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Spring family, light and warm

Light Spring color palette

Delicate warmth, like the first week of April.

· By the Hue & Shape team

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Light spring is the palest corner of the warm side of the wheel. Skin is fair to light with a peach, golden or ivory cast, hair is usually blonde, strawberry blonde or light golden brown, and the eyes are light: aqua, clear blue, green or a soft hazel. The features sit close together in value, so the face reads gentle rather than striking.

What the palette has to protect is that lightness. Every color here is warm or warm-leaning, and most of them are high in value: peach, buttercup, mint, aqua. Even the darkest picks stop at warm cocoa and a soft navy rather than black, because a very dark color near a light spring face becomes the first thing anyone sees.

The coloring also needs a little clarity. Chalky pastels with gray mixed in make this skin look tired, so the palette uses clean, slightly luminous versions of each hue: a peach that glows rather than a dusty apricot, an aqua with a hint of green rather than a gray-blue.

Palette at a glance

Spring family · Gold, rose gold and pale bronze.

The palette

Light Spring color palette: 36 colors with hex codes

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

Neutrals

  • Warm Ivory#FBF1DF
  • Shell#F6E8D6
  • Oat#E6D3B8
  • Golden Beige#DCC29C
  • Light Camel#D8B48C
  • Soft Navy#3C4A63

Lights

  • Peach Blossom#FFD9C7
  • Buttercup#F7DFA0
  • Vanilla#FBEAB8
  • Fresh Mint#CFE6CF
  • Aqua Mist#A8DCD4
  • Light Periwinkle#C4CDEE

Mid-tones

  • Apricot Cream#F7C9A3
  • Golden Straw#E8CF95
  • Spring Leaf#B9D48A
  • Cornflower#9DB8E0
  • Soft Salmon#F2B39A
  • Light Turquoise#7FCFC4

Deeps

  • Toffee#B88A5E
  • Golden Brown#A8804F
  • Warm Cocoa#94705A
  • Fern#7EA55A
  • Clear Teal#4AA6A0
  • Periwinkle Blue#7B90CC

Accents

  • Clear Coral#F6876B
  • Daffodil#F6D457
  • Apple Green#9CCF5E
  • Warm Lilac#C8AEE0
  • Bright Aqua#5FCFC2
  • Melon#F9A86F

Reds and pinks

  • Coral Pink#F5A3A0
  • Blush Coral#F9C2B0
  • Rose Peach#F7B2A3
  • Geranium Pink#F58BA0
  • Watermelon#F2777A
  • Light Tomato#EE6B55

On the map

Where light spring sits among the 12 seasons

On the map light spring sits high and right of center: warmth 0.55 on a scale that runs from -1 (cool) to 1 (warm), depth 0.18, which makes it the lightest anchor on the warm side, and clarity 0.62, a medium-sized dot. Its nearest anchor is bright spring, which shares almost the same warmth but sits deeper and much clearer. Soft autumn and warm spring come next. Light summer lies at nearly the same depth across the center line, so the two light seasons mirror each other, and the main thing that separates them is temperature.

The twelve color seasons by warmth, depth and clarityLight Spring: warmth 0.55, depth 0.18, clarity 0.62. Warm Spring: warmth 0.95, depth 0.45, clarity 0.72. Bright Spring: warmth 0.5, depth 0.5, clarity 1. Light Summer: warmth -0.45, depth 0.22, clarity 0.5. Cool Summer: warmth -0.9, depth 0.45, clarity 0.58. Soft Summer: warmth -0.35, depth 0.5, clarity 0.22. Soft Autumn: warmth 0.4, depth 0.55, clarity 0.18. Warm Autumn: warmth 0.95, depth 0.62, clarity 0.45. Deep Autumn: warmth 0.6, depth 0.9, clarity 0.5. Deep Winter: warmth -0.5, depth 0.9, clarity 0.72. Cool Winter: warmth -0.95, depth 0.6, clarity 0.88. Bright Winter: warmth -0.35, depth 0.52, clarity 1CoolWarmWarmthLightDeepLight SpringWarm SpringLight Summer
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 light spring

  • Your natural hair is blonde, strawberry blonde or light golden brown, often lighter at the ends after a summer outdoors.
  • Your eyes are light and fairly clear: aqua, blue, green, or a hazel with gold flecks.
  • Your skin is fair to light with a peach or ivory cast, and it tends to freckle or turn golden rather than tan deeply.
  • Gold jewelry looks like part of your skin, while heavy silver looks like it is sitting on top of it.
  • Black near your face makes your features look smaller and your skin look paler.
  • Compliments arrive when you wear peach, light aqua, warm ivory or a soft coral.

A three-step drape check at home

  1. 1

    Stand facing a window in daylight with a bare face. Hold Peach Blossom under your chin, then a dusty rose. On a light spring the peach brings color into the cheeks, while the rose leaves the skin looking faintly gray.

  2. 2

    Repeat with Warm Ivory against a sheet of bright white printer paper. Warm ivory should look as though it belongs to your skin; the paper can look harsh and slightly blue next to it.

  3. 3

    Last, compare Soft Navy with black. If the black takes over your whole face and the soft navy does not, the light, warm side is your home. If both look fine, read the light summer and bright spring pages as well.

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

Find my season

Side by side

Light spring vs light summer

These two are the pair people confuse most often. Both have light hair, light eyes and fair to light skin, and both look best in soft, high-value colors. The difference is temperature, and it can be subtle enough that a phone photo will not settle it.

Light spring colors have a yellow base: peach, buttercup, aqua with a whisper of green. Light summer colors have a blue or pink base: powder blue, lavender, soft rose. Laid side by side, the spring strip looks like early morning sun and the summer strip looks like a bright overcast afternoon.

Hair is a clue, not a verdict. Golden or strawberry blonde leans spring, and so do natural highlights that turn brassy in the sun. Ash or mousy blonde that never warms up leans summer.

The Light Summer palette
Light Spring
  • Peach Blossom #ffd9c7
  • Buttercup #f7dfa0
  • Aqua Mist #a8dcd4
  • Coral Pink #f5a3a0
  • Warm Ivory #fbf1df
  • Spring Leaf #b9d48a

Peach Blossom, Buttercup, Aqua Mist, Coral Pink, Warm Ivory, Spring Leaf

Light Summer
  • Powder Blue #b7cde8
  • Rose Quartz #efc9d2
  • Lavender Mist #cdc3e6
  • Soft Mint #c4e3d8
  • Pearl Gray #dfe1e6
  • Raspberry Sorbet #e3a6b6

Powder Blue, Rose Quartz, Lavender Mist, Soft Mint, Pearl Gray, Raspberry Sorbet

The test that separates them

Hold a gold chain and then a silver chain against your jaw in daylight. If gold makes the skin look clearer and warmer, you are light spring. If silver does that and gold makes the skin look yellow, the light summer palette is the better match.

Side by side

Light spring vs warm spring (true spring)

Warm spring is the same golden family turned up. Its hair runs to copper, golden brown and deeper blonde, and its colors are fuller: marigold, persimmon, turquoise. Light spring can borrow from that palette only in the lighter versions of each hue.

What splits them is depth rather than warmth. Both seasons glow in gold, but a light spring in full-strength marigold looks washed out because the color is heavier than the face. A warm spring in pale peach can look unfinished for the opposite reason.

The Warm Spring palette
Light Spring
  • Apricot Cream #f7c9a3
  • Golden Straw #e8cf95
  • Light Camel #d8b48c
  • Fresh Mint #cfe6cf
  • Soft Salmon #f2b39a
  • Cornflower #9db8e0

Apricot Cream, Golden Straw, Light Camel, Fresh Mint, Soft Salmon, Cornflower

Warm Spring
  • Golden Yellow #f3c74f
  • Apricot #f9c08c
  • Aqua Green #5cbfa8
  • Melon #f39a6c
  • Paprika #c2542d
  • Golden Tan #d1a160

Golden Yellow, Apricot, Aqua Green, Melon, Paprika, Golden Tan

The test that separates them

Try a full marigold and then Buttercup near your face. If buttercup looks right and marigold looks loud, you are light spring. If the marigold looks right and buttercup barely registers, check warm spring.

Leave out

Light Spring colors to avoid

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

  • Black

    The heaviest color there is sits far below the value of a light spring face, so it pulls the eye to the clothes.

    Wear instead: Soft Navy

  • Burgundy

    Deep wine reds suit a winter's depth and leave this skin looking pale and slightly flushed by contrast.

    Wear instead: Light Tomato

  • Icy Gray

    A blue-gray neutral turns fair warm skin ashen, especially by a window.

    Wear instead: Oat

  • Deep Plum

    Too dark and too cool at once; it hides the delicacy that the whole palette is built around.

    Wear instead: Warm Lilac

  • Mustard

    The right temperature but the wrong depth and too much brown, which makes golden skin look sallow.

    Wear instead: Daffodil

  • Olive Drab

    A dark, grayed green belongs to soft and deep autumns and flattens light spring coloring.

    Wear instead: Fern

  • Fuchsia

    Blue-based and intense; it overwhelms low-contrast features and makes peachy skin look yellow beside it.

    Wear instead: Geranium Pink

  • Charcoal

    A dark, cool neutral with no warmth in it, so it reads as a shadow under the chin.

    Wear instead: Warm Cocoa

Wearing it

Light Spring outfits: six combinations

  • Work

    Soft Navy, Warm Ivory, Light Camel

    Soft navy trousers or a skirt, a warm ivory shirt at the face and a camel jacket: keep the darkest piece below the waist.

  • Evening

    Clear Coral, Golden Straw

    A coral dress with straw-gold accessories; one clear color carries the whole look and the gold stops it reading casual.

  • Casual

    Aqua Mist, Oat

    An aqua knit with oat chinos or pale denim, which keeps the whole outfit in the light range.

  • Summer

    Peach Blossom, Fresh Mint, Warm Ivory

    Peach top, ivory shorts, a mint bag: three pastels hold together because all three share a yellow base.

  • Winter

    Light Camel, Warm Cocoa, Buttercup

    A camel coat over a cocoa sweater, with a buttercup scarf to put light back near the face.

  • Accessories

    Golden Straw, Coral Pink

    Straw bags, tan leather and coral enamel are easier than black leather, which looks heavy at the end of an arm.

Keep the value light

Build outfits from the top half of the palette: peach, buttercup, aqua, warm ivory. A dark bottom half is fine, but the color nearest your face should stay light.

Two colors, not five

A light spring outfit reads best with one warm pastel and one neutral. Adding a third strong color flattens the face because the palette has little contrast of its own.

Prints with space

Choose prints with plenty of cream or peach between the motifs. Dense, dark prints undo the lightness the palette is built on.

Hair

Light Spring hair color

Shades that suit

  • Golden blonde. Keeps hair and skin in the same warm, light key, which is the whole effect this season depends on.
  • Honey blonde. A touch deeper than golden, useful if your natural shade is light brown and you want warmth without a big change.
  • Strawberry blonde. The pink-gold mix echoes peach and coral in the palette.
  • Light golden brown. Adds a little depth for light springs who look washed out with very pale hair.
  • Caramel highlights on light brown. Soft, fine highlights lift the face without the stripe effect of heavy foils.

Shades that fight it

  • Ash or platinum blonde. Cool, silvery blonde removes the gold the skin needs and can make it look gray.
  • Jet black or blue-black. Creates far more contrast than the face has, so the hair dominates and the skin looks pale.
  • Violet or burgundy red. A cool, deep red sits outside the palette and turns peachy skin ruddy next to it.

Makeup

Light Spring makeup: base, cheek, eyes and lips

Base and foundation

Look for shades described as warm, golden or peach, often coded W or Y, in the lightest third of a range. Swatch three neighboring shades on the jaw rather than the wrist and judge them by a window after ten minutes, since many formulas darken a little as they oxidize. The right one disappears; a pink-coded shade sits on top as a rosy film.

Cheek

Peach and warm rose blush, placed high and blended toward the temple. A cream or satin formula matches the slightly luminous finish of this skin better than a flat, heavy powder.

  • Peach blush #F6B097
  • Warm rose blush #EB9C8F

Eyes

Champagne, warm taupe and soft brown on the lid, with a brown or soft navy liner instead of black. A wash of aqua or mint along the lower lashes brightens light eyes without looking like a costume.

  • Champagne #ECD3A8
  • Warm taupe #A88A72
  • Soft brown liner #6E4F3C

Lips

Coral, peach pink and a sheer warm red. Deep berry and blue-red both sit too far from the skin and make the mouth the only thing anyone sees.

  • Coral #EE7E6C
  • Peach pink #F19A8C
  • Sheer poppy #E2604F

The base

Metals, jewelry and wardrobe neutrals

Gold, rose gold and pale bronze. Silver is wearable if it is bright and thin rather than heavy.

Yellow gold, rose gold and pale bronze, in fine or medium weights. Delicate chains, small hoops and thin bangles echo the low contrast of the face; chunky, dark metal pieces compete with it.

Pearls look best in cream or champagne rather than bright white. Warm, light stones such as citrine, peridot, aquamarine and coral sit naturally in the palette. Silver can work when it is bright and fine, for example a thin chain layered with gold.

  • Warm Ivory
  • Shell
  • Oat
  • Golden Beige
  • Light Camel
  • Soft Navy

Every depth

Light Spring on fair, medium and deep skin

Fair skin

On very fair skin the lights and the reds and pinks do most of the work. Peach Blossom, Coral Pink and Aqua Mist read as color without overpowering, and the deeps group is best kept for trousers, shoes and bags.

Medium skin

A light spring with light-medium skin and golden or light brown hair can bring more of the mid-tones up to the face, such as Clear Coral, Cornflower and Spring Leaf. Warm Cocoa and Golden Brown start to work as tops rather than only as accents.

Deep skin

Deep skin reads light spring when the hair and eyes are light and the overall contrast is low and warm. In that case the mid-tones and accents carry outfits, Melon and Bright Aqua look fresh rather than faint, and the very palest lights work better as accessories than as a full top.

Questions

Light Spring questions

How do I know I am a light spring and not a light summer?

Compare gold and silver, then peach and powder pink, in daylight. Light springs look clearer in gold and peach; light summers look clearer in silver and cool pink. Hair that warms to gold in the sun is another spring sign.

Can a light spring wear black?

Away from the face, yes: shoes, a belt, trousers. Near the face, Soft Navy, Warm Cocoa or Light Camel give the same polish without the heaviness.

Is white in the light spring palette?

Warm ivory and shell are, optic white is not. A creamy white has the same brightness without the blue cast that grays fair, warm skin.

What is the difference between light spring and bright spring?

Contrast. Bright springs usually have darker hair against light skin and vivid eyes, and they need saturated color. Light springs have low contrast and look best in lighter, softer versions of the same warm hues.

Can a light spring wear gray?

Cool gray is hard. A warm, light gray with a beige cast can work, but oat, shell and golden beige do the same job more kindly.

Do light springs look good in pastels?

Yes, warm and clear ones: peach, buttercup, mint and aqua. Cool, dusty pastels such as lavender gray or ash pink are the ones to skip.

What colors should a light spring avoid?

Black, burgundy, deep plum, charcoal and icy gray near the face, plus muted earth tones like mustard and olive drab. Each has a lighter or clearer swap in the palette.

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

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