It’s the most wonderful time of the year! And if your calendar looks anything like mine, you have A LOT of festivities to get dressed for in the coming weeks. From holiday parties to school Christmas concerts and cookie swaps, I know you don’t have one second to waste in wardrobe panic this season. So let’s solve at least one of the most common challenges you might be facing when it comes to putting outfits together: which colors look best on you.

I love taking a non-traditional approach to color during the holidays. So please don’t force yourself into emerald green or cherry red if those classic holiday hues don’t do you justice. Instead, let’s figure out the best holiday colors to wear with your complexion.

Keep in mind these are generalized suggestions to help you get started. More importantly than anything, wear what makes you feel most confident! Never choose anyone’s suggestions (including mine) over your own intuition. Trust your judgment about what looks best on you. I encourage you to use this article as a source of inspiration rather than as a hard and fast rule about your best holiday colors.

Now that we’ve gotten the disclaimer out of the way, let’s start by figuring out which skin tone type you have. I know the topic of skin tones is a confusing one. So I’ll try to keep this simple and straightforward.

There are 5 basic complexion types: 

• Cool pink
• Neutral pink-peach
• Neutral olive
• Warm peach
• Warm golden

Ready to figure out your core color temperature once and for all?

Do a ‘save as’ or take a screenshot of the skin tone images below. Then, compare each one side-by-side with a makeup-free photo of yourself in natural, indirect daylight. You should be able to tell which one best matches your complexion by process of elimination. You can also ask a trusted friend or family member to weigh in.

01. PINK (cool)

02. PINK-PEACH (neutral)

03. OLIVE (neutral)

04. PEACH (warm)

05. GOLDEN (warm)

At the most basic level, cool skin tones generally pair best with cool, blue-based colors and warm complexions with warm, red or yellow-based colors. Neutral pink-peach and olive skin tones can usually pull off a wider range of color temperatures since they fall in the middle of the spectrum.

When choosing colors for your holiday outfits, don’t forget to keep the temperatures of your hair and eye color in mind, too! If your skin tone is neutral, a warmer or cooler hair and eye color temperature could pull you further into one camp than the other.

One more point to consider is the intensity or clarity of your complexion. Look at what’s in your current wardrobe and think about whether you primarily wear and feel best in colors that are soft and muted, bold and saturated, or deep and shaded. You’ll see a handful of color options for each complexion type so you can also select the color intensity that works best for you.

Now that you have a better sense of your skin tone temperature and type, let’s get into some holiday-inspired hues to flatter you! I rounded up the best (general 😉) whites, metallics, reds, and greens, but you can obviously wear any color in the rainbow to your seasonal events! Since these colors are the most strongly associated with the holidays, I decided to keep things simple and start with these basics. Hopefully, these examples inspire you to expand from here.

If you have a cool pink complexion, you’re most likely going to look amazing in pure or pink-based whites, silver toned metals, rose and berry reds, and blue-green hues.

If you have a neutral pink-peach or olive skin tone, look no further, my love.

As you can see, neutral complexions look fabulous in neutral ivory, pale yellow and rose golds, hibiscus and cherry reds, and eucalyptus and pine greens.

Last, but certainly not least, let’s look at what’s typically most flattering on warm peach and golden skin tones.

It should come as no surprise that warm complexions turn up the heat in warm sandstone and french vanilla whites, copper and shiny yellow gold, coral and brick reds, and mossy green and avocado.

So what do you think? Will you be showing up to your next holiday event in one of these color pairings? I’d love to hear which complexion best matches yours and what you think of the suggested hues for you!

And if you’re looking for personalized recommendations to eliminate ALL the guesswork when it comes to choosing your best colors, I invite you to head here next to find out how we can work together one-on-one and ensure you’re wearing only your most flattering hues, every day of the year.

Wishing you a holiday season filled with color and cheer!