Soft Autumn Color Palette: Best Colors, Makeup and Hair

Soft Autumn is one of the most common seasons, and one of the easiest to get wrong. If bright colors seem to shout over you and black makes you look tired, you may be a Soft Autumn.

What makes a Soft Autumn

• Undertone: warm to neutral-warm.
• Chroma: soft. This is the strongest feature. Your coloring looks blended and gentle.
• Contrast: low to medium. Hair, skin and eyes sit close together.

Typical coloring: hair from dark blonde to medium brown with a soft golden or ash-gold cast, eyes in hazel, soft green, grey-green or warm brown, and skin that is beige, golden-beige or olive.

Your neighbor seasons are True Autumn (warmer and richer) and Soft Summer (cooler).

Your best colors

Think of a misty autumn landscape: colors that are warm but greyed down, never bright.

• Greens: sage, olive, moss, eucalyptus, soft khaki
• Blues: dusty teal, soft turquoise, muted petrol
• Reds and pinks: terracotta, brick rose, warm rosewood, soft salmon
• Yellows: mustard with a grey tone, soft wheat, light gold
• Browns: cinnamon, camel, milk chocolate, warm taupe

Your best neutrals

• Camel, oatmeal and warm beige
• Mushroom and warm taupe
• Soft olive
• Chocolate brown and coffee instead of black
• Cream and ivory instead of pure white

Colors to avoid near your face

• Black. It's too harsh and makes Soft Autumns look washed out. Try chocolate, charcoal-brown or deep olive.
• Pure white. Swap it for cream or soft ivory.
• Neon and very bright colors: hot pink, electric blue, lemon yellow.
• Icy pastels: they look grey on warm, soft coloring.

You can still wear these in trousers, shoes and bags. What matters is what sits next to your face.

Makeup

• Lips: warm nudes, rosewood, terracotta, soft brick, peachy brown
• Cheeks: soft peach, apricot, warm rose
• Eyes: bronze, khaki, olive, warm taupe, soft gold
• Eyeliner: brown or dark olive rather than black

Hair colors

Soft, warm-leaning shades that blend: golden brown, honey or soft caramel highlights, light auburn with a muted tone. Avoid very ashy platinum, jet black and bright copper, which add too much contrast.

Jewelry and metals

Brushed or antique gold, rose gold and bronze. Matte finishes look better on you than high shine.

Not sure you're a Soft Autumn?

The quickest check: hold a sage or olive top under your face, then a bright fuchsia one, in daylight. If sage makes you look calm and even and fuchsia looks like it's wearing you, Soft Autumn or Soft Summer is likely. Then compare a warm camel with a cool grey: camel points to Soft Autumn, grey to Soft Summer.

Or take one selfie with Huesette and see your season, your full palette and your makeup and hair shades.