Customer Reviews

Color Me Beautiful's Looking Your Best: Color, Makeup and Style

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As some of the other reviews here indicate, this book would probably be more helpful to the reader whose personal coloring is a seasonal blend, rather than to the reader who can easily identify herself as a Spring, Summer, Autumn, or Winter. If you don't seem to fit a seasonal type, you might find the expanded classifications in this book helpful. That said, I must agree with the reviewers here who complain about the shoddy color palettes and inconsistencies in the text. Considering the fact that the original COLOR ME BEAUTIFUL gave rise to the international CMB industry, one would think they could have allotted a budget for a book as esthetically appealing, not to mention as well written and edited, as Carole Jackson's books.

But wait -- there's plenty more to this book than the section on color classifications, including a genuine improvement over the chapter on style in the original COLOR ME BEAUTIFUL (the most dated chapter in that book). Like Jackson, the authors of this book identify different body types, offering recommendations for each on fabric and design, but Spillane and Sherlock don't link body types to specific styles as Jackson does. This book does have a section on styles (e.g. Classic, Natural, Dramatic, Romantic, Creative), but it has a separate section on body types, which I've found especially helpful. (I was never sure what my body type was until I found it clearly described and illustrated here.) On the whole, the book does not replace Carole Jackson's, but with the above-mentioned reservations I do recommend it.

This is a pretty good overall guide to color, style, and makeup, but it doesn't have the simplicity and timeless appeal that made the original Color Me Beautiful so useful. The expansion from 4 color "palettes" to 12 is not especially helpful; it just leads to more confusion. I also think the authors' cavalier advice that anyone can wear black is harmful to those women who simply will never look their best in black and need to learn how to look formal without relying on that color crutch. I bought Carole Jackson's Color Me Beautiful in 1987 and kept it until the covers were falling off; I bought this version, read it, and gave it away to a friend. Another thing that ticked me off about this version was its bias toward career women; much of its advice (like "honestly, can you really afford to be seen in just a scrubbed face and a touch of lipstick?") doesn't pertain to students, stay-at-home moms, blue-collar workers, home-office workers, or even people with a casual office environment.

Bottom line: if you can still find the original, get it instead; some of the styles shown are a little dated, but most of the advice is as sound today as it was ten years ago. But if you can't find it, or if you really need something with a focus on dressing for success in the business world, then this version is a decent substitute.

Ok if your short on cash buy the original Color me beautiful book. For many of my friends and I who felt that we were torn between two palettes, the expansions did not really clear things up for us... The color palettes really are an embarrassment! whos 3year old colored the squares for the coauthors? This IS a book on color so if you are real torn see the original book ok its dated in fashon but really does a much better job in the color department. As for the makeup section it stinks. I don't agree with their suggestions for eye makeup and eyeliner for alot of people... The best book on makeup is Carole Jackson's color me beautiful make up book... nothing comes close except a professional makeup artists manual I have. Bottom line, stick to Carole Jackson's books for the best information.

I am one of the women who is suppose to find this book helpful because I do not neatly fall into one of the four seasons ....my mother thinks I am a summer, my hairdresser thinks I am a Spring, my husband says I am an autumn. So I buy this book and now I am more confused then ever! The authors use terms they do not define such as muted or topaz, terms which are critical to me being able to sort out my season confusion. Then they suggest I use "color draping" by grabbing clothes or even towels from around the house that match obscure and subtle color differences. Ah, I do not have a "mango" and "salmon" towels or at least I do not think I do. It is hard to tell since the color swatches in the book are as bad as everyone else complains they are. On the up side, I have reread the book four times and really want to like it but I still have NO idea what colors would suit me. Bottom line...do not buy this book.

The only thing I didn't like about this book is the fact that the colors aren't realistic. Other than that, I think it's a great book. I read the original "Color Me Beautiful" book first, but was unable to determine whether I'm a Summer or a Winter. This updated version is much better, because they've expanded the 4 basic seasonal color palettes into 12 (3 for each season). This made it much easier for me to figure out which colors I look best in. I now know that I'm a Clear Winter, not a Summer.

It's the end of 2007. I live in L.A., where staying on the cutting edge of fashion is practically blood sport (pun intended), and I can't believe I'm saying this: I bought this book on a whim. I found a cheap, used copy and thought, "Why not?" When I found tons of useful information, including the first correct "diagnoses" of my season AND my body type, I just about fell out of my chair.

I've tried the original CMB, and the supposedly new-and-improved methods by Doris Pooser and Leatrice Eisemann. They don't hold a candle to this method of finding your best colors and styles. Instead of three color palettes (Eisemann), four (the original CMB), or six (Pooser), Spillane and Sherlock give us twelve to choose from, and a simple rule for expanding our palettes as designers present new colors. If, like me, you don't fit comfortably in the more limited seasonal/time-of-day systems, you'll find yourself here (people of color are included and well represented).

When you find your best colors, wearing an actual color (instead of the ubiquitous black) makes you look and feel sophisticated, stylish, and au courant. This method even works when you want -- or need -- to blend in or present a conservative image. What a relief, and what a pleasure!

Spillane and Sherlock don't just give advice on finding the best clothes for your figure; they actually include a formula. All you need is a tape measure to figure out your bodyline. Then, just follow their advice, and you're on your way.

Other reviewers have mentioned the outdated illustrations and the crayon-style swatches. The bad news is that books, like styles, go out of date. The good news is that, armed with your favorite Internet search engine; the name of your new, expanded season; and a well-constructed search term (like, say, "cool summer" + swatches), you can find several ways to buy fabric swatches in this expanded seasonal color system. With this book and your fabric swatches in hand, you can't go wrong. And, maybe, if enough people ask for it, they'll publish a new edition of this book, or create a web site where styles and photos can be regularly updated.

The text of the book is very helpful. The exercises that are presented helped me to identify my color with some certainty. However, the color swatches presented in the book are so bad that they are next to useless. For example, a color swatch labeled "navy" looks teal. I am amazed that the editors allowed what might have been a very good book to be severely marred by the poor printing of colors. After all, this IS a book about color.

I have NEVER been able to figure out my "season" with either Carole Jackson's Book, or with this one by Mary Spillane. I do not fit into any of the categories they suggest ,even though the seasons are expanded in Spillane's book. (I have ashen blonde hair color like a Summer, olive green/golden brown eyes like an Autumn, and pale translucent ivory skin , like a Spring). The color palletes look like coloring book swatches that were done by a five year old (what are we supposed to gain from that !) Overall a huge disappointment, and only helpful purhaps to those who have well defined seasonal characteristics. For the rest of us, I would suggest basing your color choices on compliments you get from friends and family, and even strangers, and taking your clues from them.

Our old "Color Me Beautiful" book was torn to shreds from looking at it so much, so we bought this update. The 12 subcategories were very helpful to me in honing into my season. I was sure I was one of the warm seasons (spring and autumn), but yet I look great in vibrant colors, and not the more toned down ones of spring, or the deep muted colors of autumn. As soon as I turned to the Clear Spring type in this book, I knew it was my type. It's much easier for people who are "between seasons" to find themselves in this book.

My only gripe, like many other reviewers, is that the color swatches look shoddy and like they were colored with many different colored crayons.

Looking your best is the best source of its kind in my opinion. I found the new version of Color Me Beautiful to be much more helpful than the original because of the expanded 12 color catagories. I could see where I fit in exactly. The theory behind it was very clear. I look at this book every month. This is my favorite book!