I got my color analysis done at House of Colors in Bennington, Nebraska. While I did not have high expectations going in, my mom has been super into getting your colors done for about five years, so I was willing to go through the process for her.
When you get your colors done, you wear no makeup, and if you have any dyed hair they will cover it up along with your clothes. As I sat in the chair, they covered me with a white sheet of fabric [color block] to drown out any distracting colors.
Once she [Erin Brass] had covered my clothes, she began laying different bright-colored swatches of fabric across the white sheet. As she alternated between warm and cool-toned colors, it became clear that I was a cool tone, narrowing my season to either a summer or winter.
After much back and forth, she determined that winter colors, which are cool and bright jewel tones, looked best on me. I was skeptical at first, as I would never gravitate to wearing a bright pink or green, but as I saw the difference in my skin tone and features with the winter colors, I was sold.
To follow my color pallet of icy tones, I had to get rid of my warm brown hair. I bleached my hair to a cool blonde and I have slowly tried to transition to wearing some silver jewelry. I immediately cleaned out of my closet and purged all items that appeared to be warm-toned, but I held on to most of my casual pieces [sweatshirts, sweat pants, and tank tops], or pieces I loved.
Since getting my colors done, I have tried to buy clothes only in my color palette, and I have switched some of my makeup to cooler-toned colors [blush and bronzer]. I have noticed that wearing my colors makes me feel better and brighter, and makes my clothes appear more expensive and put together. Knowing what colors look best on me made prom dress shopping much easier.
While getting your colors done is not a new thing, the popularity of this process has risen in the last few years.
“Now is the perfect time to get your colors done because of high school and senior year,” Senior Ava Spies said. “There’s a lot of big events [prom, homecoming, and graduation parties.” “I wanted to know what colors look best on me and it makes shopping so much easier.”
Spies went through the same process I did at House of Colors in Bennington. Since getting her colors done, she has been a big advocate for the idea and has convinced many of her friends to do it.
“It’s definitely worth the price,” Spies said. “It sticks with you the rest of your life and your colors aren’t going to change as you get older.”
Spies has also embraced her winter color palette and dyed her hair back to a natural cool-toned brown, removing her previous blonde highlights.
“The biggest game changer was the lips and blush,” Spies said. “When I put the color on I just feel like I look so much older and more put together.”
While Senior Quinn Carney got her colors done at a different location [Seasons of Color] she is also an advocate for the value of knowing what looks best on you.
“I knew some colors looked better on me, but going through the process confirmed some things,” Carney said. “I have noticed that people say a lot more about the colors I am wearing, or that a certain color looks really good on me.”
While there are filters online that can guess your season and what colors look best on you, they often generate those results based on eye and hair color, rather than your natural undertones.
Getting your colors done is an experience that you must be willing to embrace and to get the ultimate result, you must be willing to make changes to your wardrobe and appearance that harmonize with your natural palette.
