Color analysis glossary

Every term, explained.

The language of color analysis in plain English — undertone, value, chroma, the seasons, draping, and the rest.

• 12-season color analysisThe 12-season system divides the four classic seasons into three sub-seasons each — for example Light, Warm, and Clear Spring — giving twelve precise color categories instead of four.
• 16-season color analysis16-season color analysis splits each of the four seasons into four sub-seasons instead of three, adding a second 'true' tier — a more granular but more complex variation on the 12-season system.
• AI color analysisAI color analysis uses a model to read your undertone, value, and contrast from a selfie and assign your 12-season color type — delivering the same result as an in-person draping session, from your phone.
• Anti-paletteAn anti-palette is the set of colors that work against your coloring — the shades that drain, grey, or age your face. It's the flip side of your personal color palette.
• Chroma (color analysis)Chroma is the intensity or purity of color your face can carry — from soft and muted to bright and clear. It's the third axis of color analysis, alongside undertone and value.
• Color analysisColor analysis is the practice of identifying the specific range of colors that most flatter a person, based on the undertone, depth, and contrast of their skin, hair, and eyes.
• Color drape testA color drape test is the core technique of color analysis: fabric swatches in different colors are held against the face under neutral light to see which ones make the skin look even and lit, and which make it look tired or sallow.
• Color personality analysisColor personality analysis is a loose term that usually means seasonal color analysis — finding the palette that suits your natural coloring — though it's sometimes confused with personality tests that assign you a 'color type.'
• Color seasonA color season is a category of personal coloring — like Soft Summer or Deep Autumn — that groups people whose skin, hair, and eyes share the same undertone, depth, and contrast, and therefore suit the same palette.
• Contrast (color analysis)Contrast is the difference in lightness between your hair, skin, and eyes. High-contrast coloring (e.g. dark hair, fair skin) suits high-contrast outfits; low-contrast coloring suits blended, tonal looks.
• Four-season color analysisThe four-season system — Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter — is the original color analysis framework, sorting everyone into one of four palettes by warmth and depth.
• How to find your color seasonYou find your color season by determining three things about your coloring — your undertone (warm/cool), your value (light/deep), and your chroma (soft/clear) — then matching that combination to one of the 12 seasons.
• Sci\ART color analysisSci\ART is a 12-season color analysis method developed by Kathryn Kalisz that types coloring by three dimensions — hue (warm/cool), value (light/deep), and chroma (soft/bright) — rather than by season names alone.
• Seasonal color analysisSeasonal color analysis is the method of classifying a person's coloring into a 'season' — Spring, Summer, Autumn, or Winter (or one of their 12 sub-seasons) — each with its own palette of flattering colors.
• Skin undertoneSkin undertone is the subtle hue beneath the surface of your skin — warm (golden/peach), cool (pink/blue), or neutral — and it's the single most important factor in color analysis.
• Value (color analysis)Value is the lightness or depth of your coloring — how light or dark your hair, skin, and eyes are overall. It's one of the three axes (with undertone and chroma) that determine your color season.
• Warm vs cool undertoneWarm undertones have a golden, peachy, or yellow cast and suit earthy, golden colors and gold jewelry; cool undertones have a pink, red, or blue cast and suit icy, blue-based colors and silver.