This site contains affiliate links. We may earn a small commission when you shop through them, at no extra cost to you. Full disclosure.
Allele · Vol. I · Shade DNAEst. 2026

Find the
one season
you were
drawn in.

Twelve questions. One archetype. A palette matched to your skin, your eyes, and the light you live in. Free to take. Free to retake. Yours forever.

Begin the analysis2:30 min · No app · No subscription
12Archetypes
96Curated Shades
3Price Tiers
0Guesswork
Specimen · True Autumn
True Autumn
WarmMedium-DeepMuted
Burnt orange, rust, forest, deep gold. The cathedral in October.
Style twinsJulia RobertsBeyoncéEva Mendes
§ I

The DNA Portfolio.

Three volumes · One identity
N° 01 / 03· Live
Shade DNA
Vol. I · MMXXVI

Your color season, mapped from twelve questions. Twelve archetypes, ninety-six curated shades, three price tiers. Free.

Begin the analysis
N° 02 / 03· Forthcoming
Vibe DNA
Vol. II · Forthcoming

Your wardrobe archetype, mapped from the silhouettes and textures you keep coming back to. Same method, new lens.

In final review
N° 03 / 03· In Development
Signature DNA
Vol. III · In Development

The identity layer. When you’ve completed two DNAs, the third becomes yours — your color, your archetype, your map across all of it.

Unlocks with 2+ volumes
§ 01

The twelve.

Four families · Three variants each
Spring
Family · Three variants
Clear Spring
01 / 12
Bright · Warm · Clear
True Spring
02 / 12
Warm · Bright · Golden
Light Spring
03 / 12
Light · Warm · Fresh
Summer
Family · Three variants
Light Summer
04 / 12
Light · Cool · Soft
True Summer
05 / 12
Cool · Soft · Rosy
Soft Summer
06 / 12
Soft · Cool · Grayed
Autumn
Family · Three variants
Soft Autumn
07 / 12
Soft · Warm · Earthy
True Autumn
08 / 12
Warm · Rich · Earthy
Dark Autumn
09 / 12
Deep · Warm · Rich
Winter
Family · Three variants
Dark Winter
10 / 12
Deep · Cool · Dramatic
True Winter
11 / 12
Cool · Clear · Icy
Bright Winter
12 / 12
Bright · Cool · Vivid
§ 02

The method.

Answer · Analyze · Arrive
01
Twelve questions

You answer.

Undertone, depth, contrast. Drawn out in twelve precise questions. No guesswork, no jargon. Sixty seconds.

02
One archetype

We find you.

One of twelve seasons. Your palette emerges like a constellation: eight colors that will always work, and a whisper of who you are in color.

03
Ninety-six shades

You shop what fits.

Foundation, blush, lip, eye. Four categories, three price tiers. Every shade matched to your coloring. Links out; no storefront to defend.

Explore the Color Science & Mirror Tests+
§ 03

Three axes. One you.

Why twelve seasons, not four

The twelve-season method isn’t aesthetic. It’s a coordinate system. Three measurable properties of human coloring (undertone, depth, and chroma), and where you land on each one tells us which palette belongs to you.

A trained colorist with a stack of physical drapes will find the same answer. We just don’t charge $500 to do it.

§ I
Axis One

Undertone.

The temperature beneath your skin. Warm leans yellow-gold-peach. Cool leans pink-rose-blue. Most people are not 50/50. They have a real bias, even when they swear they don’t.

WarmNeutralCool
Tell Veins inside the wrist read green (warm) or blue-purple (cool).
Tell Gold jewelry warms your face; silver flatters; one wins.
§ II
Axis Two

Depth.

The light value of your overall coloring: skin, hair, and eyes averaged together. Light depth blooms next to pastels and washes against black. Dark depth holds its own beside true black and gets erased by pale.

Light
Medium
Deep
Dark
Tell A black turtleneck either frames your face or eats it.
Tell Your hair, eye, and skin contrast: close together, or stark?
§ III
Axis Three · The hidden one

Chroma.

The intensity of pigment your face can carry without being overwhelmed. Bright chroma faces hold true reds and emeralds. Muted chroma faces glow in dusty mauves and sages, and look strange in saturated color, no matter how flattering the undertone.

BrightMuted
Tell A pure-red lipstick: striking on you, or somehow garish?
Tell The “you look great today” colors are usually right at your chroma.
Most online tests skip this axis. It’s why they get you wrong.

Three axes × four positions = twelve seasons. Not four. Not sixteen. The number that fits human coloring without forcing it.

§ 04

Mirror tests. Quick validation.

Three offline validation protocols you can perform right now
Axis One · Undertone

The Plain White Tee Trap

Hold a pure, optical white shirt up to your chin in natural daylight, then hold an oatmeal or warm cream shirt. Watch how your skin responds to each canvas.

The Verdict

If pure white makes your skin look radiant and clear, you lean Rosewater (Cool). If pure white washes you out and makes you look tired, but warm cream makes your skin look plump and golden, you lean Honey (Warm).

Rosewater (Cool)Radiant in pure white
Honey (Warm)Glows in warm cream

A field guide to yourself.

You are reading Shade DNA, Volume I in an open series. This volume maps the physics of your coloring into one of twelve seasons. The next volumes (Vibe, Signature, Carry-On, and the ones still in the lab) use different lenses on the same person.

Shade DNA began with a question: why do some colors make you, and others un-make you? The answer is not taste or trend. It is coloring: the interference pattern of your skin, eyes, and hair against light. Physics. Yours. This is where we start.

Twelve families. Three variants each. One of them is yours.

§ I
Classical.
Rooted in the twelve-season method used by color consultants since the 1980s.
§ II
Curated.
Ninety-six shades hand-matched to each archetype by our beauty editors.
§ III
Candid.
No subscriptions. No house brand. Affiliate links disclosed on every card.
§ IV
Considered.
Your archetype is yours forever. Re-take it; change your mind. The palette stays.
§ 05

What you receive.

A living document · Yours forever
The Result

A book of one.

Your archetype arrives as a single editorial page: part certificate, part shopping list, part letter to yourself.

Bookmark it. Print it. Open it in the fitting room when the light is bad and the lipsticks all look the same.

  • 01 PaletteYour eight signature shades, with names and hexes.
  • 02 ProductsTwenty-four matched picks across four categories.
  • 03 TiersBudget, best value, splurge. You decide the spend.
  • 04 ArchetypeA one-line identity for your coloring, plus what washes you out.
  • 05 Share cardAn Instagram-ready specimen card for the post.
Specimen Card · Preview
N° 08 / 12
True
Autumn
WarmMedium-DeepMuted
“Caramel, rust, olive, deep gold. Your nude has gold in it. Cool taupes wash you out.”

A field guide to yourself.

You are reading Shade DNA, Volume I in an open series. This volume maps the physics of your coloring into one of twelve seasons. The next volumes (Vibe, Signature, Carry-On, and the ones still in the lab) use different lenses on the same person.

Shade DNA began with a question: why do some colors make you, and others un-make you? The answer is not taste or trend. It is coloring: the interference pattern of your skin, eyes, and hair against light. Physics. Yours. This is where we start.

Twelve families. Three variants each. One of them is yours.

§ I
Classical.
Rooted in the twelve-season method used by color consultants since the 1980s.
§ II
Curated.
Ninety-six shades hand-matched to each archetype by our beauty editors.
§ III
Candid.
No subscriptions. No house brand. Affiliate links disclosed on every card.
§ IV
Considered.
Your archetype is yours forever. Re-take it; change your mind. The palette stays.
§ 06

Be among the first.

Allele opens in waves · Each cohort hand-reviewed
I

Take the analysis. Twelve questions, one minute. Your archetype is named, your palette is rendered, your 24-product edit is generated.

The reveal
Free · Yours forever
§ 03
II

Receive the dossier. A long-form letter: your science, your shade, your edit. Written in plain English. No jargon.

The dossier
Email · Within minutes
§ 05
III

Shop the edit. Every product hand-matched across 8 categories × 3 tiers. Cult, splurge, best-value. Your palette, ready to wear.

The edit
24 picks · Linked & ranked
§ 08
§ Begin

Your shade,
your science.

Sixty seconds. One season. Yours forever.

Begin the analysis
Free · No sign-up required · Works on mobile