Colour analysis: what’s the trick?

‘They do it with mirrors!’

Magicians famously swear an oath never to reveal the secrets of their tricks. In colour analysis, I work with mirrors too.

Maybe you’ve seen colour analysis on Instagram. A drape in an unflattering shade, held under someone’s chin, instantly robs them of all vitality. They look like death warmed up. Then it’s whisked away and replaced by a different colour. Suddenly, they look radiant. Glowing.

It’s a fantastic trick. How’s it done?

In 1980, colour analysis pioneer Carole Jackson founded an empire on the promise of a palette of flattering colours. But she didn’t explain the science and art behind it.

Times have changed. We’re living in an era of intense curiosity, used to finding answers online in a few clicks. And why not share the tricks behind colour analysis? It’s a wonder of the natural world.

Colour is light, and light is colour. Take a look around the room where you’re reading this and spend a moment picking out all the colours you see. The yellow of that marker pen on your desk, or the red of the tomatoes in the bowl. You’re seeing those colours because of the light in the room. Most animals, plants and objects owe their colours to pigments which absorb certain wavelengths from the light that falls on them, and reflect others to the eye. That pen on your desk appears yellow in hue because pigment is absorbing all the other colours of the rainbow, bouncing only one - yellow - back to your eye.

In colour analysis, we’re interested in how the unique natural colouring of the human face - and importantly, the undertone of your skin - appears either warm, cool, or somewhere in between. Each of us has a unique genetic pattern of yellow and orange pheomelanin which gives us that warm or cool look, which creates an affinity with a palette of warm or cool colours. The first stage of colour analysis draping explores this.

You really can’t do this successfully online, though some colour analysts offer virtual sessions. You need to be in the same room as your analyst to ensure the lighting’s right. That’s essential for accuracy. Remember that meme, #TheDress? A poorly-lit photo of a dress convinced some people it was blue and black. Others saw it as white and gold.

There’s a second aspect of colour that’s equally important: chroma, or clarity. Sunshine yellow is a clear hue, but that fluorescent marker pen of yours has had greenish tones added, while the more muted, warmer yellow of a sunflower contains orange and reddish tones. Some people’s faces have a bright, clear look. They can wear strong, ‘saturated’ colours and look wonderful, while others have a softer, subtler look, and suit colours which echo that.

The final important aspect of colour is what artists call its ‘value’ - the extent to which it’s been mixed with white or black to give a paler or darker tone. Colour analysts consider the light or deep tones of someone’s colouring, as well as high or low contrast between their hair, eyes and skin. Colour analysis works for people of all ethnicities, revealing the natural radiance of your unique natural colouring, and showing it off to its best advantage.

Bauhaus artist, Johannes Itten, theorised colour harmony at the start of the last century. It’s worth looking up his paintings online. He explored how warm and cool, clear and soft, deep and light, feature in artists’ colour choices, reflecting the four seasons he knew in Western Europe.

Modern colour analysis uses nuanced systems focusing on all these elements. I’m trained to use a state-of-the-art approach, using 16 categories to determine your very best colours.

I’d love to work with you in front of my mirror. Get in touch and let’s make magic!