Autumn All-Stars: Mariah Carey

On any given day you can catch me yell-singing a Mariah Carey song (well, anything through Emancipation of Mimi; I haven’t kept up after that album). Remember her early years with her coppery curls? I wish she’d go back to her natural color and hire a stylist. Suits her so much better than these ashy blondes she’s been doing. Anyhoo, let’s look at Mimikins in cooler colors first:

Ick, right? Mariah in warmer colors:

May-hay-haaaay-jor difference! The day Mariah goes back to her natural hair color, incorporates these warmer colors more often and some style and starts bringing it on her albums again, is the day she stunts on everyone. I still love her though, always. Mariah is an Autumn All-Star. *hits high note*

If you would like me to do a color analysis for you (includes blog feature with pictures and customized color shopping list with your own personal power color) that will bring out your own unique glow, contact me at glowingcolor@gmail.com for rates.

Autumn Colors-Gold

Gold is just…sexy. Diva type ish. Sparkly. Regal. Etc. Gold is a color that shines in Autumn, and for special events and holidays. Autumn (and Spring) women should snatch this up however they can. It can make a subtle statement or a big impact on your overall look depending on what piece you wear in gold. Indulge.

Autumns and Springs, if you don’t want to wear gold in your clothing, invest in some nice gold eyeshadow. A subtle glimmer or full-on glow is your choice. Or try gold earrings, hoops being the classic here. You’d be surprised how that little touch can warm up your entire look.

If you would like me to do a color analysis for you (includes blog feature with pictures and customized color shopping list with your own personal power color) that will bring out your own unique glow, contact me at glowingcolor@gmail.com for rates.

Beyonce

I’ve been meaning to feature Beyonce’s colors here for a while. Now seems like the perfect time since she and her fetus just stunted on everyone at the VMA’s last night. So leggo.

Now, you may recall that I have discussed Beyonce’s season before in this post, among others. So this post is more of a review and expansion.

I’d say it’s pretty easy to see Beyonce’s season looking at these photos. She clearly looks washed out in the black, pink, silver, and white. In the pure green satin dress she does not look washed out, but the color does nothing for her.

Interestingly, if you compare the two green photos you can see a clear difference. The green on the left is a Winter green, the more subdued hunter green on the right is an Autumn green. See how much better she looks on the right? And of course, you can see how fresh she looks in brown and orange and how she glows in cream and gold.

Beyonce is an Autumn.

QQ in Stripes

Just a quick drive-by post to show how to do patterns in your season.

QQ, you may remember, is an Autumn. Here she is in a cream top with brown, orange, and peachy stripes and has accented with gold jewelry. This pattern is classic warm since every color featured is warm. This top would work for Autumns AND Springs since it has a mix of lighter and darker warm colors.

Thanks QQ!

True Blood Week: Jessica

Welcome back to True Blood Week at Glowing Color! Today we’ll be looking at Jessica, aka Deborah Ann Woll.

Fans know her as the lovely, awkward, fledgling but seductive, redheaded somewhat “newbie” vampire. But did you know Deborah’s natural hair color is actually blonde? TRUE STORY. This eliminates Autumn and Winter as potential seasons for her. As with Tara/Rutina Wesley, I found an equal number of cool and warm photos of Deborah. Let’s start with the warm first.

By the way in the photo where she has on yellow, you can see her blonde roots. Well, the gold photo isn’t the best but you can still tell she looks super-pale, not in a good way here. The gold is straight cussin’ her out. Also, in the first two photos where Deborah has on yellow and dark blue (muted which reads warm), she doesn’t look BAD but the colors are wearing her. They don’t really mesh or flow with her skin. In the photos where she has on dark red and blush pink (both warm), she looks washed out; just plain BLAH. Shall we venture over to Deborah in cooler colors?

Deborah looks so much better in the cooler colors of white, pale blue, black, red, and smoky lavender. Especially if you imagine her with blonde hair, like we had to do for Christina Hendricks. In the lavender photo (as well as the white photo), if she had her natural blonde hair and a lighter, less severe shade of lipstick? Girl WHAT.

Deborah Ann Woll is a Summer.

True Blood Week:Tara

Welcome back to True Blood Week on Glowing Color! This post was supposed to go up yesterday, but I had some personal matters to attend to. So today you get two for one! First up is Tara, aka Rutina Wesley.

I found an equal number of cool and warm photos of Tara, so let’s start off with the cool.

See how her lovely skin is radiantly glowing in pure red, cobalt blue, black, silver, and white? Each of these colors help set off her beautiful dark skin. Now let’s look at Rutina in warm colors.

Not quite the same effect in charcoal (warm, muted gray), teal (warm blue), gold, orange, and blush (warm pink) is it?
In these colors Rutina’s skin looks flat, matte, dull especially when compared to her in the cooler colors. She especially looks washed out in the lighter warm colors of gold and blush.

It is clear from these photos that Rutina Wesley is a Winter.

True Blood Week: Sookie

Welcome to True Blood week at Glowing Color. Let’s start off with the star of the show, Sookie Stackhouse aka Anna Paquin.

Most of you should know her natural hair color is not blonde but in case you haven’t ever seen her anywhere else, Anna Paquin is a brunette. This eliminates Spring and Summer, so what is she? An Autumn or a Winter?

Most of the usable photographs of Anna I found are of her in warm colors so let’s take a look at those first.

Anna’s looking a bit sickly in these colors. Tomato-red, teal (a “warm” blue), plum (a “warm” purple), navy blue (not a “warm” blue, but a muted blue which reads warm), gold, ivory, and camel are not Anna’s colors. She looks washed out and sallow in all of these. This means she is not an Autumn, which can only mean…Winter!

What a difference, yes? Look out fresh she looks in these colors! In the black, she looks pale but not washed out. She’s glowing. Also, even though she has blonde hair dye and lavender, a Summer color on, she still looks good here. That’s because lavender is still a cool color so it can work with many Winters.

Anna Paquin is a Winter.

Anna? Sookie? Girl go get you some more Winter colors in your wardrobe! And dye your hair back! They have wigs!

Coming up on True Blood Week:
Tuesday: Tara
Wednesday: Pam
Thursday: Jessica
Friday: Arlene

Padma Lakshmi

Reader QQ requested Padma Lakshmi and I said ohlehdoit.

Padma is a Winter. I think she knows it too, as the majority of the pictures I found with her had her in cooler colors. The photos in the top row of her in champagne and gold fade her out to all that be damned. In the bottom row, the warm purple and soft yellow wash her out and do nothing for her.

Alternatively look how fresh she looks in black, holds her own in bright blue and turquoise, glows in pale pearly pink, and sets off silver and white. Mm-hmm. Work, Padma. Ain’t nobody mad.

Requests:

Christina from Houston (reader)
Alek Wek

Gong Li

I got a request from a reader a while back to cover some Asian ladies, so today we’ll look at actress Gong Li. Let’s jump right in!

Gong Li is a Winter. The top row of photos gives it away almost immediately. She is washed out in every color except the black. She looks so fresh-faced in the black. Some of you may be confused, thinking the first and third photos where she wears aubergine and burgundy, are Winter colors. Though these are not “warm” colors, they do flatter “warm” skintones, thus fall under Autumn. These colors are actually too dark and muted to be true Winter colors. If she were wearing a true primary purple, or fuschia, you’d be able to see the difference.

In the second row, all of the photos are Gong Li wearing Winter colors except the leopard print and the navy blue. She actually doesn’t look bad in the navy blue, but it is not working as hard for her as a royal blue would. Another strong clue she is a Winter is the way she is holding it down for all her homies in the red. A true, strong, pure red is the calling card of a Winter. If it was any other red but a true red, or a slightly-off garnet, she would be washed out.

Upcoming Requests:
Reader: Katarzyna from South Africa
Reader: Christina from Houston, Texas
Padma Lakshmi
Alek Wek

Vanessa Williams

I got a comment on my Summer post inquiring about Vanessa Williams. Ann asked whether Vanessa would be considered a Summer. Though Vanessa’s hair is a light brown/auburn, I don’t believe it’s light enough to be considered a Summer. Let’s take a looksie.

Here are a few photos of Vanessa in summer colors:

The aqua is screaming at you about paying bills and why can't you be more like your sister?

while this green brings out her eyes, overall it makes her skin look a little sallow and is just sitting on her. The gold jewelry helps save the look.

Vanessa has a tan here and still looks washed out with the white.

So overall, no bueno for Summer colors. Vanessa is not a Summer. As I mentioned earlier, I don’t think her hair is light enough for Spring either, but just for ruling-out sake:

Nope. Washed the fuck out.

She is washed out here, but at the same time she doesn't look bad. This indicates that she may have a warm undertone but needs more vibrant color.

Vanessa is not a Spring. The champagne color is giving us a hint, however, of her skin tone.

Let’s move on to the “darker” seasons. Here is Vanessa in some Winter colors:

The black is making her tan look orange, not glow-y.

Blah.

Welp, that leaves one more season.

Vanessa in Autumn:

Ignore the "I may have just sharted" look on her face. Things are looking warmer!

Golden Goddess...looking good!

motherf****** radiant!

I think we have a winner here. Vanessa Williams is an Autumn. To directly answer commenter Ann: Vanessa’s hair/coloring is not light/blonde enough to be a Summer (and spring by association), and more importantly, she has a warm skin undertone, not the cool undertone you would need to be a Summer.

Until next time!