Do I look too pale

Challenging Color Analysis Categories-Carol Tuttle, Your Color Style and More

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I’ve been blogging for over 8 years now and have been loving fashion and clothes all of my life. And I’m here to say that I believe in finding the colors and styles that make us happy. Yet sometimes the tools that are meant to help us can actually hinder us.
That’s why I wanted to challenge the color analysis categories that I’ve been following lately. The two popular ones on my radar are Carol Tuttle with Dressing Your Truth and Your Color Style.

Quote of the day: “Perhaps some will say I helped teach an older generation of women to stand tall and young women not to be afraid to interrupt.” Madeline Albright

Now don’t get me wrong. I believe in color and I believe that each of us looks better in some colors vs others. And I’m not here to diss any of the color analysis categories. But I want to challenge the way we approach these methods and give some insights from not only me but a couple of other friends.

Color Analysis Categories
1-Carol Tuttle-Dressing Your Truth
2-Your Color Style
3-Others
4-The Challenge

Let me give you a little background with the 2 color analysis category groups on Facebook that I interact with and read occasionally in no particular order.

And these photos I used for this article? My opinion is two outfit colorings are great and one isn’t the best. Yet I’d love to hear your opinions too.

Wearing color to improve your mood

Carol Tuttle-Dressing Your Truth

I was exposed to Carol Tuttle’s concept of Dressing Your Truth when her company reached out to me to work with them on an Instagram collaboration seen here and here.
In all reality, one of my virtual friends, (who I was part of her YouTube/podcast here) is a HUGE Carol Tuttle fan and told me about her years ago. But I just didn’t have the time or gumption to really investigate the idea when she first told me about it.

Background and Theory

This is the quiz that starts the whole process of figuring out where you fit in Carol Tuttle’s color analysis categories. Yet, there is MUCH more to it than the quiz. I took the time to watch all 4 of the videos that break it down into many other factors besides your complexion and eye color.
In fact, I was intrigued that my style could be attributed to my personality in this way.

Of course, the quiz and watching the videos are all free. You can then sign up (for a fee) to get the color cards which then means you get 30 days of emails from Carol. These are no ordinary emails. They are truly inspiring (I even kept all of them and refer back to them often).

In fact, one of my favorite quotes from the emails is “I am my own Type of beauty. I am free of comparing myself to anyone else. I think the sooner we realize this, the happier we become.”

Insider tip: It’s not always easy to figure out your “type” when you listen to the videos because we all have multiple branches of our personality. Sometimes the best way to figure it out is to ask good friends for some input.

Your Color Style

I learned about Your Color Style when Jen reached out to me to see if I would be interested in being an affiliate for her color analysis program.
Of course, I thought it could be such a wonderful option for my readers and I had both my mom and stepmom be part of the action.

Insider tip: What I loved about Jen’s program is there is a free class you can take.

Background and Theory

Your Color Style is broken up into warm and cool color groupings and then subdivided into how much contrast works best for you.

The program concentrates on YOU figuring out what grouping you are in. This can be a challenge for some of us who haven’t studied color before.
However, the advantage is like the saying “Give a Man a Fish, and You Feed Him for a Day. Teach a Man To Fish, and You Feed Him for a Lifetime” where you actually can learn how to see colors.

Color analysis categories with Carol Tuttle

Other Color Analysis Categories

Of course, there are MANY other programs out there that are meant to help you figure out what colors and styles look good for you individually.

In fact, I compared Jen’s (Your Color Style) with one we had also used in the past with Pam.
Here is the post where we talked about Pam’s service and this is the article where I compared the two.
Pam’s system is nice because she figures it all out for you, and sends you the results that she puts together with questions and by looking at your photos.

Insider tip: Remember though, when someone figures it out for you, they are going by limited information. AND color is SO subjective.

I’m sure many of us remember having our “seasons” done a long time ago, and that was another form of color analysis.
Yet I will venture to say that our coloring AND our personality traits can change over time. So just because you once were classified as one category, doesn’t mean it’s exactly the same now.

Challenging the Color Analysis Categories

Again, there is nothing wrong with any of these color analysis categories. They all have their pros and cons and should give you an overview of clothing colors and styles that could be a better fit for you.

Insider tip: This doesn’t mean you have to throw away all of the “bad” colors from your closet. I’ve written about 5 ways to wear the ones that aren’t as flattering near your face.

But let’s talk reality.
1-Colors are one of the most subjective details about clothing EVER. It depends on the lighting PLUS there are millions of different shades of any color out there. So when you get a color card telling you “these” are your colors, I call hogwash.
You should be able to extrapolate a wide range of other shades that also work with your complexion and personality.

2-You are unique. What I can’t understand is how these color analysis categories think that only 4 or whatever number of groupings will work for everyone.
What kills me is when I see a post in one of my color FB groups asking the others in the group if this particular item is part of the rules? I always want to say “If you like it, then yes, it’s for you”. Even if it’s not the most flattering color/style for you, you are the boss of you—not these categories.

Insider tip: If you only follow the rules for your color group, then you are going to start looking like everyone else in that group. And that shouldn’t be the goal, in my opinion. You are one in 8 billion and should embrace your individuality.

My Thoughts and My Friend’s Opinions

Truthfully, I think these programs are helpful TO GET STARTED with teaching you all about color analysis categories. Think of it as the foundation of your house, but you get to decorate the inside in the way that pleases you.

Insider tip: It’s the same concept as throwing out the fashion rules that make no sense. Don’t wear white after Labor Day. Why does that make sense? Don’t wear pink and red together. No good reasoning for that either.

In fact, one of my friends used Carol Tuttle’s Dressing Your Truth, and told me she loved it. Until about 6 months into the program when she noticed that all the women in the FB group for her “category” seemed identical.

Another friend commented that she has had multiple (and I mean more than 6 different color analyses) and still doesn’t believe any of them. In my head, that’s because we aren’t meant to be put in these boxes. You may fit in one category of them for most details, but you have different likes and dislikes that make you you!

So the moral of the story is don’t get bogged down by any kind of rules or categories when it comes to style and fashion. There are a lot of different suggestions that can help us, yet since we are all unique, it will be different for everyone.

Insider tip: I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, many times getting a daily selfie of your outfit will give you a ton of information.
If you are looking for flattering colors, then you need good lighting when you take them.
That means you should face a window or door so the light is coming onto your face/body. Either that or buy an inexpensive ring light which I use for my daily outfit posts (found on Amazon).

As an aside, I had one friend suggest taking a color theory class to help figure out about colors. This is exactly the idea of how you can learn the information for you to decide what looks good on you. In her words: “I took mine at the local community college and after a bit of practice, it was mind-expanding.”

Challenging the color analysis categories

Photo credit: Rob Filogomo

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