Our Eye Album: Winter
July 24, 2011 by Christine Scaman
A very sincere tip of my hat to Color Me A Season founder Bernice Kentner who was first to deduce the eye colour and pattern association with Season. Her book, The Magnificent Eye, contains all the explanations you need to get started.
Many incredible Winter eyes.
Dark Winter
This colour appears mostly cool, not a lot of warmth in the eye. The petal shapes are undoubtedly Winter. The brow is light. The woman draped out most fantastically as a Dark Winter. One of the most amazing transformations I have seen.
Freckle colour is not useful for determining Season, but they are interesting. Below, the brown is netural (not orange), and as often happens, similar shades appear in the eye. The natural hair colour is dark cool brown with red glints in the sun. Notice the coolness of the skin – the magic of the Dark Winter, cool skin with warm effects in hair and eyes.
I put the eye below here because it feels like it belongs, though the woman has not had a PCA. There is darkness here in brow and hair, and a feeling of slight muting in the skin.
In the next photo, you see the Dark Autumn influence, the eye of the tiger. The determination in the straightness of the brow (look for it in Soft Summers too, or anywhere Autumn is found), the hint of orange-brown in the skin. This woman draped better as a Dark Winter.
Below, me.
Below, a Winter eye in that the line pattern begins at the edge of the pupil, the star around the pupil is sharply pointed, and distinct shapes are visible throughout the iris, especially between 2 and 7 o’clock. One could easily interpret the faint brown around the pupil and the apparent muting of the blue colour as Summer traits, an example of why we don’t do PCA from eye photos. I think that we see here is the presence of Winter’s grey throughout the iris. You can see the grey in True Winter eyes 2 and 6 below as well. The right grey in eyeliner and eyeshadow repeats these colours in the iris and therefore looks completely native to the face.
The eye below is seen often in Dark Winter. There is a greenish quality in the periphery that still sings of Autumn, as does the muted, orange heat clustered around the pupil. The horizontal bands in the iris were considered a Winter trait by Bernice Kentner, one she associated with the emotional worry so often seen in these intense personalities. At the outer corner where there is no eyeshadow, you can sense the strength of the colours in the skin.
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True Winter
Once you stop wondering what brand of mascara this woman uses, notice the blue-whiteness of the white of the eye.
Lots of geometry, lines, patterns, usually means Winter.
Remember how Summer had that well-defined line-free ring around the pupil? Notice that in Winter, that space has lines going right to the edge of the pupil and its edges are not as clear.
Wow. Ice princess.
Below, an eye I’ve tried to capture. In every shot, the brown seems to snap to black. I had to lighten this so you could see anything and it’s still not easy. Many Winter people have black in the eye that comes out in Winter’s blackened colours.
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Bright Winter
If you had to pick between yellow and orange in the skin, which would you choose? Note that this is a man’s eye. The pigmentation in men is often more intense than in women of the same Season.
A new Bright Winter, below. Intense concentration of pigment in the hair, high contrast with the eye colour, the promise of early sun in the iris and in the overall appearance.
And another. This woman must look simply striking in her colours, with the unexpected ability of what seems a gentle colouring to balance a palette that is anything but gentle.
The eye below is as interesting as it is beautiful. The iris has certain properties that could be seen in a Light Summer eye – a space around the pupil, the hint of light beaming out from around that space – but there is drama, intensity, and darkness that would make you take a closer look for Winter. At the 10 oclock position round the pupil in the center, you can see the line pattern beginning right at the margin with the black. At 3 oclock in the iris is a petal shaped formation in the blue that is often seen in Winter. The similarity between Bright Winter and Light Summer is reasonable – both begin with a pure cool Season and both integrate the same small portion of Spring.
The intensely beautiful colouring in the photo below features eye colours quite similar to the first Bright Winter eye. By comparison, this person appears to have cooler skin (that might just be the lighting, of course) but more black in the brows. The hair of the man in the top photo is the darkest, most saturated black brown you can imagine. In the woman below, the pigments in the hair have that same intensity.
The owner of this eye asked me how she might intensify her eye colouring with clothes when her eye colours don’t appear per se in her personal book of colours. I suggested this:
Your eyes appear as warmer browns and greens that would not be in your palette, it’s true. First thing to remember is that the exact pigments that make up our eyes are not what they appear to be – meaning that you probably have many of your palette greens in your eyes and when you wear them, you will see the connection with the eye colour as the eye colour intensifies.
You also have a lot of Spring’s yellow out in the iris, shining out beyond the dark orange center. Wearing all the yellows in your palette will find that same colour in the eyes and yellow will radiate out of your eyes as if they were lit from behind.
That center of clear warm orange-brown is not one you will wear directly because it will yellow your skin. That colour is composed of Winter’s red (so wear all your reds and red-oranges – the undertone in the RTYNC book) and Spring yellow.
Wearing complementary colours energizes a colour just as much as repeating the colour does – so your sugarplum purples (incredible on BW, complements to your eye’s many yellows), reds, and blues will almost electrify eye colour in a Bright Winter because saturation and clarity are so high.
Below, a beautiful Bright Winter eye. If the pigments were distilled to their single essences, I expect we’d see many icy lights and Winter’s grays. You can see the rim of yellow and the very crisply defined pattern, especially round the pupil. The skin contains yellow but also a significant amount of Winter red. The overall appearance of the eye and the person are not dark, they are more medium, like the lashes. As seen in many Winters (but not all), brows are often darker than eyes and lashes and quite contrasting with the skin.
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Use of Images
The images contained in this article are of private individuals, not celebrities. I consider the permission for me to use them as a privilege. It is my intention to protect these women’s privacy and generosity. If you use any of the photos without permission, I will seek legal counsel. I do not want to have to reduce the beauty and detail of the photographs with watermarks. Some of these are photographs of children’s eyes. Please don’t use them.
This is a learning site. Please do use my words with credit back to the web page you copied and pasted them from. If you mix up my meaning and get the message wrong, feel free to omit any reference back to me.
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26 Responses to “Our Eye Album: Winter”
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Well, I DO wonder what kind of mascara that is, they’re gorgeous lashes!
I’d never noticed the whites of the eye being so white they look blue, it’s a great little detail to notice.
Thank you so much for your wonderfull work!! I`ve spent hours with reading, always finding something new and interesting!
but I have fun.
I´m still just playing with colors, not really knowing my season
Now all these eyes seem so fantastic, I`ve been waiting for each new season.
I cannot find some really green eyes ( mine are green), and I`m wondering what you would say, I try to sent a picture…
These are really beautiful! It amazes me the variety of eye colors and patterns in each season, showing how the skin really is so important in the foundation of deciding what season each person falls into. I love how consistancy can be there, but that surprises will always exist. I never noticed before how cool skin almost feels like the existance of shadow. I really love how you described that Christine.
I have a quick question, so do green and blue green eyes usually fall into a specific category? I didn’t notice too many, although I may not have known what to look for, so of course I HAD to ask since that is what my eyes are. lol
Thanks Christine for the beautiful pictures and great blog!
I should correct that and say that you said the skin was greyer, not sunny. To my mind it transferred over as ‘the skin looks like you are standing in shade’. Funny how our brains do that aye?
It’s been great having articles even though you’re gone.
Looking forward to your return!
I really like how you showcased the diversity of eye color. Even True Winter has brown eye examples. Concerning BWs… wasn’t Jocelyn brown-eyed?
It’s been a terrific series of articles – there’s a spectrum of possibility, and hints and trends of colour, pattern, and clarity/mutedness are certainly there, but overall this reinforces the core message so well: all bets are off at presentation, and the only real clue is how your skin reacts in different colours, and the rest just … works.
And how often do we look so closely at eyes not our own, nor our intimates?
Melinda,
The Club Mantra : ANY Season, ANY eye colour, ANY hair colour. Blue and green can be in any of the 12, as can brown.
Ashley,
Joce is brown-eyed, but I never got an eye closeup. I think I need a camera upgrade, from the beyond-fantastic shots I’m being sent. I’ll add many more next week.
Nynd,
The advent of digital photography has made us see our world in entirely new ways – not that these photos weren’t available before, but now everyone can take them. I love the concept of seeing something you thought you knew in a new way. Introduces humility and gratitude and wonder into every idea. Keeps life light-hearted, dynamic, and kind – an undeniably strong combination. And I know you, of all people, get what I’m saying.
Thanks Christine for your response. I will remember that in the future. I love the mantra!
It reminds me of my friends seeing eye dog. He is a German Shepherd, but about a year ago his fur began turning white and has the most unusual markings. No one knows why, even the doctors, but there you have it. Everyone always asks what type of dog he is because of it, but color or not, he is still full bred German Shepherd. Okay, a funny analogy, but that is what it reminds me of. Just because it is different from what you are use to, doesn’t change what it is.
I’ve noticed nature has a way of doing that sometimes. Throwing in little suprises here and there. Keeping you on your toes and making life SO much more exciting!
Love reading the Blog and the comments. Everyone has such wonderful ways of describing things. I really find it fascinating!
Hi !
First, thank you for all your advice… i really love your site !
i have a question… I look like a winter but black make me look tired, like others too dark colors. I have the same eyes than in your example for the darker soft summers and i think i am a darker soft summer ! But do you think that darker soft summer have the same color palette than the others soft summers ? because dusty and pastels colors are not my favourite…
thank you for your attention
see u
Hi, Flora,
I was asked this Q recently about hair for SSu. I said,
I find most Soft Summers have hair like Kate Middleton’s. They are not light people and light highlights are almost always a mistake.
Everyone can wear every colour in their palette fairly equally. The only variable may be that the colour that repeats the eyes will be specially good. In every SSu I see, soft pine green is spectacular. Though some may prefer light or dark colours, I see them as being about equal regardless of hair colour. SSu can go quite dark, to pewter and charcoal.
Where I see darkness adjustments needed for all Seasons is in makeup, depending on complexion, comfort, and occasion.
But to your Q, if you’re SSu, then you can wear all the colours. If you really are not fond of dusty, it would sure place the SSu conclusion under doubt. SSu are not light people.
wow I never thought id see so many people with my eyes(lol the pattern and color). this is really great! I also really like your other articles about clear winter. I actually have alot of those facial features to. like Audrey and the male clear winter you draped. I’ve always had this feeling Clear winter might be me,but I’ve been doubting it due to celebrity exqmples like megan fox. id have to say your articles are convincing me. I’ve always worn saturated bright colors and avoided muted ones. My friends would try on my clothes and look like clowns and I never understood why. Black and pure white and great on me as well.
Christine i have a question. in the autumn eye album , particularly for dark autumn #3, you said you categorized her as dark autumn instead of dark winter because she didnt have the defined winter lines in her eye,but dark winter eye number 5 doesnt look like it has those defined winter lines either (imo) as a matter of fact those eyes look exactly like dark autum 3. and true winter number 3. if you could please explain why the difference to me id greatly appreaciate it
im sorry i meant dark autum number 2 not number 3. dark autum 2 and dark winter 5 and true winter 3 all look the same to me ***********
Thank you for this – I finally feel confirmed in my judgement of myself as a Dark Winter. I knew most of the palette looks right on me, but what you said about a cool skin with warm hair and eyes, and then this album, absolutely confirms it. the hazel eyes with the outer dark gray rim, blue gray to green, and then the yellow and brown in the center, that’s me.
I still can’t figure out why an olive skin is cool/Winter, and not warm. It so easily yellows with the wrong color. I can *SEE* that it is, but I don’t understand it. Is it just the intense degree of depth and contrast?
I’m not sure of the theoretical answer, Cat. Olive skin is greyish looking, almost sallow. It doesn’t give a feeling of warmth. It must have to do with all the red tones in this type of skin, would require green or black to bring it to grey/olive…the melanin in Winter eyes goes to black so perhaps it does in the skin as well? That yellowing with warm colour…that’s an illusion, ay, an effect of unharmonious colour causing this type of effect by simultaneous contrast. In right colour, the skin isn’t yellow at all.
Wow, thanks for getting back to me right away! This whole topic fascinates me and I can’t afford the books yet, but I knew there had to be an objective science to it as well as the subjective. So I’ve been studying the various types of melanin and the structure of skin, hair and eyes, as well as the science of color itself. I do know that for myself, my “dark golden brown” hair is actually a mix of hairs of just about every color that human hair comes in, from the occasional true black, dark brown, chestnut/auburn, light brown, golden blonde all the way through white – ie, I have black and brown eumelanin, AND red, yellow and orange pheomelanin. My brows are very dark, but my lashes start dark and go blond at the ends.
I never thought of the yellow being completely illusory. I do know in the right colors I look almost pale to ivory. and there’s so much yellow light around us all the time, isn’t there? I’ve grown ruddier as I’ve aged, getting a bit of rosacea, becoming more truly a Deep Winter with the hair whitening too. I used to be more of a True Winter, and probably a Summer as a child. but always LOTS of personal color, lots of contrast.
thanks for the feedback! Is there a good place to train to do this? I live in the SE United States.
Cat, My dad is (most likely) a textbook DW. His skin is olive with sort of a rose overtone. If I put my untanned forearm next to his, mine looks noticeably yellow while his looks gray. I need warmer colors to look not yellow, while he needs cooler ones.
(Re: the black in winter’s eyes. I’ve noticed that while my eyes are quite brown, they never really approach black. The darkest color in my eyes is a dark auburn actually. This is one of the reasons I have (hesitantly) ruled out winter for myself. I noticed this most when I’m wearing black — it’s much darker than anything on me.)
well, my mom is a textbook, classic winter, to the extent that she can wear the entire palette of true, dark AND bright, and my skin is the same tone as hers; but her hair is so dark it’s taken for black, although it’s mostly the darkest brown. She looks like the evil queen in disney’s snow white when she wears her own colors, and yet she’s not pale any more than I am. with my hair and eyes I used to wear Autumn colors all the time, but unless I wear them with black or white, I become invisible more than sallow. Let me put on anything yellow or the wrong green, and I instantly become a Martian with malaria. powder blues and other muted and gray colors, especially pinky taupes, make me look pasty. Straight grayscale grays look great. But i’ve never been able to wear magenta or cherry or fuschia from the Winter palettes, and now that I have the rosacea, I can’t wear true red anymore either, although deep reds are still good.
Not yet, Cat. Many are working on it. We hope that in early 2013, there will be training in the US, AU, and Canada. I’ll post it on this site.
I was wondering if you could help me determine where my eyes fit. Image was taken with cellphone so I am sure there is a lot of complexity missing. I have light yellow/golden undertone skin, and naturally medium brown hair athough my lashes and brows are black. https://en.gravatar.com/lexytastic#pic-1 I can pull off pretty much any color, though I do not like light blue-gray shades. I look best in coral blushes or baby doll pinks.
Lexy, I guess I’d think first about a Soft Season, whether Soft Summer or Soft Autumn. The picture is a little blurred as you say. And you know that eye colours and patterns are absolutely NOT diagnostic of Season, right?
I’ve been reading, (scanning mostly–a few times.) and I did pick up that skin color, hair color, and even face shape has a place in determining the season! I could add some pictures of myself if that would be helpful!
Lexy, I wish it could be so easy. The last thing I want to do is steer you wrong. You could send me a hundred pictures and I still wouldn’t know. You get surprised by skin reaction to drapes, and never more so than with Winters.
My eye pattern is the “Ice Princess”. Could I be bright winter?
I want to correct my email address. Thank tou
Sure, Betsy. You could be any of the Winters. I sometimes see Summers with a pattern that could be called Ice Princess too.