Soft Summer color palette
Soft Summer is a cool-neutral, muted color season. The colors that suit it are dusty and greyed rather than bright: dusty rose, mauve, slate blue, soft teal, sage-grey and soft navy. Soft Summers usually look best in medium-depth, low-contrast outfits and look harsh in black, orange or pure white.
Best colors for Soft Summer
- #C69AA0Dusty rose
- #A9858FMauve
- #6E8098Slate blue
- #6E9493Soft teal
- #8DA2B3Grey blue
- #8E9C8CSage grey
- #A65B71Muted raspberry
- #A9A2BELavender grey
- #8E6E6ERose brown
- #44546ESoft navy
Neutrals to build on
- #EDEAE4Soft white
- #C8B3A9Rose beige
- #9A9089Cool taupe
- #8A8D91Pewter
- #5A6068Blue charcoal
Colors Soft Summer should avoid
- #111111Black
- #F26B1DBright orange
- #D4A017Mustard
- #FFFFFFStark white
- #FF2E93Neon pink
Are you a Soft Summer?
Soft Summer is cool-neutral, muted and medium. You're likely one if most of these are true:
- Your hair is ash blonde, ash brown or mousy brown, without golden or red tones.
- Your eyes are grey-blue, grey-green, soft hazel or a muted brown.
- Your skin has a neutral to cool undertone and may flush pink.
- There's low to medium contrast between your hair, eyes and skin.
- Black looks heavy on you, and bright colors seem to wear you instead of the other way round.
- Black
- Pure black is usually too heavy for Soft Summer. Blue charcoal, soft navy or pewter give the same polish without draining your face.
- White
- Stark white is too bright. Soft white or a light rose beige is kinder.
- Jewelry and metals
- Silver, pewter, white gold and soft rose gold.
What to wear as a Soft Summer
Headshots
For a LinkedIn headshot, try a soft navy or blue-charcoal blazer over a dusty rose, grey-blue or soft white top. A cool grey or pale blue-grey backdrop with diffused, overcast-style light keeps the whole frame in your low-contrast range.
Dating photos
For dating photos, a sage-grey knit, a mauve shirt or a soft teal dress in open shade or overcast light looks relaxed and flattering. Avoid harsh midday sun and high-contrast black-and-white outfits.
Christmas photos
For Christmas photos, swap bright red for muted raspberry or rose brown, and pair it with pewter, silver and soft white instead of gold and black.
Sample photos are AI-generated by PixelGlow with Summer styling, which Soft Summer shoots use.
Soft Summer, answered
Dusty, cool-leaning colors of medium depth: dusty rose, mauve, slate blue, soft teal, sage grey, lavender grey and soft navy.
Very bright, very warm or very dark colors: black, orange, mustard, neon pink and stark white.
It tends to look heavy. Blue charcoal or soft navy are closer to your depth and read just as professional.
Both are muted. Soft Summer leans cool (greyed blues, roses, mauves) while Soft Autumn leans warm (sage, camel, terracotta). If gold jewelry looks better on you than silver, you're more likely Soft Autumn.
Compare how your face looks in dusty rose and slate blue versus orange and black in daylight, or upload one selfie to PixelGlow's free color analysis.