Meet Gretchen
The Color Lady!
I believe that every woman deserves to look and feel her absolute best.
My mission is to empower women to embrace their unique beauty, enhance their personal style, and "let their inner radiance shine".
My Story...
Long before there was a Hobby Lobby, there was Joanie's Arts and Crafts, my mother's shop. I was raised with artists and crafty people all around me. Instead of being babysat after school, I went to classes at Joanie's. Decoupage, Rose modeling, Paper Tolle, and all things crafty people could imagine. Colors and paints were a huge part of our lives. I ventured from being crafty and used that background, to loving makeup artistry, though it was only a hobby.
I worked as a RN for 35 years, but anyone who knows me, knows that I always wanted to be in the Beauty and Skin Care business. I sold cosmetics and did color analysis back in the late 80's and early 90's and always hoped to go to Cosmetology school later in my life.
I eventually, at the age 58, after retiring from nursing, attended the Aveda Institute to study Esthetics. Color Me Beautiful Raleigh, combines my knowledge of art, my passion for helping others, my love of colors and my understanding and years of studying skin care and applying make up.
I have fine tuned my color analysis skills and completed the Mastery Level Program with Karen Brunger at the The International Institute of Image Consultants. Karen is a world leader in personal image transformation.
In my experience, I have done in person Color Analysis on nearly a thousand people. Let me help you to find your best colors.
Spring
Autumn
Summer
Winter
The Retro Fashion Theory from the 80's is Back
Color Analysis was a huge trend in the 80's
and early 90's. I was there for it then,
and I am here for it now!
1988
2023
Welcome to Color Me Beautiful Raleigh!
About our Seasonal Color Analysis Process
Helping you find your WOW palette is a step-by-step process that starts with YOU.
When doing a color analysis I examine the hue, value, and chroma of the coloring in your skin, eyes, and hair.
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Then, using individual drapes of fabrics, I can identify your:
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Seasonal Color Palette (summer, spring, autumn, or winter), and
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Your Dominant Type (deep, light, warm, cool, clear, soft), which relates to the combination of your features.
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Knowing if you're Warm (which is yellow-based), or Cool (which is blue-based) is just as important as your season.
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There are the two Cool palettes – one intense, the other muted.
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There are the two Warm palettes – one is earthy, the other light and bright.
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By the end of the session, you'll know just what colors will bring out your most beautiful look!
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What colors harmonize with your complexion and features.
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We'll dive into which colors you'd actually wear.
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You can receive a Swatch wallet with your wow colors, and we'll also go through the makeup and hair colors that are best for you.
Choosing clothing, jewelry and accessories -- and looking fabulous in any situation -- is about to be easier than ever before.
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That's why Color Me Beautiful, is my favorite for seasonal color analysis -- and why I'm confident it will soon be your favorite, too!
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“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”