Summer family, cool and soft

Cool Summer (true summer) color palette

Blue-based, medium depth, quietly sure of itself.

Updated October 2026 · By the Hue & Shape team

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Cool summer, also sold as true summer, is the season where the summer qualities are at full strength: a clearly cool undertone, medium depth and colors that are soft without being dusty. Skin often flushes pink or has a rosy, bluish cast. Hair is ash blonde, ash brown or a cool medium brunette, and eyes are blue, gray-blue, cool green or a soft brown without amber.

Its palette is built on blue. Cornflower, sea blue, wisteria, berry and slate all share a blue or violet base, and they sit at a medium value, never icy pale and never close to black. Cool summer can take more color than soft summer, so a rosewood or a clean berry looks fresh rather than strong, but the colors still need a little softness to match skin that is not high contrast.

Palette at a glance

Summer family · Silver, white gold and pewter.

Also called true summer.

The palette

Cool Summer color palette: 36 colors with hex codes

36 colors in six groups. Hex codes are for screens; fabric and print will vary.

Neutrals

Cloud#ECEEF2
Pewter#9AA0A3
Blue Gray#7A8796
Slate#5C6B7D
Cool Charcoal#4A5058
Soft Navy#2F3D55

Lights

Ice Blue#C8D8EA
Pale Orchid#D8C6DC
Shell Rose#ECC8D0
Mist Green#CFE0D8
Lavender#C3B9E0
Silver Sky#D5DDE6

Mid-tones

Cornflower#7D9BD1
Sea Blue#5E8FA8
Wisteria#9B8FC4
Sage#A8B8A6
Soft Teal#6FA8A2
Mauve#B18FB0

Deeps

Plum Gray#7C6B80
Berry#8E4A63
Deep Teal#3F6F73
Spruce Blue#3E5A70
Grape#5D4A73
Denim#4D6A90

Accents

Hydrangea Blue#6F8FD6
Orchid#A77BB5
Jade#5F9E8F
Lagoon#4F97AD
Periwinkle Blue#8A96D8
Iris#7D6FB3

Reds and pinks

Dusty Rose#D49AA5
Rosewood#A75D6C
Raspberry#B5486F
Cool Pink#E09AB0
Watermelon Rose#D46A85
Claret Rose#9C3D5A

On the map

Where cool summer sits among the 12 seasons

Cool summer sits at minus 0.9 on the warmth axis, the second coolest point on the whole map after cool winter at minus 0.95. Depth is 0.45 and clarity 0.58, which puts it near the middle on both. Its nearest neighbor by a wide margin is cool winter, which shares the temperature but is deeper and much clearer. Light summer comes next, milder in coolness and paler, followed by deep winter and then soft summer, the most muted of the three. That geometry explains the two common mix-ups: cool summer with cool winter on contrast, and cool summer with soft summer on how vivid the colors can be.

Plotted from the anchors the free color test matches against. Larger dots are clearer, brighter seasons; smaller dots are softer. How the anchors are used

Recognize it

How to tell if you are a cool summer

Your skin pinks easily, and in daylight it looks rosy or slightly blue rather than golden.
Silver and white gold look brighter on you than yellow gold, which can make the skin look sallow.
Natural hair is ash: no red or gold glints in sunlight, even if it is light.
You have some contrast between hair and skin, but not the stark dark-and-light of a winter.
Blue-based reds such as raspberry look natural on your lips, and orange-reds look out of place.
Navy and slate flatter you more than black, which looks heavy at the neckline.

A three-step drape check at home

1
In front of a window, with bare skin and hair tied back, hold Cornflower under your chin and then a tangerine orange. Cool summer skin looks even and clear in the cornflower and blotchy or flushed in the orange.
2
Now test clarity. Try Raspberry and then a dusty, grayed berry. If the raspberry looks lively but not loud, and the dusty one makes you look a little tired, you are on the clear side of the summer family.
3
Last, compare Soft Navy with black. A cool summer looks rested in the navy and slightly hollow-eyed in black, while a cool winter would look sharper and more awake in the black.

Not sure? The free test reads your season from a photo and seven questions, and the photo never leaves your device.

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Side by side

True summer vs soft summer

Both seasons are cool and both sit around medium depth, so the question is how much color your face can take. True summer coloring has a little more definition, often clearer blue or gray-blue eyes and a rosier skin, and it looks best when each color is clean enough to read as blue, rose or violet at a glance.

Soft summer needs those colors with gray mixed in. A cornflower that looks fresh on a cool summer can look slightly harsh on a soft summer, and the muted sage and mushroom that suit soft summer can make a cool summer look gray around the mouth. People who sit near the line often wear both palettes well, but one set will make the skin look smoother.

The Soft Summer palette

Cool Summer

Cornflower #7d9bd1
Berry #8e4a63
Sea Blue #5e8fa8
Raspberry #b5486f
Soft Navy #2f3d55
Cloud #eceef2

Cornflower, Berry, Sea Blue, Raspberry, Soft Navy, Cloud

Soft Summer

Eucalyptus #8aa79b
Wedgwood #6f8ba3
Dusty Raspberry #9e7480
Heather #9e94a6
Charcoal Blue #3f4a52
Gray Lilac #b4a8bc

Eucalyptus, Wedgwood, Dusty Raspberry, Heather, Charcoal Blue, Gray Lilac

The test that separates them

Hold clean Cornflower and a misty gray-blue under your chin. If the cornflower looks like it belongs and the gray-blue makes you look tired, you are a true summer. If the cornflower stands out more than your eyes do, soft summer is the better fit.

Side by side

Cool summer vs cool winter

These are the two coolest seasons and the closest pair on the map. Cool winter adds depth and much more clarity: its palette has true white, black, sapphire and icy pastels, and it relies on sharp contrast between them. Cool summer works in the softer middle values, where the colors are related to each other rather than set against each other.

Hair and contrast usually decide it. Cool winters tend to have dark hair against lighter skin, or very bright eyes, so the face itself carries strong contrast. A cool summer with ash brown hair and blue-gray eyes looks overpowered by black and white together but comfortable in slate and cloud.

The Cool Winter palette

Cool Summer

Dusty Rose #d49aa5
Wisteria #9b8fc4
Slate #5c6b7d
Soft Teal #6fa8a2
Plum Gray #7c6b80
Ice Blue #c8d8ea

Dusty Rose, Wisteria, Slate, Soft Teal, Plum Gray, Ice Blue

Cool Winter

True Red #c8102e
Royal Blue #1f4fbf
Magenta #c2187a
Pure White #ffffff
Charcoal #2f3237
Emerald #0f7a5a

True Red, Royal Blue, Magenta, Pure White, Charcoal, Emerald

The test that separates them

Wear pure black and optic white together near the face, then Slate with Cloud. If the black and white look striking and your features hold their own, choose cool winter. If your face fades behind them and the slate pairing looks natural, choose cool summer.

Leave out

Cool Summer colors to avoid

Each one with the reason it fights this coloring and a color from the palette that does the same job.

Gold
Warm yellow sits at the opposite end of the wheel from a blue-based skin and makes it look sallow.
Wear instead: Pewter
Orange
The strongest warm hue, and the most likely to bring out pink or red patches in cool skin.
Wear instead: Watermelon Rose
Warm Beige
Next to cool coloring, a yellow beige reads as faded rather than neutral.
Wear instead: Cloud
Olive
A green with a warm, yellow base grays the complexion and dulls blue eyes.
Wear instead: Sage
Rust
Orange-brown warmth plus a muddy finish makes rosy skin look ruddy.
Wear instead: Rosewood
Camel
A classic coat color that turns cool skin slightly yellow at the collar.
Wear instead: Blue Gray
Chartreuse
Acid yellow-green is both warm and very bright, and it casts a green tone onto pink skin.
Wear instead: Jade
Jet Black
Deeper than anything in the coloring, so it shadows the eyes and hardens the jaw.
Wear instead: Soft Navy

Wearing it

Cool Summer outfits: six combinations

Work
Soft Navy, Ice Blue, Pewter
A soft navy suit over an ice blue shirt; pewter in shoes or a belt keeps the outfit to three related cool values.
Evening
Berry, Cloud, Plum Gray
One berry dress or jacket as the focus, with cloud at the neckline and plum gray below.
Casual
Denim, Dusty Rose, Cloud
Mid-blue denim, a dusty rose knit and cloud sneakers: the rose sits closest to the face.
Summer
Lagoon, Silver Sky, Mist Green
A lagoon top with silver sky trousers reads cool in strong sun; mist green works as a light layer.
Winter
Spruce Blue, Wisteria, Slate
A spruce blue coat with a wisteria scarf gives the outfit its color, and slate carries the rest.
Accessories
Slate, Raspberry, Pewter
Keep bags and shoes in slate or pewter, and use raspberry in one small item such as a scarf or lip.

Soft contrast, not no contrast

A cool summer outfit needs a light and a medium: cloud and slate, dusty rose and sea blue. All one value looks flat; all one strong color looks like a costume.

Blue is the neutral

Navy, slate and sea blue do the job a black wardrobe does for a winter. Build the basics there.

Keep warm accents away from the face

A tan leather bag is fine at hip level. A tan collar next to the face is not.

Hair

Cool Summer hair color

Shades that suit

Ash brown. The core cool summer shade. Ask for a cool or ash toner to keep it from turning brassy between visits.
Cool medium brunette. Adds depth for those who want more contrast while staying within the summer range.
Ash or beige blonde. Suits lighter cool summers. Keep highlights fine and close to the base color.
Soft burgundy brown. A brown with a cool red-violet reflection works with rosy skin and berry lipsticks.
Silver and salt and pepper. Cool gray hair sits naturally with the blue-based palette and the silver jewelry it favors.

Shades that fight it

Golden or honey blonde. Yellow tones near the face make pink skin look ruddy rather than fresh.
Copper and auburn. Orange-red hair puts a warm color right against cool skin and fights the palette.
Jet black. Adds winter contrast that the rest of the coloring does not support.

Makeup

Cool Summer makeup: base, cheek, eyes and lips

Base and foundation

Choose a cool or neutral-cool base, usually marked C, P or N depending on the range, and avoid shades described as golden or yellow. Swatch two or three stripes along the jaw and look in daylight after the formula settles. If pinkness is strong, a neutral base evens it better than a very pink one.

Cheek

Rose and soft berry blush placed on the apples and blended back. Peach and bronze blush read as orange on this skin, and heavy bronzer takes the face out of the palette.

Cool rose blush #D0879A
Soft berry blush #B56A82

Eyes

Mauve, slate, plum gray and soft navy suit blue and gray eyes. A navy or plum liner looks more polished here than black, and fine silvery shimmer works better than gold.

Mauve shadow #A98AA6
Slate shadow #5F6C7E
Navy liner #2D3A58

Lips

Rose, raspberry, berry and a blue-based red are all in range. Coral, orange-red and brown nudes pull warm and make teeth look more yellow.

Raspberry #B3466C
Cool rose #C77A8B
Blue red #A8263F

The base

Metals, jewelry and wardrobe neutrals

Silver, white gold and pewter. Rose gold works if it is a true pink rather than a copper.

Silver, white gold, platinum and pewter are the strongest metals for a true summer, in polished or brushed finishes. Rose gold works when it leans pink; a coppery rose gold reads warm.

Stones in the palette include aquamarine, amethyst, blue topaz, rose quartz and white or gray pearls. A string of creamy yellow pearls is less flattering than a white or silvery one.

Cloud
Pewter
Blue Gray
Slate
Cool Charcoal
Soft Navy

Every depth

Cool Summer on fair, medium and deep skin

Fair skin

Fair cool summers lean on the lights and mid-tones: ice blue, shell rose, cornflower and wisteria. Soft navy and slate replace black as the darkest base. Berry and claret rose work as accents but can dominate in large amounts.

Medium skin

Medium skin carries the full range easily. The accents shine here: lagoon, jade, hydrangea blue and raspberry give color without needing contrast from elsewhere in the outfit.

Deep skin

A cool summer with deep skin wears the deeps and accents best: spruce blue, grape, deep teal, berry and iris. The palest lights such as silver sky can look ashy at the face, so pair them with a deeper color at the neckline.

Questions

Cool Summer questions

Is true summer the same as cool summer?

Yes. Some systems call it true summer, others cool summer. Both names describe the coolest summer: blue-based, medium in depth, soft but not dusty.

What separates cool summer from soft summer?

Saturation. A cool summer looks fresh in clear cornflower and berry; a soft summer needs those colors grayed down. Try a clean berry and a dusty one to see which your face prefers.

Is cool summer the same as cool winter?

No. They share the coolest undertone, but cool winter is deeper and much clearer and wears black, white and jewel tones. Cool summer looks best in softer middle values.

Can a cool summer wear red?

Yes, a blue-red, raspberry or berry red. Tomato, brick and orange-reds make cool skin look flushed.

Can a cool summer wear black?

It is wearable below the waist or in a print. Near the face, soft navy, cool charcoal and slate give depth without shadowing the eyes.

Which hair colors suit a true summer?

Ash brown, cool brunette, beige or ash blonde, soft burgundy brown and natural silver. Avoid golden blonde, copper and jet black.

Is gray a good neutral for cool summer?

Yes, as long as it is a blue or silver gray such as pewter, blue gray or slate. A warm, khaki-leaning gray looks muddy on this coloring.

How we measure. The seasons on this site come from fixed positions for warmth, depth and clarity, and the free test matches you to the nearest one. Read the method