Seasonal Colour Theory: A Hot Topic for Cool Interiors

We’re circling back (so to speak) on the 1980’s phenomenon that is seasonal colour theory thanks to TikTok and Gen Z; so take a spin on the colour wheel where you’ll find seasonal shades to suit your space.

When talking about style and trends, we often focus on what trends are in season? But with one slight tweak to this statement we can open a whole new world into evaluating our design and aesthetic choices. We’re here to discuss what trends are in each season, by dipping our paintbrush into the distinct colour palettes, hues, tones and shades which determine the look and feel of Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter seasonal colour psychology.

A hot topic from the 80’s, currently experiencing a TikTok led resurgence, the division of colour palettes into the 4 seasons has been widely used to determine make-up and clothing choices based upon an individual’s hair and eye colouring, skin tone and undertones.

This fun and frivolous approach can easily be applied to help determine colour choices, furnishings and décor to suit your personal season and seasonal interior style.

So what determines colour seasonality?

The three overarching factors which help determine which season a colour falls into are its Temperature, Value, and Chroma. By classifying these three attributes to a colour, you can determine that colours season and start to build a palette of complementary colours which work for your space.

Undertone/Temperature: This determines how cool or warm a colour is by looking at its undertone. Colours which pull cool have an undertone of either purple, blue or green whereas colours which pull warm have undertones of yellow, orange, red or pink.

Value: This factor is quite easy to determine as it relates to how light or dark a colour is. Colours with more white in them have a light value while colours with more black in them will have a dark value.

Chroma: Chroma is used to describe the saturation level of a colour i.e. is it bright or muted? Colours which have a lot of grey in them will be more muted than colours with less grey which appear bright. Often muted colours can be described as dusty or muddy i.e. dusty rose is a muted shade of pink whereas fuchsia or magenta are bright shades of pink as they are highly saturated (and lack grey).

Once you’ve worked out the above, you can apply your findings to our cheat sheet below which breaks down these characteristics into the relevant season.

Season	Sub-Seasons	Characteristics	Temperature/Hue (Cool or Warm)	Value (Dark or Light)	Chroma (Bright or Muted)
Spring = Warm Season	Bright Spring	Bright + Warm	Warm	Light	Brightest
	True Spring	Warm + Bright	Warmest	Lighter	Brighter
	Light Spring	Light + Warm	Warm	Lightest	Bright
Summer = Cool Season	Light Summer	Light + Cool	Cool	Lightest	Least Muted
	True Summer	Cool + Muted	Coolest	Lighter	Muted
	Soft Summer	Muted + Cool	Cool	Light	Most Muted
Autumn = Warm Season	Soft Autumn	Muted + Warm	Warm	Dark	Most Muted
	True Autumn	Warm + Muted	Warmest	Darker	Muted
	Dark Autumn	Dark + Warm	Warm	Darkest	Least Muted
Winter = Cool Season	Dark Winter	Dark + Cool	Cool	Darkest	Bright
	True Winter	Cool + Bright	Coolest	Darker	Brighter
	Bright Winter	Bright + Cool	Cool	Dark	Brightest

 

Spin the (colour) wheel to find your season…

IT’S GIVING AUTUMN
Dappled in a sepia-like filter, Autumn symbolizes the changing of the seasons as we quite literally experience a shift in colour and tone as days shorten and tree leaves shift from greens to burnished shades of amber. Warm, muted and dark, the Autumn colour palette is rich with burnished shades of warm orange and red like ochre and terracotta. Warm undertones with brown tints encapsulate this seasonal colour palette which errs on popular retro colours like mustard yellow, khaki, olive, mahogany and chocolate browns.

IT’S WINTER CODED
The season of contrasts; the Winter Seasonal Colour Palette reflects the cool temperatures of this season against bright, white reflections off of snow. A high-contrast colour palette of cool, bright, dark colours encapsulates the arctic beauty of winter. Warm hues do not have a home within this palette, instead, shades are cool, bright and highly contrasted which is why both black and white feature in this colour palette. Blue-tinted reds such as plum and maroon layer with bright, cool pinks from the fuchsia and magenta family; yellows are cool and bright with green-tinged undertones and cool-toned browns which lean grey reign supreme such as greige and ash.

SPRING IS IN
And she’s here to warm, brighten, and lighten our space! You guessed it, the spring colour palette is made up of warm, bright and light shades. The season dedicated to rebirth and renewal is full of bright and warm yellows, oranges, peach and reds; vibrant greens; aqua; bright lavender; warm beiges and chocolate browns. Think of flowering fields in springtime and you’ll be on the right course to nailing this nature-inspired colour palette.

SUMMER LOVING
The temperatures may be sweltering but summer’s as cool and refreshing as an Aperol spritz when it comes to colour. Reflecting the cool, crisp summer breeze, the summer colour palette is made up of cool, light and muted shades. Not what you expected? Think of it this way, as sunlight is most intense during this season, the intensity casts a lightness over colours resulting in a dreamy palette comprised of pale icy blues, cool taupe-like browns and greys, periwinkle blue, blue-pulling greys like steel and gunmetal and cool-toned pinks and reds like mulberry and crimson (think Dior’s classic 999 Ultra Rouge lipstick or MAC’s Ruby Woo)

How can this assist when furnishing your space?
Just like colour psychology’s original intent which looked at a person’s features to determine a complementary colour palette that enhanced features; seasonal colour theory can be applied to the permanent fixtures and foundations of your space to assist in your homeware shopping experience. By determining the colours already in your space (which you intend on keeping) you’ll be able to find the best season for you.

Look at the colouring of your floors, ceilings and walls; cupboards doors; tapware and hardware (do you have warm gold, copper or bronze accents or chrome, black or gunmetal hardware?) and even your lighting schemes (are you using warm or cool-tinged lightbulbs in your lamps and lights?). All of these factors can help point you in the right direction to make the most out of your space and enhance the natural, existing beauty of your surroundings.

Happy Styling x GIGI&TOM

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