Light Summer Color Palette

Light Summer is a quiet, cool-leaning coloring with low depth. Hair is ash blonde, soft light brown or pale beige-brown; eyes are blue, grey, soft green or light hazel; skin often looks rosy or pearly. Think of a watercolor painted with a very wet brush: every feature fades gently into the next.

Contrast is low, and that is the point. People with this season often say that strong colors make them look like they are wearing a costume, while a soft powder blue makes them look rested. The undertone is cool or cool-neutral, never golden.

Soft white versus creamy yellow-white is a handy check at a window. Light Summer tends to prefer whites with a faint pink or grey edge, and gets a yellow cast from butter and ivory. Cloud white and pearl are the safest pair to start from.

Imagine a foggy garden: powder blue, ballet pink, lavender, soft seafoam, eucalyptus and rose taupe. These colors look best layered tone on tone. A Powder Sky shirt with Pearl Mist trousers and a Rosewater cardigan is gentle and refined. When you need structure, step to mid-depth shades such as Glacier Teal, Soft Slate or Berry Sorbet, which stay cool. Skip black-and-white pairings; dove taupe with cloud white is far more natural.

Choose rose pink, soft raspberry, muted watermelon, cool peach-pink and mauve lipsticks in sheer or satin textures. Baby pink, rosy peach or soft orchid blush blends easily into light skin. Use a neutral or slightly pink foundation with light coverage, so the skin keeps its translucent quality.

Eyes: soft grey, taupe, lavender, rose brown, smoky blue, champagne-silver. Line in soft brown, grey-brown or navy rather than black, and keep mascara light. Bronze, copper and orange shadows add a warm weight that fights the cool delicacy of this palette.

Soft, cool-leaning hair is most flattering: ash blonde, champagne blonde, light ash brown, soft beige and pearl-toned highlights. Blended lightness gives the same airy effect as your clothes. If you are naturally darker, aim for a translucent cool-medium brown with delicate ash lowlights.

Brassy gold, copper and orange look too heated, and espresso or jet black makes the face look faded by contrast. A violet-based toner keeps blonde from yellowing. Stay within two levels of your natural base and ask for a soft root blend so regrowth is not obvious.

Silver, white gold, platinum and pale rose gold are your metals. Choose fine, graceful styles: thin chains, small pearls, delicate drops and slim bands. Polished yellow gold looks too strong, though a very pale champagne gold in one small piece is acceptable.

Pearl, moonstone, aquamarine, rose quartz, light amethyst, opal, pale sapphire and morganite give a pastel glow. Soft blue or pink enamel is pleasing too. Skip chunky, dark or highly saturated pieces such as black onyx or ruby red, which sit heavily on delicate coloring.

Fabrics are light, matte and a little fluid: cotton lawn, chambray, chiffon, lace, jersey, fine cashmere, soft linen, lightweight wool. Prints stay small and watercolor-like: tiny florals, pastel plaid, soft pinstripes, toile, hazy tie-dye. Strong geometrics and neon prints dominate the face.

Scenes. A rainy day: lavender mist sweater, pale denim, taupe boots. Lunch with friends in the garden: mint cream dress with a slim silver belt. Smart occasions: a Soft Slate suit with a Petal Pink shirt. Shoes in taupe, pale grey or soft beige-pink, and light blue denim rather than dark indigo.

Picture a wedding guest who wants to look serious. She chooses black, charcoal or deep navy near the face, and the photos show shadows under the eyes and a flat expression. Soft Slate, Cool Cocoa or Plum Dusk would have given the same polish with none of the weight. Warm earth colors such as rust, mustard and olive make cool skin look uneven. A guest in Powder Sky or Lavender Mist looks like she belongs in the picture.

The opposite error is wearing only pastels with nothing to anchor them. If every item is pale, the outfit goes shapeless, so add one mid-depth piece such as a Glacier Teal bag or Soft Amethyst belt. In makeup, a dark smoky eye plus a bold red lip is too strong for this soft coloring.