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What’s This About

Deep/Dark Autumn is the deepest palette of the Autumn family: rich, dark colours with a warm lean, sitting on the border with the cool-leaning Deep/Dark Winter.

This guide explains how to compare the palette with your own colouring and wear its colours, such as:

what Deep/Dark Autumn means in the twelve-season convention

feature clues that are not entry requirements

checking the palette with clothes you own, starting with Deep/Dark Winter

main colours, neutrals, accents and colours often listed to avoid

what to buy first and outfit formulas through the year

colour placement by body shape, metals and glasses

and many more!

Treat the palette as a direction to compare against your own colouring, not a fixed label.

Key Points

01Depth leads and warmth follows. Dark chocolate, forest green, deep burgundy, burnt sienna and deep teal are the centre of the palette, and light neutrals such as ivory belong to the palette because it relies on contrast.

02Dark hair and dark eyes do not settle the palette, because Deep/Dark Winter shares the depth. The test is warm against cool at the same depth: a chocolate brown or forest green against a cool navy or a cool, blue-based plum, in daylight, watching your face rather than the cloth.

03Golden or bronzed skin, deep brown or black hair with warm lights, and dark brown, hazel or deep green eyes are common clues, not entry requirements. This guide does not assign a palette from tanning, burning or wrist-vein colour.

04Black is the one “avoid” colour worth thinking about here, because this palette comes closest to wearing it. A warm near-black, espresso or dark chocolate does its job near the face; black itself is fine away from it and under a black tie dress code.

It sits inside the Autumn colour family with Soft Autumn and True/Warm Autumn, and it shares a border with Deep/Dark Winter, a useful neighbouring palette to compare.

What Deep/Dark Autumn Means

This guide follows The Concept Wardrobe’s twelve-season descriptions for the palette’s relative position.

Providers use different names and divisions, so treat a seasonal label as a styling convention rather than a measurement.

Each of the twelve palettes is described by depth, temperature and intensity, treated as three separate qualities, and Deep/Dark Autumn is the palette where depth comes first.

Dark Autumn colour palette chart of beige, grey, orange and green swatches on a burgundy ground — The VOU’s Deep/Dark Autumn palette chart.

Deep/Dark Autumn is defined by depth first.

Most of its colours are dark, and the ones that are not (ivory, warm beige, deep gold) exist to create contrast against the dark ones.

Its temperature is a warm lean rather than the leading quality it is in True/Warm Autumn.

The palette contains chocolate, olive, rust and burnt orange rather than the blue-black, cool plum and icy white of Deep/Dark Winter.

Depth, not temperature, is what sets it apart from the other two Autumn palettes, and it sits at the Winter end of Autumn because Deep/Dark Winter is the deep palette on the cool side of the border.

Its intensity is medium: richer than Soft Autumn, less vivid than the Winter palettes next door.

Deep/Dark Autumn colours run through these families:

Greens from pine and forest green to a deep olive.

Browns in dark chocolate and rich mahogany.

Oranges in burnt orange and a deep copper.

Reds in deep burgundy and rich garnet.

Neutrals in warm ivory, deep taupe and rich, warm greys.

The table below shows the same five colour families across the three Autumn palettes, so you can see what changes.

Colour family	Deep/Dark Autumn	True/Warm Autumn	Soft Autumn
Green	Deep forest green	Warm olive	Muted sage
Brown	Rich mahogany	Warm chocolate	Soft camel
Orange	Burnt sienna	Pumpkin	Muted terracotta
Red	Deep garnet	Warm brick	Soft burgundy
Neutral	Deep taupe	Rich khaki	Warm grey

Read across a row and the warmth is shared; what changes is depth between Deep and True, and intensity between True and Soft.

The comparison this palette most needs, though, is with a palette outside Autumn altogether: Deep/Dark Winter, which has the same depth with a cool lean.

What You Might Notice in Your Own Features

Record skin depth and any visible cast separately.

An olive-looking cast or deeper skin does not assign you to a palette; an unclear cast means the observation remains unresolved, not that you have proved a neutral undertone.

Warm or cool is the styling interpretation you are investigating.

There is a standard description of Deep/Dark Autumn colouring in the professional guides, and it is useful as long as you read it as a list of clues and not as a test you have to pass.

Three men in a burgundy suit, a dark blue jacket and a mustard jacket against colour swatches — Three outfits shown as Deep/Dark Autumn colour ideas. The outfits are illustrations only: a photograph cannot confirm anyone’s colour season.

Skin. Deep/Dark Autumn skin is described in the professional guides as neutral to neutral-warm in cast, golden, olive or bronze rather than rosy, at any depth from fair to deep.

Depth and cast are both visible in a mirror; note them for the face and neck together, and keep them apart in your notes, because a deep skin depth is not the same observation as a warm cast.

Hair. The usual examples are medium to dark golden brown, dark auburn, dark brown and a brown-black with warm lights that show in sunlight.

Judge coloured hair at the roots and grey hair as it is now, noting whether the grey is a warm salt-and-pepper or a steel grey, because the two read differently beside the face.

Eyes. Dark brown, warm black-brown, dark hazel and a deep green are the usual examples, often with golden flecks around the pupil.

Contrast. Usually medium to high.

Either the features are all dark, so the contrast is with the whites of the eyes and the teeth, or dark hair and eyes sit against lighter skin.

Contrast is a difference between areas, so look at hair against skin and brow against forehead, not at one feature alone.

If your hair, beard or visible skin colour changes, record the current appearance and compare your clothes again.

Do not assume that every change moves you to another palette or automatically improves your previous one.

Wrist-vein colour, tanning, burning and jewellery preference do not establish a seasonal palette on their own.

The sources reviewed do not establish their accuracy as standalone seasonal tests.

Record a tan as context for the appearance you are styling, and do not seek sun exposure to test your colours.

Record natural hair where you can see it and current hair separately, including dye, highlights and greying.

Do not guess an unavailable natural shade.

Brows and beard contribute to the appearance you are styling; if you are bald, compare with your visible skin, eyes, brows and any facial hair.

Note the iris’s main colour and any different centre or edge without requiring every feature to match.

How to Check Deep/Dark Autumn With Clothes You Own

Start with two plain garments you already own.

This is an approximate comparison, not a calibrated test.

Keep the lighting and garment area similar and note when the clothes differ in more than one colour quality.

An unclear result can stay unresolved.

Set up. Indirect daylight from a window, a plain background, no tinted lamps; hair pushed back, glasses off, and your attention on your own face and neck rather than on the garment.

Keep the garment area, position, finish and lighting similar.

When comparing temperature or intensity, keep lightness reasonably close.

When comparing depth, deliberately change lightness while keeping the other qualities as similar as you can.

If a pair changes several qualities, treat it as a rough comparison and record that limit.

Comparison one: Deep/Dark Autumn against Deep/Dark Winter. Keep both colours deep and change the temperature.

Hold a dark chocolate, forest green or warm burgundy under your chin, then swap it for a cool navy, a cool blue-based plum or black of similar depth.

Watch for a colour cast appearing across the face or neck, for shadows beside the nose and under the eyes looking heavier, and for whether your features stay easy to see.

Swap at least twice.

This is the comparison that matters most, because depth alone cannot tell the two palettes apart.

Comparison two: Deep/Dark Autumn against True/Warm Autumn. Keep the warmth and change the depth.

Compare a dark chocolate with a golden brown, or a deep burgundy with a terracotta.

If the deep colour holds its own and the medium one looks washed out, that supports Deep; if the medium colour looks right and the deep one looks heavy, look at True/Warm.

Comparison three: Deep/Dark Autumn against Soft Autumn. Keep the warmth and lower both the depth and the intensity.

Compare a forest green with a greyed sage.

This pair changes two qualities at once, so treat it as a rough check rather than a clean test.

If the rich, deep colour looks settled and the soft one looks flat, that supports Deep.

Read the result carefully. A difference counts when it repeats on a second swap and, better, on a second day.

Note which colour you prefer and which colour leaves your face clearer as two different findings.

If it stays close. Keep both palettes in your shortlist; a close result is a result.

Deep/Dark Autumn and Deep/Dark Winter overlap at the dark end: deep teal, dark olive and charcoal are names worth trying in both their warmer and cooler versions, and for a light neutral compare a warm ivory or cream shirt with a true white one beside your face rather than assuming either palette owns it; a wardrobe built from the garments that pass will serve you while you keep comparing.

The garment beside your face decides, not the colour name.

A professional analyst uses a complete set of controlled drapes and a trained eye, and may work in a different framework or reach a different reading from yours.

An appointment is a possible next step for a close call between the two Deep palettes, not a guaranteed answer.

The Deep/Dark Autumn Palette

Colour names are shopping references, not specifications.

Cloth, lighting and screens affect what you see.

Compare the actual garment beside your face and consider its role in the whole outfit.

Autumn section of a seasonal colour wheel with swatches and headshots — The Autumn family from The VOU’s colour wheel. The faces are illustrations only: a photograph cannot confirm anyone’s colour season.

Main Colours

Reds are deep and rich, from a deep burgundy to a rich garnet, with more depth than True/Warm Autumn reds and none of the softness of Soft Autumn ones.

A burgundy tie with a business suit, or a garnet polo shirt at the weekend, are typical uses.

Browns are deep and warm: aged mahogany, dark chocolate.

A chocolate brown shirt is a good alternative to white in a professional setting.

Yellows are deep gold and rich amber rather than lemon; a deep gold knit brings warmth up to the face without lifting the depth.

Greens are the heart of the palette: forest green, pine, deep olive, all dark and all at the medium intensity of this palette, fuller than Soft Autumn’s greyed greens and never as vivid as Winter’s emerald.

A forest green sports jacket is a bold but distinguished choice for an autumn event.

Neutrals

Neutrals are what most of a wardrobe is made of, and Deep/Dark Autumn neutrals keep the same depth and warmth as the accents.

Whites are warm ivory and deep cream rather than optic white.

Greys run from a deep taupe to a rich charcoal with a warm cast; a deep taupe suit is the alternative to black tailoring.

Browns and camels run from a dark camel to espresso, and a dark camel overcoat is this guide’s first choice of coat for the palette.

Navy remains a useful neutral.

Try a deep version with an ivory shirt near the face, and compare the actual cloth; navy is a broad retail name, not an exact colour specification.

Accent Colours

Oranges from a deep copper to burnt sienna.

A burnt sienna tie or pocket square lifts a chocolate suit.

Blues and teals from a deep teal to a rich peacock blue, with underlying warmth; deep teal is the blue to choose for a casual or semi-formal shirt.

Purples in a warm, red-based plum and rich aubergine, bridging the reds and browns; the cool, blue-based plum used in the Winter comparison above is a different colour.

Warm plum works as a knit or a scarf.

Colours Often Listed to Avoid, and What to Do Instead

Most Deep/Dark Autumn guides list icy blue, bright silver, cool pink, neon green, electric blue, bright yellow, baby blue, mint, lavender, stark white, cool black and primary red as colours to avoid.

These are starting points for comparison, not a list of forbidden colours.

A retail name covers many shades, and you may enjoy a deliberate contrast.

Colours nearest the face are the most direct comparison for facial colour effects.

Trousers and shoes still contribute to the whole outfit, but they offer more freedom to use colours outside your usual palette.

Black. This palette comes closer to wearing black than any other Autumn palette, and professional guides differ: some list black among the colours to avoid, others describe a warm near-black with a slight green or brown cast as a usable dark neutral for Deep Autumn.

Compare a black knit with a dark chocolate one beside your face and decide from what you see.

Black trousers, black shoes and a black overcoat over an ivory scarf are fine in any case.

Use position and amount. Cool navy trousers with a rust knit, a black coat over a cream scarf, or a bright colour reduced to a stripe in a tie all keep the strong colour in a smaller or less prominent area.

Use the deeper, warmer version. Where a garment has to be dark or cool, choose espresso rather than black, a warm charcoal rather than a cold one, a deep navy with a hint of warmth rather than an inky one.

Black tie. Follow the invitation rather than changing formal clothes to match a palette.

Conventional choices include a black or midnight-blue dinner suit, a white evening shirt, a black bow tie and suitable black formal shoes.

Creative black tie and black tie optional are different instructions; consult the dress-code guidance and ask the host when the invitation is unclear.

The white shirt. Compare soft white, a brighter white and cream in similar cloth if you have them.

Keep whichever combination works for your outfit and dress code; a shirt you need for formal occasions need not be replaced to follow a palette.

What to Buy First

The foundation of a Deep/Dark Autumn wardrobe is its deep, warm neutrals; the light neutrals and the rich accents supply the contrast the palette is built on.

Suits and formal wear. Start from what your office expects: where the code is navy or charcoal, a deep, slightly warm navy or a warm charcoal suit meets it and keeps an ivory shirt by the face.

Where the room allows more, a deep forest green or deep olive suit and a rich brown or mahogany suit are this guide’s choices.

For occasions that allow it, a deep burgundy suit is a standout.

The guides to tailored suits and Savile Row tailoring cover cut, cloth and making, which decide more than colour does.

Shirts. Ivory shirts first, then a deep copper, and deep teal, burnt sienna and deep gold for smart-casual days.

Knitwear and casual tops. Polo shirts and t-shirts in forest green, burgundy and deep gold; knitwear in dark camel and burnt sienna.

Trousers. Chinos in deep taupe and rich khaki; jeans in a dark, warm-toned indigo rather than a light or faded wash.

Outerwear. A dark camel overcoat, then a mahogany or forest green pea coat; for casual jackets, a burnt sienna bomber or a forest green field jacket.

Accessories. Ties and pocket squares in burgundy, deep teal and burnt sienna; belts and watch straps in dark brown.

The old money accessories guide covers which accessories to own; this page covers only their colour.

Shoes. Dark brown or burgundy leather for the office, burnt sienna loafers or deep olive trainers for the weekend.

Sportswear and swimwear. Deep teal, forest green and burgundy kit; swim shorts in teal, burgundy or burnt sienna with an ivory linen shirt.

The capsule below is one worked example rather than a list to buy.

The counts are example quantities, not minimums, and the colours were chosen so that most of the garments combine with most of the others; check your own combinations in a mirror, and start from the clothes you already own, the dress codes you meet and how often you wear each category.

Category	Example count	Example
Suits	2	1 deep forest green wool suit, 1 rich mahogany wool suit
Blazers	2	1 deep taupe wool-blend blazer, 1 deep burgundy linen blazer
Trousers	3	warm charcoal wool trousers, rich khaki chinos, dark indigo jeans
Shirts	5	2 ivory dress shirts, 1 deep copper Oxford, 1 forest green linen shirt, 1 deep gold cotton shirt
T-shirts	5	ivory, deep teal, burgundy, deep gold, forest green
Knitwear	3	dark camel merino, burgundy cashmere, deep olive cotton
Outerwear	2	dark camel wool overcoat, mahogany wool pea coat
Shoes	3	dark brown brogues, ivory leather trainers, burgundy suede loafers
Accessories	5	forest green tie, burgundy tie, deep teal pocket square, deep gold pocket square, dark brown belt

The guide to building a capsule wardrobe explains how to audit what you own and decide a build order, and the Old Money capsule wardrobe guide shows sixteen illustrated garments for that one style.

Two complete outfits to try

For work. Warm charcoal suit, ivory shirt, deep teal tie and dark brown leather Oxfords.

Charcoal meets many office needs, ivory supplies light at the collar, and the tie adds colour without replacing the neutral suit.

For a casual day. Forest-green knit, dark indigo jeans, dark brown leather boots and a dark camel coat.

The knit and jeans preserve depth, while the lighter coat provides an optional contrast.

Choose cloth weight for the weather.

Outfit Formulas Through the Year

The palette is the same all year; the cloth weight and the share of light neutrals against deep colours are what move with the season.

Season	Casual	Business	Evening
Spring	Forest green polo, rich khaki chinos, ivory trainers	Deep olive suit, ivory shirt, burnt sienna tie	Ivory shirt, mahogany blazer, deep olive trousers
Summer	Deep teal t-shirt, dark camel shorts, dark brown sandals	Deep taupe suit, deep copper shirt, forest green pocket square	Ivory linen shirt, deep olive chinos, dark brown loafers
Autumn	Burgundy jumper, deep taupe chinos, dark brown boots	Forest green suit, ivory shirt, burgundy tie	Deep copper shirt, mahogany blazer, warm charcoal trousers
Winter	Forest green jumper, dark indigo jeans, dark brown trainers	Warm charcoal suit, ivory shirt, deep teal tie	Chocolate rollneck, dark camel overcoat, deep olive trousers

Choose fabric weight for the weather and dress code.

Light cotton, linen or lightweight wool can carry these colours in warm conditions; flannel, corduroy and heavier knits offer options in colder weather.

No seasonal palette requires one fibre or texture.

Availability varies by retailer and season.

Compare the actual garments rather than the colour name in a catalogue, and check the return policy when ordering online.

A useful colour can work in different weather when its fabric and construction suit the conditions.

Colour Combinations That Use the Contrast

Try a light shirt against a deep jacket when you want value contrast, or two visibly different dark colours for a quieter combination.

Burgundy with forest green adds hue contrast, but the light-dark difference depends on the actual cloth.

Compare the effect rather than assuming your features require a particular contrast level.

Type	Colour 1	Colour 2	Colour 3	Outfit
One colour family	Forest green	Deep olive	Rich khaki	Forest green blazer, olive shirt, khaki trousers
Two-colour contrast	Deep burgundy	Deep teal	Ivory	Burgundy shirt, teal accessories, ivory trousers
Related colours	Burnt sienna	Deep gold	Dark camel	Sienna jumper, gold t-shirt, camel scarf
Three-colour outfit	Mahogany	Forest green	Deep copper	Mahogany shirt, forest green tie, copper pocket square
Neutral base	Deep taupe	Ivory	Deep teal	Taupe coat, ivory shirt, teal scarf

When several deep colours start to look like too much, use a column of colour: one colour on top and bottom under a neutral jacket, or one deep colour against a light neutral with texture (a cable knit, a tweed, a suede shoe) supplying the interest.

The guide to one-colour outfits covers the first approach in detail.

Patterns can be bold and fairly large here: a geometric tie in burgundy and deep gold, a stripe in ivory and deep copper, a check jacket in forest green and brown.

Wearing the Palette With Your Body Shape

Colour and proportion are separate decisions that meet at one point: where on the body the light and the dark colours go.

The table offers four selected examples, not the full body-shape system.

These are The VOU’s colour-placement suggestions to compare in a mirror, not rules, and the guide to men’s body shapes explains what the labels can and cannot tell you.

Body shape	Usual description	Colour placement to try
Triangle	Narrower shoulders, wider hips and thighs	Richer accents (forest green, burnt sienna) on top and near the face; the deepest neutral (mahogany) in the trousers
Inverted triangle	Broad shoulders, narrower waist and hips	Lighter colours (dark camel, ivory) below; deep tones on top
Oval	Fuller midsection	One deep colour top and bottom for fewer contrasting breaks; optional accents in accessories
Rectangle	Similar width at shoulder, waist and hip	Two or three palette colours in one outfit to break the line

Whatever your proportions, keep the colours that compare best near the face, let the neutrals balance them, and get the fit right before worrying about either; the fitting guide explains what a well-fitting garment looks like and the guide to silhouettes explains the shapes clothes make.

The optional body shape quiz for men is a separate tool on this site.

Metals, Glasses and Small Details

Deep/Dark Autumn guides usually recommend gold, bronze, brass, copper and pewter, with less shine and more depth, over bright silver.

A brushed gunmetal often works where polished silver does not.

Check it rather than assume it: hold a gold-toned and a silver-toned watch against the inside of your wrist and the side of your face in daylight and keep whichever blends rather than glares, and remember that mixing metals can be a deliberate choice.

For glasses and sunglasses, dark tortoiseshell, amber, honey, olive and dark brown acetates and bronze or gold metal frames tend to sit more quietly than glossy black or bright silver, although black frames are more wearable here than in any other Autumn palette.

Choose fit, lenses and a frame shape you like first; the face-shape guide deals with shape and proportion, which are separate questions from colour.

Leather in dark brown and burgundy, and socks in palette colours, keep the palette consistent below the waist.

If the result remains unclear

Keep a shortlist rather than forcing one label.

Wear the combinations you prefer, repeat a specific unresolved comparison in consistent light, and note when a garment changes several qualities at once.

Personal preference can overrule a palette suggestion.

House of Colour describes a lasting seasonal label, while Colour Me Beautiful offers a tonal review when appearance changes.

You can reconsider the depth and contrast of your clothes without treating those systems as identical.

A consultation is optional; ask which framework is used and how the assessment works.

Where to go next

The seasonal colour overview explains the full system, and the Autumn family guide compares its three palettes.

For a closer comparison, read Deep/Dark Winter; True/Warm Autumn; Soft Autumn.

Use the capsule wardrobe guide to work from clothes you own and the smart-casual guide for occasion-specific choices.

If you want help with a close comparison, ask The VOU how its colour consultations are run.

Framework note. The paired names in this collection refer to the same palette within its twelve-season convention.

Kettlewell’s sixteen-type descriptions use some familiar names differently.

Check the provider’s framework before equating two results.

Deep/Dark Autumn Colour Palette for Men, With Combinations That Use the Contrast