to wear them too..
Our Beauty Products
Our beauty range has been developed especially alongside the colouring concept, so works on the same principles. Each item has been allocated one or more colouring characteristics, which means it really works for you. Add some new colours to your wardrobe, and your makeup drawer. Feel inspired, confident, and fabulous.
