I’ve always gravitated toward blues, greens, and pastels, cool, calm tones. If you looked at my wardrobe before this trip, that’s pretty much all you’d find. Maybe the occasional autumn shade, but I never really wore those with any confidence. Red? Never. Gold jewelry? I always reached for silver without a second thought.
Then I went to Seoul. I sat down in a small studio, and this incredibly knowledgeable woman gently, but very definitively, told me I’d been choosing colours that weren’t really working for me for years. It’s not that they looked terrible on me, but the second she draped the “right” shades against my skin, the difference was very obvious.
The Colour Analysis Craze in Seoul
If you spend any time online, you’ve probably seen personal colour analysis popping up. What started as a niche styling tool in Korea has become a massive draw for visitors in Seoul. Studios are everywhere, spots book up fast, and some people plan entire trips around it. (I only booked a session because I was already heading there anyway.)
The concept itself isn’t new. Its roots actually go back to the four-season colour theory developed by Swiss artist Johannes Itten, where palettes were divided into warm and cool tones mapped to the seasons…Spring and Autumn leaning warm, Summer and Winter leaning cool. What Korea has done is build something incredibly precise on top of that foundation.
Korean colour analysis goes way beyond just deciding if you look good in red or blue. It takes those four main seasons and breaks them down into hyper-specific sub-tones. So, instead of just being a “Summer,” you might be a “Summer Cool Light,” an “Autumn Warm Deep,” or a “Winter Clear.” That level of precision is a big part of why it’s taken off so much globally.
They assess you using a few core metrics: brightness, saturation, and temperature. They’re looking at whether your features lean light or dark, soft or bright, warm or cool. The goal is pretty straightforward: the right colours make your skin look clearer, soften under-eye shadows, and just make everything look more naturally put together.
The wrong colours do the exact opposite. They can bring out dark circles, wash out your complexion, or just make you look exhausted when you’re actually feeling fine. Honestly, once you see it happen in real time, it’s pretty hard to unsee.
Vic’s Lab: The Experience
I found Vic’s Lab in the area closest to where we were staying in Seoul. There are so many studios across the city that choosing one can feel overwhelming. I’m really glad I found this one.
From the moment I walked in, the team was warm and professional. They walked me through every colour, every drape, and every subtle shift in tone, and nothing felt rushed.
They sit you under neutral lighting with a white cape to block out your clothes, then slowly layer different fabric drapes against your skin while your eyes adjust. Some colours made my skin look clear and alive. Others made me look flat, tired, or slightly grey. It’s subtle until it isn’t. They recorded the key parts of the session for me to take home, which was so helpful. When you’re sitting there, it’s a lot to process, so having those photos to look back on later made a big difference.
The whole thing took about an hour and fifteen minutes. Afterward, they did my makeup using shades tailored to my palette, and even pulled out hair colour samples to show me what works best. There was no sales pitch or pressure to buy anything at the end. I just left with some colour swatches in my bag and a completely different understanding of what actually works for me.
Warm Autumn: The Colours I Never Thought Were Mine
My result: Warm Autumn.
Autumn palettes are rich, earthy, and deep. Olive green. Mustard. Terracotta. Camel. Rust. Gold. The colors of forests in October. And yes, red.
I would never have picked red for myself. I almost never do. For years I’ve instinctively reached for cool blues and soft pastels, colours I genuinely love and still do. And the best part is, I don’t have to throw them all away; Warm Autumns can still pull off certain muted blues and softer greens. But those icy pastels, stark whites, cool greys, and silver jewellery I’d always leaned toward? They were quietly working against me, casting a slight dullness I’d just never noticed before.
What was really interesting was how specific it gets, even with just one colour. They showed me this one brown that completely washed me out, and then swapped it for a slightly warmer, dirtier brown, and suddenly I looked awake. It’s not as simple as saying ‘brown is my colour.’ It completely comes down to the exact undertone.
The jewelry part was the hardest to accept. I have always loved silver. But seeing silver next to gold against my skin in natural light was an undeniable moment. Gold and rose gold simply looked warmer, softer, and far more harmonious. It will take time to integrate all of this. I’m not changing my entire wardrobe overnight, but I notice it now. I keep reaching for something and pausing, thinking about undertone and warmth in a way I never did before. That change alone feels significant.
A Note on the Studios and the Tourists Who Find Them
One thing the team mentioned really stayed with me: in Seoul, personal colour analysis has become heavily driven by tourism. So many of the people walking into these studios are international visitors who discovered it through TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram, adding a session to their Seoul itinerary right alongside visiting local cafes or historical sites. Which also means there’s a surprising amount of competition between studios, especially in the main tourist neighbourhoods. It made me appreciate the experience even more, these are skilled professionals doing something genuinely specialized, and supporting that kind of craft felt really good.
If you’re travelling to Seoul and considering it, I honestly recommend trying it. Whichever place you choose, make sure you book ahead though. The good studios fill quickly.
Simply Salt & Soul
The Salt (The Science): The interesting thing about colour analysis is that the core idea is actually grounded in real principles of colour theory and visual perception. We already know that colour completely changes how people see us, whether we look tired, approachable, or confident. All this analysis does is figure out what actually matches your specific skin tone.
Korea just took that basic rule and put it under a microscope. They aren’t just deciding if you’re a ‘spring’ or a ‘fall’, they are measuring exactly how much brightness and saturation your face can handle before the clothes end up wearing you. It’s not a perfect science, sure, but watching a colour physically drain the life from your face in real-time is incredibly convincing. Honestly, beyond just looking better, it kinda makes life a bit easier. It takes away all that daily second-guessing like, ‘Does this really work for me? Something seems off.’ You just know what works, and that kind of clarity is amazing.
The Soul (The Wellness): I’ve been thinking a lot about why this whole thing stuck with me so much, and honestly, it’s not really just about the clothes. I think it’s just the experience of having someone sit down, pay super close attention, and help you actually see yourself. Not the version of yourself you just assume you are because of old habits, but how you actually are right now.
Seeing what actually works on you, and what’s kinda just been quietly washing you out, is strangely emotional. We spend so much time looking at ourselves without actually seeing anything new. We get stuck in these ruts like, ‘Oh, I’m a silver person,’ or ‘I just don’t wear red.’ Eventually, you treat those habits like they’re actual facts.
I’m an Autumn. Warm, earthy, rich colours. The colours of things that are changing, which is kinda beautiful when you think about it. I’m still kinda wrapping my head around the red, but maybe that’s the whole point. You don’t have to suddenly reinvent yourself. You just kinda hold onto this new information and let it change your perspective a bit over time.
More soon.
Visited Vic’s Lab, Seoul. Sessions include colour draping, makeup consultation, and personalized colour swatches. Book ahead. Studios fill up, especially in peak travel season.