Best Makeup Colours : Bright Winter
July 4, 2010 by Christine Scaman
The Bright Seasons wouldn’t be as perplexing as they are if someone hadn’t made an allusion to “clear eyes”. Suddenly, they became indefinable. Who has clear eyes? Who doesn’t?
In 12 Season Personal Colour Analysis, a repetitive phrase so that people can find me through Google, I know you knew that, this group belongs to the Winter category. Colours are dark, highly saturated, and cool.
Bright Winter is a Neutral Season, so Winter with a Spring infusion. Spring does do some fascinating things when it mixes with Winter, maybe part of what makes this coloring so consuming of our attentions and imaginations. Maybe it’s the relief we have evolved to feel when warmth returns to tell us that we survived another cold spell. Our feeling of welcome is almost heartbreaking.
Maybe we are arrested when pure, pure color energy mixes with Winter’s power.
Some of Winter’s cold is substituted for Spring’s pale yellow warmth. Not buttercup yet, not even daffodil. More like snowdrops. There is a trace of the delicate in these people, unlike True Winter that neither looks nor acts delicately ( or if they do, you soon learn it’s pretend).
When the 2 True Seasons of highest color saturation mix, this color sings with clarity. These are the highest color notes.
Spring also lightens the colors, compared to True Winter’s darkness. Only a bit.
Some Bright Winters react to their palette with “Obviously”, which the happiness with which most people greet their colors. The great David Weinberger said, in the cluetrain manifesto, that “laughter is the sound knowledge makes when it’s born”. Color analysts see it every day, in the laughter that people almost have to suppress when they see their palette. They are joyful and peaceful. And they’re a bit confused by the strength of their reaction.
Some Bright Winters react with “Oh, heavens, I could never do that.” One piece at a time. Let yourself do this. Being safe when you know more is like visually dumbing yourself down. NEVER be less than everything you can be. Buy a bright tank and wear a yellow one underneath. Wear dangly silver earrings. Wear a sheer bright gloss.
These are the C0lour Analysis cosmetic colors that perfect this skin tone.
The eyeshadow in icy violet is incredible. Merle Norman makes Freesia and it is gorgeous for a reason. The icy is Winter. The violet is the complement of yellow, a component of all Spring skin.
The other hilite is yellow, or creamy, but still quite neutral champagne. Everyone can do neutral champagne. Just avoid brown, beige, buff, gold, pastel.
Eyeshadow for the Brights is my biggest search challenge. You can do a clean light grey and deeper charcoal (left column). You can add in a bit of brown and get to taupe (right column) but barely any. Will you be able to find 2 separate products? You might, but you wouldn’t need to.
Shimmer in makeup is a definite possible, though never necessary. The industry just makes so much of it that it’s easier to find. Winter has a still polish. Spring expresses dazzle and movement. Merge the two and the shimmer works. One facial feature at a time.
Eyeliner is charcoal, or black-brown. Purple can be great, but certainly more playful; it’s lighter than True Winter’s and will look purpler. Spring allows imagination, energy, and FUN, but it’s still very contained in this group. Winter’s sapphire can also work. These eyeliners might be better as accents, rather than for surrounding the entire eye. You might just do an inner rim of the upper lid, or the outer section of the upper lid, merging with the charcoal. Just because you can look great in circus gear doesn’t mean you should.
Lip and blush usually take time to get used to. Start light or sheer with makeup. Your Color Analyszed swatches give you lighter choices too. The lip often has a fair bit of natural color. The rest of us would love it on you immediately, but I get that it’s you who has to wear it. Ask someone you trust. I love Mercier’s Lip Pot in Hibiscus on Bright Spring, but on Bright Winter, it is still too flat. They dominate it, and the lip color becomes dullish and grayish and boringish.
As for the clear eyes thing, it sure wouldn’t help you pick them out of a line-up. They are often Black-Brown (see Jocelyn Is A Bright Winter). They can be Virginia turtle eyes, which become OMG with charcoal eyeliner. They can be Asian.
Everyone’s eyes are amazing. Once we notice them, we all find it hard to stop looking. That’s why it’s so important to get rid of the distracting clutter. Calm down the skin, the hair, the over-makeup, and let your eyes leave an echo.
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Thanks for this. It is really interesting. Here are some MAC shades (I tend to stick to MAC though I’m interested in Illamasqua now too) which might be worth trying out. One thing I have noticed is that Bright Winter is much pinker/redder than True Winter.
Hilite:
Digit (though still a tad too blue- could do with being more pink-violet)
Blanc Type – a wonderful cream colour (or Schroom which is frostier)
Shadow:
Greys:
Scene- a soft blue grey
Electra- a silvery grey (frost)
Print- a mid grey
Typographic- a darker grey
Taupes:
Omega-muted greyish taupe
Copperplate-greyish
Coquette-darker taupe
Concrete-darker taupe
Liner:
Blooz- a navy – could do with being slightly more purple – try MAC ‘Contrast’ eye shadow
Phone number- Charcoal
Smoulder- black
Still looking for a nice purple – MAC only has a brownish aubergine.
Lipstick: (Red-pinks and Pink-reds)- avoiding purple or blue pinks & reds
Revlon Cherries in the Snow (fabulous)
MAC Lustering (Sheer pink)
MAC Lickable (Bright pink)
MAC Speak Louder (Bright pink)
MAC Chatter box (Red-pink)
MAC Utter Fun (limited edition very Bright pink)
MAC Ruby Woo (Bright red)
MAC Russian Red (Softer bright red)
MAC Brave Red (yellowed red- not orange)
MAC Lady Bug (Sheer yellowed red)
In addition:
I find that instead of icy violet I prefer to use an icy pink shadow (such as MAC yoghurt or Pen n pink) as that flatters my skin tone- though I sometimes use an icy violet to go with the plums. I also suit Mulberry and plumy browns (that I borrow from Deep Winter) for a softer smoky eye- such as:
Plums: (slightly more purple)
MAC Shadowy lady
MAC Blackberry
Mulberries: (Slightly more pink)
MAC Signed Sealed or Deep Damson (Limited Editions)
MAC Sketch
On Blue tones:
I found (through expensive experimentation) that if I’m going to wear a purple shadow (for fun) that I really don’t suit blue-toned purples- the pink-type of purple suits me much, much better as it connects with the pink and warmer yellow tones in my skin. Bright winter is closer to Bright spring than it is to True Winter. I found that blue toned lippies are tolerated less well than pink and yellow toned ones.
For blush:
MAC Breezy (Deeper pink)
MAC Pink Swoon (light bright pink)
MAC Dollymix (Bright pink)
MAC Frankly Scarlet (Bright yellow red)- it’s really really lovely for snowwhite cheeks
Or MAC blush creame in posey
Thank you for the great article!
Would you say that Estee lauder stay Plumberry, swatched here:
http://www.revolutionbeauty.com/?p=1178
belongs to the true winter palette or to the bright winter one? I ask it because it clears my skin instantly, despite looking such an odd colour!
forgot to add that the photo showing the effect of “stay plumberry” is the second, not the first one!
Thank you
I’ve been waiting to read an article about Bright Winters (mostly because I suppose I am one). I haven’t been PCA’d, though. Nevertheless, I think that the colours would work for me. Even if I’m not a Bright Winter, I still love these.
I know that eye colour is irrelevant in Sci\ART analysis, but you often mention things like “it’s a Spring eye”. Mine are somewhat similar to the cliche clear eyes. There’s an image of a Winter eye in the “Wall Photos” section of your Facebook profile. The iris pattern look just like mine, although my colouring is different (dark blue around the iris, which is cool blue-grey with bright green flecks, no brown at all). Sorry for asking so many questions, but there are no Sci\ART analysts where I live. I’m a theoretical sort of person, too.
Can a cool winter wear the ‘freesia’ too? Would taupe and ‘freesia’ be good?
Wow…the difference between Bright winter and True winter was not as noticable until I put them side by side…I really see the difference now. Mostly lips/cheek color.
To all,
Thanks so much to anyone who contributed specific products. Believe me, readers thank you.
MN Freesia is beautiful for both True and Bright Winter.
Taupe – which taupe? You know me well, Jean. We might have 2 different colors in our heads. Can you find me a swatch/link? In general, yes it could work well. Generally like grey better on these 2 Seasons, but a grey, clean taupe could work.
Very right, Jean, they are different palettes. Also very hard to find makeup because the industry produces little of this clarity, coolness, and intensity. Many women have to compromise between the 2. So, they might wear the same lipstick but the rest of the palette will direct the overall look either to True or Bright.
Stay Plumberry could be True or one of Bright’s cooler choices. When I swatched it, it seemed a fair bit darker than the photo.
http://www.temptalia.com/chanel-taupe-gris-eyeshadow-review-photos-swatches-fall-2010
I had a makeup artist use this and a lt/icy grey with almost a icy blue/icy lavendar color to it…Freesia reminds me of the color with soft black eyeliner on it. I am still teetering on where I fall in the seasons.
Hope your holiday is going well,
@ Trish and Christine (or anyone else familiar with the MAC shades mentioned)
Would Pink Swoon and Dollymix be a bit too cool for a neutral season? They both look cool to my eyes (though Pink Swoon works on my warmish skin because it’s so sheer — but only in the summer when I have a bit of color). Fleur Power, recommended on A Greener Tea for a Bright Spring, is slightly warmer, but still bright and saturated.
Revlon’s Sugar Poppy was namechecked on the Facebook page. Got it, love it, but I can’t deal with the scent of old-school Revlon lipsticks. I prefer gloss anyway, and found a cheapie from Wet ‘n’ Wild called “Candy Apple” that’s pretty close. Revlon’s Strawberry Suede is good, too, maybe more bright spring than bright winter. (And no funky taste.)
I’m still not certain what season I am, so all this is relative. I’m confident that I’m a bright, just not sure which one. I think I’ll have a better idea when I color my hair a more neutral shade. I know haircolor is irrelevant, but when you haven’t seen yours for nearly a decade, it’s easy to forgot what your god-given coloring is.
Hi Kathy
I have both Pink swoon and Dollymix and I don’t find them too cool- compare Pink Swoon to Coygirl and you’ll see the cooler lilac tones in Coygirl. The main thing about the blush I use for my bright winter skin is that is clear and bright (but still natural)
My sister is Bright Spring and she really suits Fleur Power, more than me.
I was looking at Strawberry suede yesterday and I came to the conclusion that it would look better on a Cool Summer as it has the soft pink tones to it. I adore Revlon’s cherries in the snow and thier Matte eyeshadows are almost perfect dupes for MAC Matte2 collection (some of which are now discontinued):
Revlon Vintage Lace = MAC Blanc Type
Revlon Pink Innocence = MAC Pen N pink
Revlon Lucious Lime- MAC Sunnyspot
Revlon Venetian Blue= MAC Clarity (Discontinued)
Revlon Riviera Blue= MAC Prussian
Revlon Aubergine= MAC Fig
Revlon Rich Sable= MAC Handwritten
For reference I’ll decsribe the slight differences between myself and my sister
Skin- her skin shows a tiny bit more yellow and mine shows a tiny bit more pink
Eyes- almost identical in colour- a green, blusih gery with a yellow halo around the iris. Her eyes are lighter than mine though.
Lips: Her lips are naturally peachy red in tone where as mine are more pinky red- both quite pigmented.
Hair- We both have dark brown hair but she has definate auburn tones in her hair and some bright golden highlights in the summer where as my hair is more ashen in tone- my summer highlights go more grey.
To look at us though you would’nt notice the difference till it was pointed out. We often comment on each others clothes for exmple she had a deep teal cradigan on the other day and we both noticed that it was more my colour than her’s – she still suits teal but just a tad lighter. When I put on her cardi my skin sparkled where as the depth of colour drained her slightly. In a lighter shade her skin glows.. .. it’s really quite interesting.
Love the article and comments. I’m a bright winter and I like Revlon’s Fire and Ice lipstick and Nars Cactus Flower blusher. I also find the Dolly mix blush suits me very well.
I prefer creams to powder for eyeshadow. I use Clinique’s creams in lavendar, cream and grey colors. If anyone knows of other cream eyeshadows in Bright Winter colors, I would appreciate the names!
After reading this article, I tried a brown black eyeliner which I loved. It brings out my eyes and makes them dramatic looking and gives balance to the bright lipsticks. The other question I have is about purple eyeliner. I use an Almay purple amethyst eyeliner and I think it looks neutral on me rather than circus like. It may be because it’s a greyed down color, but I wondered if on a bright winter a color like purple would look more neutral than on another season.
Great fun reading the article and comments!
Christine,
What would you recommend a bright winter do about coloring her hair? Mine is a dark brown black. I’ve never colored my hair and it’s graying now. The color isn’t bad but it isn’t good either (certainly not glamorous!). What should I tell my hairstylist? How to explain the concept of neutral?
Thanks for any advice you have!
Denise,
Color it 2 shades lighter than the natural color is usually my best advice. The hair you had when you were 25. Gray works very well on Winters, because it’s inherently cool, stately, and dramatic, so consider whether you want to deal with roots and upkeep. If you do, as I do, then color it. Most colorists seem to say that hair color needs some warmth to cover gray, which is fine since you’re Neutral and can carry some warmth. Ask for the least amount of heat to cover gray, minimum red, as close to natural as possible but a bit lighter (seems a little softer on the complexion).
“Everyone’s eyes are amazing. Once we notice them, we all find it hard to stop looking. That’s why it’s so important to get rid of the distracting clutter. Calm down the skin, the hair, the over-makeup, and let your eyes leave an echo.”
I love you, Christine. When I look at eye colour (say when someone says, “These are my eyes, what season am I?”), I immediately think, “How can I make this eye look captivating? What is the most inspiring that this eye can look?”
I adore the way you worded this