The World Is Better With Color: House of Colour On Martha’s Vineyard

*As of April 11th, House of Colour on Martha’s Vineyard will no longer be available. Wendy and her husband are on to new adventures down south. Thank you Wendy for helping so many people feel more beautiful!

For a while now, people have been telling me I should get my colors done. But why? I like color, well some, and feel like I can pull myself together when necessary (and time allotted).

Why meet with someone to tell me what I should wear? I’ll tell you why, because it’s an amazing experience.

House Of Colour

Wendy Jacob brought England’s House of Colour to Martha’s Vineyard five years ago. Leaving a lucrative corporate job behind, she chose to become a House of Colour personal stylist and image consultant.

Nine years ago, Wendy was in the UK for work, and every day she would be amazed at how put together the British women were. Women of all shapes and sizes, so well dressed, especially the facilitator of her group. Finally she asked and was told it was because of House of Colour.

Well of course she tried to book an appointment at this thing that was working for so many women, but there was a two year wait list. Two years later, she was back, and the experience changed her life. She wanted to, needed to, become a House of Colour consultant.

The franchise packet sat on her desk for four years, waiting, calling her, and then the time finally came. Wendy quit the corporate world and began her training which was intensive. She trained in London, and was one of the first House of Colour consultants in the United States.

Her husband thought she was a little crazy. Martha’s Vineyard is small place. How will she grow her business? Not only does she have several clients here, but she also does “pop-up” House of Colour experiences in a number of other places, including D.C., NYC, Boston and more.

There are three core classes, Colour Analysis, Personal Style, and Make-Up. My friends and I signed up for the first class, the Colour Analysis. The House of Colour analysis takes your natural colouring and equips you with the knowledge and confidence to look fabulous – effortlessly, every single day.

The Experience

Wendy Harman, Catherine McCarthy, and I booked our appointments on a Wednesday. The sessions require a time commitment. Ours was scheduled from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. None of us necessarily knew what to expect but we were all intrigued.

Wendy Jacobs greeted us, looking gorgeous and radiant, and welcomed us. Here, we were able chat with her, and find out how she began working with House of Colour. Then it was upstairs to her studio, where there were swatches of colors, make-up, a rack of clothing, a great assortment of snacks and more.

The House of Colour color wheel is divided into four season, Winter, Summer, Fall, and Spring. The first two are based on colors with blue in them, and the second are based with colors with yellow in them. I thought for certain I was a Spring. I loved the color palette. Winter was a favorite too, because it had black in it — the only season to have the most coveted color of many women.

Catherine went first. We were all trying to guess what her season was. We were convinced that Wendy J could just look at you and know, but she said that’s not the case. I should note, we were all there with make-up free faces. The underlying pigment color of your face plays a big roll the process.

Wendy J began draping Catherine in colors, trying to figure out if she was blue based or yellow based. It was pretty easy to see that she looked amazing in blue based colors. Things got pretty interesting. It was like a light switch going on and off.

It turns out that Catherine is a Summer – which is a collection of colors that are very light and feminine, ones that she would normally not gravitate towards. Colors that were her colors almost transformed her.

The “right” colors made her look younger, well rested, blessed with a natural even skin tone. Many even gave her cheeks a more sculpted look. It was amazing to watch. When her color was on her — she luminous. When a yellow based color was on her she look sallow and tired.

Color swatches that were her colors looked luxe and fresh. The same fabric but wrong colors looked as Wendy said “Like a cheap Walmart bath robe.” If I hadn’t witnessed the difference with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it.

Then once her color/season was determined, the next step was to categorize the colors. There is a booklet where you fill out, well Wendy Harman filled out, how to wear the colors. For example, some where colors that she could wear head to toe 100%, others where ones that she should wear as an accessory color, etc.

It had such a dramatic impact on Catherine. It’s quite the experience to sit in front of a mirror for a period of time, and see colors that you may never even think of wearing transform your appearance.

I went after Catherine, and being in the chair was so different from watching someone else. Seeing the colors on you, how easy it was to make me look like I were rested instead of my usual under eye blues shining through.

Wendy was after me. Our session went longer than expected but no one could leave. We had to see what we each were. Wendy was a Spring, and she too look amazing in her colors.

I’ve not seen her wear anything but black and grey, but when one of her oranges was draped on her, I was mesmerized by how beautiful she looked. She’s beautiful all the time, but her skin became radiant and she looked so refreshed. Once again, it was crazy to see the impact of the right colors on her.

However for me, it was hard to see so many of my favorite colors not in my season, like navy or black. However, I did tell Wendy J that I would most likely cheat because I love navy, and black is necessary sometimes. But I did say that I would accessorize with a color that is one of my colors, and that’s OK. This is a guideline to help you look your best.

It takes about two years for most women to get on track with their season. What happens is they begin to notice a difference in how they are perceived when wearing one of their colors. A lot more compliments. Thus feeling happier in their colors. It’s a process in and of itself.

Empowerment Is the Goal

The goal of House of Colour is to give you the tools to look your best every day with minimal effort. Think about it. We only wear 15% of the clothes in our closet, and 85% just sit there, as we wear the same thing over and over again.

However, for Wendy J, all her clothes are in her season, Autumn, and work with each other. She never has to think about what to wear. It all helps her look her best.

The right colors take years off your face, pounds off your body, and seem to give you a glow. All of this can help you lead to feeling better and more confident. Wendy J has had so many woman share their success stories with her. How feeling good and looking good has helped them achieve more in their lives, how something that seems so simple, like the color clothes you wear, can have such a power impact. Helping people, both women and men become more successful.

What an experience. I can understand why Wendy J left her job to do this. It was a truly eye-opening, overwhelming, enlightening experience — one that really surprised me.

Oh yes, you get a “wallet” with your palette of colors to keep. So, you can bet the next time I go clothes shopping, that bad boy is coming with me. I like looking like my skin is even and like I got eight hours of sleep, yes please. The right color can do it. I’ve seen it.

When you see a woman so put together, chances are she has had her colors done. Perhaps I’ll even end up doing the Personal Style consultation, see what my style in addition to my right colors.

You can learn more about Wendy and House of Colour on Facebook, perhaps schedule a time to get your colors done. Be sure to go with a friend or two. It’s an experience to share with others.  And speaking of social media, don’t forget to “Like” us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter, Linked In, Google+, Pinterest and Youtube.