The Authentic Palette: Launching November 2025!
Welcome to The Authentic Palette.
What Is Color Analysis and How Is My Method Different?
If you’ve ever tried on a lipstick and thought, “Why does this shade make me look like I have a stomach bug?” while another color instantly makes you look alive and radiant, you’ve already touched upon the idea of color analysis.
Let’s break it down.
🎨 The Basics
Color analysis is the art and science of discovering the colors — in clothing, makeup, and accessories — that harmonize with your natural coloring. Your skin tone, eye color, and current hair color all play a role.
When you’re wearing your best shades, your skin looks brighter, your eyes sparkle, and your whole look feels effortless.
🌸 The Classic Seasonal System
Traditionally, color analysis used the four-season system: Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. Each season is a palette of colors designed to complement certain undertones:
Spring: Warm, light, and clear (peach, coral, mint green)
Summer: Cool, soft, and muted (lavender, dusty rose, powder blue)
Autumn: Warm, earthy, and rich (mustard, olive, rust, deep teal)
Winter: Cool, bold, and high-contrast (black, white, jewel tones)
It’s a great starting point — but it has many limitations.
⚠️ What’s Wrong With Color Analysis Today
Many color analysis models are MLM or franchise-based, meaning anyone with money can buy a license — regardless of skill or experience. For example, House of Colour requires a $25,000 franchise purchase plus 4% royalties.
Training in the color analysis industry is often extremely brief:
International Image Institute: 3 days (Master Class: 9 days)
Color Me Beautiful (UK): 5 days, 4 hours/day
PCA (Sci/Art): 4 days
You cannot possibly learn color theory, draping, undertones, overtones, and work on real people in just a few days. I know this from 30+ years in the beauty industry: it takes decades of hands-on experience to truly understand the nuances of human coloring.
Social media also shows the issue clearly: anyone can earn a certificate and start offering consultations — sometimes delivering flawed results. For example:
Analysts wearing colorful outfits or working in cluttered, colorful rooms can skew results.
Founders of popular systems were often executive coaches, not professional makeup artists with decades of experience blending pigments and analyzing undertones.
Real-world experience matters — and that’s what sets The Authentic Palette apart.
🧩 The Limitations of Traditional Systems
Not every system works for every person. Here’s why:
Childhood Coloring: Some methods only look at childhood features. For instance, I had golden blonde hair as a child but naturally cool skin — a mismatch many systems would overlook.
Hair Color-Only Systems: Some methods prioritize hair over skin, which misses the most critical piece of your coloring.
Exclusion: Many traditional systems leave out people of color, trans and nonbinary individuals, and anyone with nontraditional hair colors like pink or blue.
Even the 12-season philosophy, which I studied, has its gaps. That’s why I created The Authentic Palette — an inclusive, modern, and practical approach to color analysis.
💡 Why My Method Is Different
I don’t use seasons, because they box people in. Instead, my system:
Considers your current hair color — because your coloring can change over time. For example, my natural golden blonde would be misleading if analyzed as a child, but my current darker brown hair makes my blue-gray eyes pop.
Recognizes true undertones beyond just warm or cool — I include neutral and take into account the impact of olive overtones on the skin.
Accounts for eye color — an often-overlooked factor that can dramatically affect how colors interact with your features.
Celebrates individuality and inclusion — everyone deserves to see themselves reflected in their perfect palette, regardless of skin tone, hair color, or gender identity.
Uses Color Mapping alongside draping — a professional technique that helps me analyze your unique coloring and features to determine a truly personalized palette.
Uses real-world expertise — my decades as a pro makeup artist, brand educator, and magazine beauty writer give me the trained eye to discern subtleties that a short certification alone can’t teach. I’ve also shared my color expertise in publications such as USA Today, guiding readers on how to choose the perfect lip color, blush, and other makeup shades based on their undertones.
Even redheads, gray-haired individuals, and those with nontraditional hair colors are never forced into a “season” — your palette is uniquely yours.
👁 The Eye for Color
Color analysis is part science, part artistry. While systems like the Munsell Color System lay the scientific foundation (hue, value, chroma), intuition and experience matter too. Some people have an innate ability to see what works — I’ve had that since I was a middle schooler, matching lipstick shades and outfits effortlessly.
This trained eye, combined with decades of analyzing thousands of faces, allows me to create palettes that truly reflect each client’s unique beauty.
✨ THE AUTHENTIC PALETTE SERVICES
I combine three key elements:
Decades of hands-on experience as a makeup artist — giving me the trained eye to see subtleties that a short certification alone can’t teach.
Formal color analysis certification — grounding my work in proven professional techniques.
A unique, modern, inclusive methodology — including Color Mapping alongside draping, which allows me to analyze your unique coloring and features to create a truly personalized palette.
💄 In-Person Color Consultations
Color draping sessions to find your ideal wardrobe and makeup colors
Jewelry tests to see what metals harmonize with your undertones
Customized shopping guides tailored to your palette
🛍 Online Makeup Shopping Guides
Downloadable guides for convenience and clarity
Coming soon — November 2025 launch!
🌟 Some Final Thoughts
Color analysis isn’t about rigid rules. It’s about discovering the tones that make you shine. With The Authentic Palette, my goal is to give you the tools, knowledge, and confidence to express your truest self through color — your own, authentic, radiant color.