If your wardrobe is approximately 80% black, you’re definitely not alone.
Many of us gravitate towards dark colours because they’re easy, chic, and go with just about everything.
We’ve also grown up believing black is the one colour that’s universally flattering, regardless of skin tone.
However, Erica Cheon, founder of Singapore-based Korean image consulting company Ohrae Studio, says that might not always be the case.
That said, she is quick to clarify that colour analysis isn’t about banning anyone from their favourite shades or restricting personal style.
Rather, it’s about helping people better understand what brings out their natural beauty and feel more confident in their own skin, she tells MS News.
Born in Korea, Ms Cheon studied marketing at RMIT University in Australia. She then arrived in Singapore on exchange about 10 years ago.
After graduating, she built a marketing career across F&B, tech, pharma, and beauty in both Singapore and Korea.
It was through her time in Singapore that she began to notice a gap in beauty knowledge between the two markets.
Thus, she decided she wanted to become a “bridge” between them.
One thing that surprised her was that many people in Singapore may not wear makeup often. However, they remain interested in it.
“The more I held my sessions, the more I realised people actually have interest in makeup,” she says. “There just aren’t many places to gain the knowledge.”
Determined to make the career pivot, Ms Cheon began studying image consulting about five years ago. And she did so while juggling her full-time corporate job.
Over roughly two years, she attended 14 certification courses across six different institutes in Korea.
Each school offered a slightly different approach, from colour analysis to styling and beauty techniques.
She later pieced together these approaches into her own method.
That eventually became Ohrae Studio, which Ms Cheon opened about a year and a half ago.
The studio is now housed in a cosy, sunlit unit at Pearl’s Hill Terrace. It offers personal colour analysis, Korean makeup coaching, and fashion styling.
Ohrae Studio is the only practice in Singapore where a Korean specialist offers an integrated consultation. This approach combines personal colour analysis, Korean makeup coaching, and fashion styling within a single framework. Clients avoid the hassle of seeking out separate providers for each service.
You might have heard a bit about colour analysis. It looks at factors such as undertone, whether someone’s colouring leans warm or cool, and contrast. The methodology also looks at how different shades interact with a person’s skin, hair, and facial features.
From there, people are generally sorted into four broad “seasons”: spring, summer, autumn, and winter. These “seasons” are based on the colours that best complement their natural features.
Of the four, Ms Cheon said winters are typically the ones who can pull off head-to-toe black most easily.
Everyone else, however, may look better in a different version of “black” altogether.
Autumns, she explained, are usually better off in deep brown. Springs tend to suit lighter browns or navy more than true black. And summers generally look best in charcoal or a greyed-out, dustier black.
“You can still wear black, but different tones of black,” she clarified.
This is because while black is often seen as versatile, its effect can vary from person to person.
For some people, it can create a sense of visual heaviness, softening their natural clarity rather than enhancing it.
Another common misconception she has noticed is that people with tanner skin automatically assume they should wear darker colours.
“But actually, they can take lighter colours, too,” she says, adding that it still depends on the individual.
Curious to see how it all worked in practice, MS News tried out a session at Ohrae Studio.
The process started with a colourimeter from Korea. This device measures skin undertone against a database rather than relying on guesswork or room lighting.
From there, Ms Cheon worked through swatch after swatch. She draped fabrics over our shoulders, according to the season, to see which shades brightened our complexion. This draping also showed which ones made our complexion appear duller.
The tones all looked almost identical to our untrained eyes at first. However, we gradually noticed how each one subtly changed the way our skin and eyes looked.
The personal colour analysis session itself also includes a lip products trial. Different lip colours are tested to find the shades that best suit the client’s season.
Eyeshadow, foundation, and blusher swatching, on the other hand, are covered separately under Ohrae Studio’s Korean natural makeup class.
This walks clients through building a full face of makeup, from foundation application techniques to eyeshadow and blush selection. And it’s all based on their personal colour results.
Image courtesy of Ohrae Studio
At the end of the session, we first learnt that we were best suited to an “Autumn Dark” palette. This means we should generally reach for warm, earthy colours such as olive, chocolate brown, and burgundy.
Jewellery-wise, gold and warm bronze were recommended over silver. And hair colour advice leaned towards warmer, deeper browns instead of ashy or cool-toned shades.
Ms Cheon also took our personal preferences and observations into account.
We mentioned, for instance, that we had always felt we looked good in orange. And she noted that this aligned more closely with a true autumn palette. Ms Cheon added “Autumn Strong” into our final results.
These personal observations matter because a one-hour session only goes so far. A personal colour analysis is ultimately about weighing a person’s colouring against their lifestyle and preferences. It is not about landing on a single rigid label.
Image courtesy of Ohrae Studio
That’s why clients fill in a checklist before each session, noting the colours they usually wear, along with details such as their job, age, and lifestyle.
After all, not everyone wants to overhaul their wardrobe just because a colour isn’t their “best” shade.
If someone has a strong preference for dark colours, for instance, Ms Cheon would help them find darker shades that work better for their palette. Or she might incorporate their favourite colours through accessories, smaller accents, or slightly adjusted tones.
Image courtesy of Ohrae Studio
“There are actually a lot of options for each season,” she said. “I don’t like the approach where I limit people. I prefer to give more of a colour spectrum.”
Ms Cheon is clearly proud of the scientific rigour behind her method. However, when asked what she is ultimately trying to achieve, her answer has little to do with colour theory alone.
For her, the goal is to help people recognise their own natural beauty, feel more confident in their choices, and understand how to bring out the best version of themselves.
This makes sense since it’s empowering to learn that it’s not that you look bad in red lipstick. You just need to know exactly what shade of red lipstick truly suits you.
She recalled one client, a busy working professional who didn’t really have much of a beauty routine before coming to Ohrae.
After going through colour analysis, a lip trial, and a full makeup class, the client was moved to tears.
“She told me it was the day she felt the most beautiful in her life,” Ms Cheon said. “I’ll never forget that.”
It is this kind of response, she added, that reflects what she set out to do when she started Ohrae.
I want people who come to Ohrae to feel happy. For me, it goes beyond analysis. I want them to realise how to love themselves.
For more information about Ms Cheon’s services and to book a session, visit Ohrae Studio’s official website.
Ohrae Studio
Address: 195 Pearl’s Hill Terrace, #1-47, Singapore 168976
Opening hours: 9am to 6pm (closed on Mondays and Thursdays)
Nearest MRT station: Chinatown
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Featured image by MS News. Photography by Felicia Fun.