Soft Summer: the whole palette, explained

Cool and muted - misty greys, soft plums and seafoam calm.

Soft summer is cool and muted at the same time, which is a harder brief than it sounds: cool colors turn cold quickly and muted ones turn dull. The palette solves it with greys that carry a hint of another color and plums that stay dusty. Almost everyone who lands here has been wearing colors that are a little too bright.

The twelve colors

These are the general starting colors for soft summer, with the hex value beside each one so you can match a garment against it.

Neutrals

• Mist White#EFEFEA
• Greige#AFA99E
• Slate Grey#7D8BA1

The stronger colors

• Dusty Plum#9C8AA5
• Steel Blue#8E9AAF
• Antique Mauve#A68A97

The softer ones

• Sage Grey#A2A284
• Misty Lilac#AD9CB8
• Rose Smoke#B89CAB

Metals

• Brushed Silver#B9BDC4
• Pewter#8E9196
• Smoky Rose Gold#C4A494

Three combinations to try first

• • #8E9AAF
  • #EFEFEA
  • #A2A284
  • #B9BDC4

  Morning Fog

  Steel blue in the mist - low contrast is your superpower, not a compromise.

• • #9C8AA5
  • #AFA99E
  • #AD9CB8
  • #8E9196

  Heather Walk

  Plum over greige reads soft and expensive - tonal, blended, unmistakably calm.

• • #A68A97
  • #7D8BA1
  • #B89CAB
  • #C4A494

  Smoke & Rose

  Mauve with slate is your evening look - smoky, romantic, never loud.

Where to go next

• Soft Autumn: your colors and where to start
• What is color analysis?
• What is my undertone? A three-question test
• Gold or silver: a two-question test

Not this season?

These are the seasons closest to soft summer, and the ones most often mistaken for it.

• Soft Autumn
• True Summer
• Light Summer

Your exact colors

Your exact palette depends on your eyes and hair as well as your season. These are the soft summer palettes in full, one per combination.

• Blue eyes, black hair
• Blue eyes, dark brown hair
• Blue eyes, dirty blonde hair
• Blue eyes, golden blonde hair
• Blue eyes, grey silver hair
• Blue eyes, light brown hair
• Blue eyes, medium brown hair
• Blue eyes, platinum blonde hair
• Blue eyes, red auburn hair
• Brown eyes, black hair
• Brown eyes, dark brown hair
• Brown eyes, dirty blonde hair
• Brown eyes, golden blonde hair
• Brown eyes, grey silver hair
• Brown eyes, light brown hair
• Brown eyes, medium brown hair
• Brown eyes, platinum blonde hair
• Brown eyes, red auburn hair
• Dark brown eyes, dirty blonde hair
• Dark brown eyes, golden blonde hair
• Dark brown eyes, grey silver hair
• Dark brown eyes, light brown hair
• Dark brown eyes, medium brown hair
• Dark brown eyes, platinum blonde hair
• Dark brown eyes, red auburn hair
• Green eyes, black hair
• Green eyes, dark brown hair
• Green eyes, dirty blonde hair
• Green eyes, golden blonde hair
• Green eyes, grey silver hair
• Green eyes, light brown hair
• Green eyes, medium brown hair
• Green eyes, platinum blonde hair
• Green eyes, red auburn hair
• Grey eyes, black hair
• Grey eyes, dark brown hair
• Grey eyes, dirty blonde hair
• Grey eyes, golden blonde hair
• Grey eyes, grey silver hair
• Grey eyes, light brown hair
• Grey eyes, medium brown hair
• Grey eyes, platinum blonde hair
• Grey eyes, red auburn hair
• Hazel eyes, black hair
• Hazel eyes, dark brown hair
• Hazel eyes, dirty blonde hair
• Hazel eyes, golden blonde hair
• Hazel eyes, grey silver hair
• Hazel eyes, light brown hair
• Hazel eyes, medium brown hair
• Hazel eyes, platinum blonde hair
• Hazel eyes, red auburn hair

These twelve colors are the general starting set for this season. Answer the five questions and you get the set keyed to your own eye and hair color instead.