Fragrant purple lilacs and red, pink and yellow climbing roses seem to invade the small apartment housed in lush greenery in the heart of the 14th arrondissement of Paris. Multicolored fabrics are folded on the service of the living room transformed into a workshop, in the middle of which sits a large mirror. Raphaëlle Hubin (1) has put everything in place to create a space where you feel good. A specialist in colorimetry, she welcomes people, the vast majority of them women, who want to get to know each other better by defining the colors of clothes that suit them best.
“Knowing your colors is a first gateway to being more yourself and being able to express it, show yourself in your singularity”, explains the young woman, who is training in psychotherapy. Beyond simple image or fashion advice, it is a method of self-knowledge based on one’s own body and natural colors, which attracts people in search of meaning and authenticity.
“Certain colors land on us”
“It’s very unifying to know that our body says who we are. It’s simple, and it allows you to find yourself in what you are deeplyshe explains. The approach invites us to better welcome ourselves in order to give ourselves better, and to marvel more at what others are. »
“By letting our light shine, we incidentally give others permission to do the same. » The tone is set from the beginning of the session by the reading of the famous text by the American writer Marianne Williamson. Pieces of fabric of various colors then parade under the face of the person looking in the mirror to determine which ones suit them best. “Certain colors land on us. They are adjusted to what we release naturally »explains Raphaëlle. “The colors that suit us are not necessarily the ones we like”, she adds. They generally match the color of the eyes, complexion, lips or hair, but also express more broadly what emanates from the person. Identifying the palette of colors that highlights someone makes it possible to define the season that corresponds to it, which is when these colors are present in nature.
Each season is then associated with a type of personality. “The person is attracted by what is imbued with the energy of his season, which works like nature at this time of the year”, explains Raphaëlle. Thus, “Autumn” people, whose predominantly golden colors are deep and rich (forest green, duck blue, pumpkin orange), learn that they exude a form of maturity and generosity, like the food made available by the nature at this season. The “Spring” people, with bright and joyful colors, would on the contrary be attracted by the emergence and the discovery of novelties.
“There is something very ingrained in this approach”
The method does not speak to everyone. “I am not a prescriber, but personally this approach has made me progress and I am keen to share itemphasizes Raphaëlle. It has something very ingrained in it, putting our feet on the ground in what is happening around us in nature at every moment of the year. » Cécile (2), who took part in Raphaëlle’s workshop with two friends, marvels at what she learned about herself there: “I was flabbergasted when I discovered this welcoming side of my personality, and my girlfriends were very surprised that I didn’t know it. For them, it was obvious. »
Theorized in the United States in the 1940s, this four seasons method has been brought up to date and has become popular in France thanks to Flora Douville, who offers professional training in colorimetry. “I do not share his anthropological vision and his New Age-inspired spirituality, but I perceived what was good in his proposal and sorted it out”explains Raphaëlle who, for her part, does not hide how much her Catholic faith influences her way of working.
“The true light that dwells in us comes from God. I like to see people as cathedrals of flesh to find the color of stained glass that best bridges the gap between inside and outside. » Like her, several Catholic women have trained in this method and meet their public.
“There is a kind of mistrust among Catholics, a fear of being considered superficial if one is too interested in one’s appearance”, observes Irene Borghetti. In addition to colorimetry sessions, she offers work on fabric materials and clothing shapes according to the morphology of each person. “I also see an ambivalence between the desire to please, which is natural, and the fear of wanting to draw too much attention to oneself. »
“I feel better about myself”
Clémence, who followed Raphaëlle’s workshop, nevertheless perceives how much it has allowed her to readjust her relationship to her appearance and her femininity. “There is a bit of a doxa in the Catholic world on how to be a woman, which doesn’t speak to me at all. But this work on colors, which doesn’t stay superficial, allowed me to rebalance things a little, so that appearance really reveals being. »
Cécile shares her experience: “I understood that it was part of my vocation as a woman to reveal the beauty of God. Since then, I feel better about myself, and I’ve been dating for two months. At 33, I was finally seen! »
Lucia, another Raphaëlle client, dared to wear the colors that match her: “Mauve, baby blue; I let myself be myself, assuming these somewhat childish colors. » She perceives the spiritual challenge of the process: “The Lord Himself asks us: let your light shine before men (Mt 5:16)… This spreads joy in the world! »
(1) atelier-raphaelle.com
(2) The first name has been changed.