The Dark Spring Color Palette

What is a Dark Spring?

Dark Spring is the most intense of the three Spring subpalettes. Your undertone is warm and clear, like every Spring. What sets you apart is depth and contrast: your coloring can carry the strongest, most saturated warm colors there are.

It sits next to two neighbors. True Spring shares your warmth and brightness but is lighter. Dark Autumn shares your warmth and depth but is more muted and earthy. Dark Spring is vivid and rich: warm red, bright teal, deep coral and golden brown.

Common Dark Spring traits

These are patterns, not rules. Plenty of Dark Springs break one or two of them.

• Hair: medium to dark warm brown, chocolate or chestnut, sometimes near black with warm glints in the sun.
• Eyes: bright warm brown, clear hazel, topaz, bright green or turquoise, often with a noticeable sparkle.
• Skin: anything from light to deep, with a warm golden or peachy cast and a clear quality.
• The muted test: dusty colors like mauve and sage make you look tired.
• The brights test: warm red and bright teal look natural on you, not loud.

The Dark Spring palette

The six colors above are your core palette. Around them, your wider palette looks like this:

• Neutrals: chocolate, golden brown, warm navy, camel, cream and ivory.
• Accents: warm red, tomato red, bright teal, turquoise, deep coral, bright orange, warm green and golden yellow.
• Lights for layering: peach and warm aqua. Pair them with a richer color so they don't wash you out.

Colors a Dark Spring should avoid

Your colors are warm and vivid. The ones that work against you are dusty, cool or faded:

• Dusty, muted shades: mauve, sage, mushroom and grayed rose.
• Cool gray and blue-gray. Your neutrals are chocolate, camel and warm navy.
• Icy pastels: icy pink, icy blue and lavender.
• Head-to-toe black. Black works better on you than on other Springs, but chocolate or warm navy usually looks richer near the face.

Dark Spring clothes: building a wardrobe that works

Dark Spring is the palette for color lovers. Start here:

1. Pick three neutrals to build around, such as chocolate, warm navy and cream.
2. Add two or three accent colors for tops, knits and scarves, such as warm red, bright teal and deep coral.
3. Choose fabrics with life. Silk with a sheen, crisp cotton, leather and polished knits suit clear, vivid coloring.
4. Go bold with prints. Tropical prints, graphic patterns and color-blocking in warm colors all work.
5. Choose dark or crisp denim. Dark warm indigo and crisp cream or white jeans work better than faded washes.

Dark Spring makeup

Aim for warm, clear and confident. A bright warm lip is your easiest win.

• Lips: warm red, tomato red, deep coral and bright coral.
• Cheeks: coral, warm apricot and soft bronze.
• Eyes: bronze, gold, copper and chocolate. Try a teal or chocolate liner.
• Brows: warm medium or dark brown.

Jewelry, metals and hair color

Metals: polished yellow gold, brass and rose gold. Turquoise, coral, citrine and tortoiseshell suit the palette.

Hair color: rich chocolate, chestnut, auburn-brown and warm caramel highlights tend to work. Ash tones and blue-black can look flat against warm, clear skin. A colorist can tell you what works for your hair.

Dark Spring vs. Dark Autumn

Both palettes are warm and deep, so they're easy to mix up. The difference is chroma: Dark Spring is clear and bright, while Dark Autumn is earthier and more muted. Try these side-by-side tests in daylight, with no makeup on:

• Warm red vs. brick. If a clear warm red looks best, lean Dark Spring. If brick wins, lean Dark Autumn.
• Bright teal vs. pine. If bright teal wakes up your face, lean Dark Spring.
• Polished gold vs. antique gold. If high-shine gold looks better than brushed, lean Dark Spring.

If the boldest colors feel like a lot and coral and aqua feel right, look at True Spring. Still stuck? That's normal. It's exactly what the free quiz and the photo analysis are built to sort out.

Dark Spring after 40

Your clear, warm undertone is permanent. As hair silvers, contrast may soften, and some Dark Springs find the lighter end of Spring, like coral, peach and warm aqua, looks easier near the face, with the deepest reds and teals moving to a bag or a shoe. Read more in Does your color season change with age?