If you’re reading this, you may or may not be familiar with the Kibbe body system and seasonal color palette analysis. If you’re not familiar, welcome to this fascinating rabbit hole. I’m not claiming to be a professional or specialist in these systems, and I’ll direct you to some sources at the end. I have done a ton of research and figured out my body type and seasonal color palette. I’ll paraphrase in my own words what the body types are and how you can use them to level up your style and boost your confidence. Understanding the body types has been a game-changing tool and catalyzed many realizations, observations, and ah-ha moments. We’ll start with body types, then deep dive into the seasonal color palette analysis.
Kibbe Body Types
The Kibbe body typing theory, founded by David Kibbe, works on a scale of yin to Yang. At the most yang end of the scale, you have Dramatics, and at the very most yin end of the scale, you have Romantics. I am a theatrical romantic, which sits at the second to most yin on the scale. I’ll be using my Kibbe body type and analysis as a case study so you can see how I determined what body type I am so you can do the same. To be clear, I typed myself as a Theatrical Romantic based on a myriad of research, observation, and intuition. You should note that no one will ever be “verified” unless David Kibbe was to confirm himself. Since this is pretty unrealistic, we have to use the information we have to classify ourselves the best we can. When I use the word “verified” in this article, it means David Kibbe himself has categorized this person as a particular type.
So the scale goes from Yang to yin in the order: Dramatic, Soft Dramatic, Flamboyant Natural, Soft Natural, Dramatic Classic, Soft Classic, Flamboyant Gamine, Soft Gamine, Theatrical Romantic, and Romantic. Adjectives that describe Yang are long, vertical, sharp, angular, and bold, contrasted to yin, which is petite, soft, rounded, and lush.
The Kibbe system focuses more on objective attributes and less on those attributes that have traditionally made women feel insecure, which is why it’s so empowering and body positive. It doesn’t focus on the traits we’re programmed to notice, such as actual cup size, weight, or muscularity. Instead, it focuses on the things that contribute to how clothes will fit the body and what effect they will give off.
For example, it focuses on bone structure, how we gain fat and muscle, our softness versus tautness of flesh, angularity versus roundedness, etc. These are surprisingly the characteristics that not only give off our overall essence but how clothes and certain styles flatter or oppose us. It’s more than just knowing what looks best or most flattering on your body, but it’s about how to create an effect. The fashion and entertainment industries use body types to their advantage for casting. Costumes can even go directly against lines and silhouettes to produce the desired result, such as a character undergoing a transformation or making a character appear quirky.
Finally, don’t worry about what type you may be or try to force yourself into a body type based on a preconceived notion you may have. Every single one of the body types has dozens of verified bombshells. I also want to put a disclaimer here that we will discuss bodies and body characteristics in this article. If you are sensitive to this topic, please skip out on this one. Everything has the intention to be objective and just for fun. Nothing about style or fashion is serious, and at the end of the day- do whatever will make you feel good.
Dramatics have a long vertical line, meaning their dominant attribute you’ll notice first is their length. The length can be in the limbs and torso, usually both, and the bone structure will be narrow. Kibbe’s body type theory has nothing to do with how skinny or fat someone is. Regardless of someone’s fluctuating weight, they will always have the same bone structure and flesh type. Dramatics can be of any height but tend to be 5’6 or taller. (check this here). The angularity in their body will often reflect in their faces as well, but you can have a different face essence than body type, which we will get to later. Verified Dramatics are Taylor Swift, Kristen Wiig, and Kate Moss.
Dramatic Style Suggestions
👠 Chiffon ruffle dress 👠 Leather Jumpsuit 👠 Tortoise Double-Breasted Blazer
Soft Dramatics are mostly Yang with a yin undercurrent. Having a yin undercurrent means Soft Dramatics have a long vertical line but can be fleshy in the chest and hips and have more delicate flesh than pure Dramatic. Verified Soft Dramatics are Sofia Vergara and Christina Hendricks.
Soft Dramatic Style Suggestions
Naturals have two different categories: natural flamboyant and soft naturals. There aren’t any “true” Naturals, Classics, or Gamines because the theory is you’re always leaning in one direction more than the other when it comes to Yang and yin.
Flamboyant naturals are defined most by their width. And NO, not the kind of “width” that makes someone “fat” or overweight. It just means there is apparent width somewhere in the frame. In fact, a lot of supermodels fall under the flamboyant natural type. When it comes to width, think of blunt edges (as opposed to sharp or rounded). Flamboyant naturals will always have a width to their shoulders. They can also have width in their hips, rib cage, or thighs. Again, their faces may have blunt bone structure, but not always. Flamboyant Naturals have a dramatic undercurrent, meaning there will be a sharp undercurrent somewhere in their body, such as long, narrow legs or broad but defined shoulders. Cindy Crawford, Cameron Diaz, and Princess Diana.
Flamboyant Naturals Style Suggestions
👡 Wool jersey wide-leg pant 👡 Wool Cashmere Serape 👡 cappuccino knit sweater
Soft Naturals also have width as their dominant feature with blunt and angular shoulders. Unlike Flamboyant Naturals, they don’t have vertical in their silhouette but have roundness or curves. They’ll have a shorter vertical line than a Dramatic or Flamboyant Natural, meaning they will look shorter with moderate limbs. Both Flamboyant Naturals and Soft Naturals are bone dominant, meaning their bones contribute to the shape of their body instead of their flesh. Verified soft naturals are Kat Dennings, Sandra Bullock, and Helen Mirren.
Soft Naturals Style Suggestions
🥿 Bohemian dress 🥿 Cowl neck cashmere sweater 🥿 Ribbed cardigan dress
Classics are precisely in the middle of the scale and have moderate features. Dramatic Classics will have a balance of yin and Yang but lean more toward Yang. They will have intermediate features with slightly sharp shoulders, slightly taut flesh, and a 5’7″ limit. Verified Dramatic Classics include Jackie O and Olivia Munn.
Dramatic Classic Style Suggestions
Soft classics are moderate with extra yin. Verified Soft Classics include Naomi Watts, Kirsten Dunst, and Denee Benton.
Soft Classic Style Suggestions
👒 Blue striped dress 👒 Double tiered pleated skirts 👒 ribbed ruffle shoulder sweater
Gamines have two categories, flamboyant and soft, dividing them by their more dominant yin or yang essences. Flamboyant gamines are petite, angular, sharp and pixie-like. The most famous flamboyant gamine is Audrey Hepburn. Other famous verified Flamboyant Gamines are Penelope Cruz, Kelly Osbourne, and Jennifer Love Hewitt. Some are confused by Jennifer Love Hewitt’s classification, but again, we must remember that Kibbie’s body types don’t focus on chest size regarding actual cup size. Any of the body types can have a large cup size. JLH is very petite and narrow, with angularity in her hips and shoulders, regardless of weight fluctuation. She also doesn’t have the “bone-less-ness” that theatrical romantics have in the hip area. Her hip bones are prominent, and her limbs are petite.
Flamboyant Gamine Style Suggestions
Soft gamines are also little and angular, but with added softness to their flesh and bones. Verified soft gamines are Halle Berry, Reese Witherspoon, Jane Fonda, and Octavia Spencer.
Soft Gamine Style Suggestions
And finally, we have the romantics. The Romantic category consists of two types: Theatrical Romantic and Romantic. Theatrical Romantics are the second most yin on the scale, so their dominant features are tiny, rounded, and soft. But, theatrical romantics have a yang undercurrent, so there will be angularity, usually in the shoulders, collarbone area, face, and jaw. They have little hands and feet compared to their bodies, short limbs, and soft flesh. Verified Theatrical Romantics are Selena Gomez, Mina Kunas, Salma Hayek, and Vivien Leigh.
Theatrical Romantic Style Suggestions
💍 High slit skirt 💍 puff sleeve peplum top 💍 knit mini dress
And finally, true Romantics are the most yin on the body type scale and are tiny, rounded, soft, and delicate. They don’t have any yang or angularity to their figure. Verified Romantics are Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, Drew Barrymore, and Christina Ricci.
Romantic Style Suggestions
🕶 knit top 🕶 riona dress 🕶 mini dress
All romantics will always have what Kibbe describes as a double curve. A “double curve” isn’t the same as any hourglass figure. It can consist of an hourglass shape and usually does, but a double curve is boneless in the hips and lacks a vertical line. If you were to take two circles to divide a Romantic’s upper and lower body, the two circles would sit on top of one another. Someone can have an “hourglass” figure, with curves in the chest and hips, but with added vertical in their shape, there’s added space between the two circles, and they wouldn’t have a double curve. This is another reason why there are no height restrictions for the yang types, such as Dramatic and Naturals, but for Romantics, they’re almost always 5’5 and under. Having a petite stature can create a ‘compacted’ figure.
I had thought I was some classic at first. Then I thought maybe I’m a soft gamine, naturally, because I have soft flesh and am petite. I finally figured out my proper body type by taking my blinders off and taking a step back to look at the bigger picture. You want to find the overall essence that your body would give off. Artists use a technique when making their initial sketch called gesture drawing. The method focuses on a figure’s overall essence and movement, less on details and more on overall impression. The latter technique is how we want to approach our analysis to determine our body type. Please don’t force your body into a particular category because you think it’s ideal. Think of it this way: we use exercise and diet to look good naked, and we can use Kibbe body types to look good in clothing. It’s just a tool that can improve your style and give you the reference to make any effect you’d like to.
When I look at my body, I see little, round, with some angular undercurrents, especially in my shoulders and face. I have an apparent double curve, which automatically puts me into the romantic category. I have many features commonly found in Theatrical Romantics. These features include tiny feet and hands, a sharp jawline, a delicate bone structure, a narrow yet rounded frame, and soft flesh in the hips and thighs. My dominating features align with those of a Theatrical Romantic. And this stays true regardless of my weight. The photos below show me at my lightest weight, then a photo where I gained a bit of weight, and lastly, about where I’m at now.
I confirmed I am TR by analyzing the clothing recommendations for this type. The suggestions are for Theatrical Romantics to wear clothing that’s harmonious with their lines, which are little, rounded, and petite with some elements of dramatic or angularity. They look best in “femme fatal” styled clothing. Anything feminine and ornate, but with a touch of masculinity, such as leather. Theatrical Romantics shine in elaborate details and glamourous jewelry and hairstyles. I believe a quote Kibbe said is that “TRs look at home dripping in diamonds.” Femme Fatal is what describes this style the best. And, of course, curve accommodation is highly recommended to honor their double curve. Tight fabrics, dresses that cinch the waist, high-waisted pants and skirts, and curve-hugging pieces.
Something clicked for me once I knew the basics of the style recommendations for Theatrical Romantics. The “recommendations” based on your body type are the recommendations that are going to make you look the most elegant and feel the most confident. Almost all the recommendations for Theatrical Romantic were things I already intuitively knew looked best on me. These were highly incorporated into my style, and knowing this made me feel completely validated. Even those times, people in my life commented to me, “you always have to wear tight clothing to feel good. Why can’t you try something oversized and trendy? Do you not feel pretty unless you’re in tight clothing?”. Or, “I can tell dressing sexy is how you feel most comfortable .” And, even though these comments sounded condescending to me at the time, they were right. I do feel most confident in tighter clothes that accommodate my figure. Loose clothing and straight lines drown my figure and don’t make me feel like my best self. Dressing “sexy” is what I think is most elegant and attractive because it works best with my body type. I’ve never even tried the baggy, low-waisted jean trend because I know it will not look “best” on me. And, even though people have commented about how they wish I would experiment with more trends, I always intuitively know which ones will work well and make me shine and those that will not and will be a waste of my money.
And that confirmed it for me. Not only do my dominant features align with that of a Theatrical Romantic, but the style recommendations are also what make me shine and feel like my best self. I am a true Theatrical Romantic, and I love it. I hope that you resonate with your body type and style recommendations as well, and know that if you don’t, there are always ways to incorporate your lines into whatever style you like. You can also go against your lines to create any desired effect. There are no limitations, and knowing and understanding your type can be a creative tool.
Seasonal Color Palette Analysis
Doing my seasonal color palette analysis to find my color season was a bit trickier than I thought it would be. Again, I had so many preconceived notions based on assumptions. I am a fair person for once, so I automatically assumed I had to be cool-toned. Again, comments were made to me that we should wear silver jewelry because it’s what would look best “on our skin tones,” given we were both fair. But of course, I found that my assumptions were different than reality.
The seasonal color palette analysis has 12 specific seasons divided into four main seasons: Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. These main seasons divide further into three sub-seasons. In the Spring season, there’s Bright Spring, True Spring, and Light Spring. For Summer, there’s Light Summer, True Summer, and Dark Summer. Autumn divides into Soft Autumn, True Autumn, and Dark Autumn. And Finally, for Winter, there’s Dark Winter, True Winter, and Bright Winter. Like the Kibbe system, people classify into one of these seasons by their most distinguishable color features. The variables used to determine those defining features are three different scales: light or dark, warm or cool, and saturated or clear. These aren’t as straightforward as they seem, so hang in there, and you’ll soon grasp the scales and overall seasonal color palette analysis.
Light and dark refer to the lightness and darkness of your features, but that doesn’t mean that just because you have blue eyes, you’re going to be a light color season, or because you have brown hair, you’ll be a dark color season. If you have a light version of the color of your features, like amber brown eyes or ashy brown hair- you can easily be in a light category. Warm and cool refer to the undertones in your coloring. Do you have warm or cool-toned skin, are your eyes warm or cool, etc.? Again, you won’t necessarily be a cool-toned season just because you have blue eyes. Do your eyes contain warmth for blue? And lastly, there’s the saturated to clear scale. Saturated in this context doesn’t mean bright, but how many colors saturate within your features? For instance, if you can’t define your hair as just “brown” because it contains yellows, reds, and other colors, you know your hair is saturated or a muted feature. Clear, or bright, means there’s a significant contrast between your features because each is a singular color. You’re most likely clear if you have jet black hair and solid blue eyes.
Winter is the season of bright white snowfall, red ribbon, emerald fir trees, and jewel-toned ski jackets. Winters are cool, dark, and bright (or clear). Bright Winters are clear, cool, and light for a Winter. True winters are dominantly cool, clear, and dark. Dark Winters are dominantly dark, then cool, and are saturated for a Winter.
Springs contain luminous, bright, cheery coloring. It’s the time when the world defrosts, animals hatch, Easter colors abound, and the rain makes landscapes bright and clear. A Bright Spring is first clear and then warm, and they are dark for a Spring. True Springs are warm, clear, and light for a Spring. A Light Spring, like the name implies, is first characterized by lightness, secondly, by warmth. Light Springs are also saturated for a Spring; since they’re the closest to Summer, they will have some typical Summer gentleness in their features. So, although this isn’t the first feature you notice about them, in relation to Spring as a whole, you can say that they’re saturated for a Spring.
Summer is the season associated with the cool ocean breeze and muted colors of the sun, painting the world in a soft haze. Summers are light, cool, and saturated (muted). A Light Summer will be light first, cool second, and clear for a spring. A True Summer will be light, cool, and saturated. If you’re mostly saturated, cool, and dark for a Summer, you’re a Soft Summer.
Autumn contains soft, warm colors that feel like a sunset against a hazy blue sky on a fall day. Pumpkins, the final days of lavender fields, crisp days, clear skies, and earth tones are all part of the Autumn season. If you’re saturated, warm, and light for an Autumn, you’re a Soft Autumn. If you’re mostly warm, then saturated, and dark for an Autumn, you’re a True Autumn. And, if you’re dark, warm, and clear for an Autumn, you’re a Dark Autumn.
You’ll be making your seasonal color palette analysis by your most dominant features in the order they are the most obvious. If you know you’re warm and saturated, you know you’re going to be an Autumn, now you have to determine where in the Autumn season you fit. The season you’re in is a reference point to define your third feature. Are you light for Winter? Would you say you’re muted for a Spring? Are you dark for Autumn? You can reverse engineer and figure out what you are not, or you can figure out what you definitely are and then narrow down which sub-season you are once you categorize yourself into a season. For instance, if you have your dominant feature picked out and know you’re cool, you now know you’re either a Winter or a Summer. To narrow it down further: are you clear and bright, or muted and saturated? If you can’t tell, think about the types of colors that make you shine and look your best. Do you look best in bright pink or muted pink, in a Sapphire blue or Aegean Blue?
When conducting my own seasonal color palette analysis, there are two border color seasons that I sway between and can probably fit into, depending on who you ask. I know for sure that I am muted or saturated. You couldn’t put a precise color to my hair if you tried. And the people that try always have conflicting answers. Some people call me a redhead, some a blonde, some a strawberry blonde, others a dark blonde, and others a light brown! The list goes on to show just how saturated my hair is. My eyes are the same- they’re green, blue, grey, and even hazel. I have skin saturated with many undertones, but we’ll get to that later. This feature throws me off the most and keeps me straddling the fence between two different color seasons. So because I know I’m saturated (or muted; you will hear either term used interchangeably), I know I’m either a Summer or an Autumn. Well, Summers are cool, and Autumns are warm. Where I fall is between a Soft Summer and a Soft Autumn. I can see myself as both: saturated, warm, and light for Autumn (Soft Autumn) as well as saturated, cool, and dark for Summer (Soft Summer). With my natural hair color taken into account, I believe I am a Soft Autumn that can pull off the colors of a Soft Summer.
The three top features we use to determine our coloring are our skin, eyes, and hair. I get hung up if I’m warm or cool-toned, a Soft Autumn or a Soft Summer. A lot of people my whole life have told me I was cool-toned. But here’s the thing: they told me this when I had been dyeing my natural hair color. Once I grew my natural hair, I realized it was warm. Whether you think it’s blonde, red, or brown, you can easily see that it’s warm. It’s so warm that my boyfriend describes it as golden- the warmest of colors. Although mostly blue (a cool color), my eyes have yellow-green in the center, making them warm for blue. My skin is the hardest to tell whether it’s cool or warm, and I’ve decided through this process that it might be neutral. So because I have two out of three warm features, and the other one is borderline (neutral skin), I fall warmer than I do cool! Who would have guessed?!
The reason I say that I am a borderline Soft Autumn is that I’m so close to Soft Summer that I can pull off a combination of the two suggested color palettes. The main rule of thumb is that I should follow my two dominant features: muted and light (whether you look at me as light for an Autumn or light because Summer is a light season, either way, more delicate colors work better than darker colors). Now, whether I want to wear cool or warm-toned colors is up to me, and there are minor differences in the effect I will create depending on which one I pick. Although I love the Soft Summer palette and am attracted to more cool-toned colors, the fact is, if I want most of my features to pop (hair and eyes), warm-toned colors will do that for me. Cool-toned won’t look weird by any means, but they won’t be cohesive with my warm hair and may bring out my cooler-toned feature (my skin) more, like my purple lips or the blue in my eyes, and make those features pop. It’s nothing to get too hung up on because Soft Summer and Soft Autumn have overlapping similarities in suggested palettes that won’t make much difference when I’m shopping for clothes. I know that for muted seasons, muted colors look best. Anything too radiant, like bright colors, or too stark, like pure black or pure white, won’t make me feel my best. Muted, warm colors, such as beige, cream, and olive, will be cohesive with my coloring and make me shine. Navy over black and ivory over white will look better on me for neutrals.
So, what do you know about your coloring for sure? Do you know you are clear? Do you know you are light? If not, reverse engineer, and by process of elimination, do your seasonal color palette analysis so you can reveal the colors you should incorporate into your wardrobe to feel your best self.
Combining the lines and shapes suggested for your body type and the colors recommended through your seasonal color palette analysis will change the game when it comes to curating a wardrobe that makes you feel your absolute best every day. There are no limits to incorporating this knowledge into your life. I’ve even thought about how I want to include these style influences and color suggestions in my future house and decor to feel like my environment is complimenting me (batshit, I know). Or, if I’m feeling experimental, I can use this information to create an effect. If I want to feel edgy, I will automatically look so in black colors with straight lines, like how I feel when I wear my black leather jacket with sharp tailoring.
I hope this information inspires you to try doing your own seasonal color palette analysis and find your Kibbe body type to boost your confidence in your clothes and change the game with your style.
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