Tune In: What An Intuitive Aura Reader Wants You To Know About Color Palettes & More

Recently I was chatting with intuitive energy reader and stylist Susanna Merrick, founder of Aura Wear (you can hear the conversation on today's Clean Beauty School episode). The topic centered around the intersection of expression, beauty, and self-maintenance. 

The entire conversation is peppered with insights. (For example, she told me that "instead of seeing beauty rituals as a treat or privilege, view it as 'taking care of yourself is your rite of passage of being in your human form'"—which is now one of my favorite Clean Beauty School quotes.) But we also get into some trending topics, which include the viral sensation of finding your "color palette." 

Personal color palettes are nothing new, but the last time it has seen this big of a surge was 40-plus years ago with Carole Jackson's Color Me Beautiful, a book that skyrocketed to the New York Times bestseller list (so, yes, it went viral back then too). Now folks are using TikTok filters and virtual consultations to find their go-to hues. 

When we stumbled onto the topic of color palettes, I had to get her take on why this is everywhere right now—basically, what is it about the climate that made this feel so relevant again? Well, she says it boils down to two things. 

The first is fairly universal: "People just want to feel seen," she says. But the second speaks to something much more specific. "We're coming out of a time in which there was so much uncertainty. People were pushed to make really big decisions without really knowing what the outcome of those might be," she says. And that, understandably, led to a bit of burnout and decision fatigue. 

Having a spectrum of colors preselected that you just knew were going to complement your undertones, make your eyes pop, and make your complexion glow—no fuss necessary? Of course that sounded appealing, Merrick says.

But as she goes on to explain, ultimately it's not that simple. For one, it can often feel alienating: "A lot of these programs are built for white women. Even now, if you go through some of the material, I can't imagine being a woman of color reading it," she says. "It'd feel so thrown off." 

In addition, colors should fuel your energy—not make it feel stagnant. "What's more empowering is when you just take a bit more intentionality with color and give yourself permission to wear a color that maybe isn't the perfect color for you, but it makes you feel really good," she says.