The Best Colour Palette for Copper & Strawberry Blonde Hair

TELLAR FASHION HUB — COLOUR & STYLE

The shades that make your hair colour the hero — and the ones silently working against you.

Copper and strawberry blonde hair is one of the most beautiful, rare hair colours there is. The right clothes make it look like a deliberate, stunning choice. The wrong ones make you look washed out before you've even left the house.

Let me start with the good news: if you have copper or strawberry blonde hair, you have a warm, golden undertone running through you, and that is an incredible thing to dress around. Once you understand your palette, shopping becomes so much more intentional — and a lot more fun. I've styled clients with this hair colour for years and the transformation that happens when they stop reaching for the wrong neutrals is genuinely remarkable.

The trick is understanding that your hair already contains a lot of colour. Rich reds, burnished oranges, gold threads — it's doing a lot of the work. Your clothing palette needs to either harmonise with that warmth or create a deliberate, beautiful contrast. What it mustn't do is fight it.

Your Hero Colours: The Ones That Make Everything Click

These are the shades that work in absolute harmony with copper and strawberry blonde hair. If you're ever unsure, return to this list.

Forest GreenYour single best neutral

Teal & PetrolElectric contrast

Warm RustTone-on-tone magic

Camel & MustardGolden warmth

Plum & BerryRich, dramatic contrast

TerracottaWarm & earthy

NavyClassic & flattering

Warm CreamSofter than white

Forest and olive greens — hands down the best colour you can wear. The contrast between rich green and copper hair is one of nature's own combinations (think autumn woodland). It works at every level from a £20 high street jumper to a tailored silk blouse.
Teal and petrol blue — the cool of these shades against warm copper is genuinely electrifying. It's the kind of combination that makes people stop and say "you look amazing" without quite knowing why.
Warm rust, terracotta and burnt orange — tone-on-tone dressing done right. Rather than clashing, these warm earthy shades echo the copper in your hair and create a cohesive, deeply flattering look. One of my favourite tricks for autumn.
Camel and mustard — golden, warm tones that sit beautifully in the same colour family as your hair. A good camel coat on a copper-haired woman is genuinely one of the chicest things in fashion.
Plum, burgundy and berry — deep jewel tones work brilliantly as a counterpoint to warm hair. Burgundy especially is a classic pairing that never looks overdone.
Navy — far better than black on warm skin tones. Navy gives you that grounded, polished feeling without draining warmth from your complexion.
Warm cream and ivory — much kinder than stark white. Ivory and ecru sit next to warm skin tones and copper hair beautifully, while brilliant white can make you look drained.

Stylist tip: If you're building a capsule wardrobe around copper hair, start with a forest green knit, a camel coat, and a good teal or petrol blue top. Those three pieces will work harder for you than anything else in the wardrobe.

Prints and Patterns: What Works

It's not all about solid colours. Prints can be incredibly flattering on copper-haired women when you follow a few simple principles.

Autumnal florals — warm-toned florals with rust, ochre, green and brown work beautifully. Think William Morris prints, earthy Liberty-style patterns, anything that looks like it belongs in October.
Warm tartan and check — traditional tartans in forest green, navy and red are absolutely made for copper hair. It's almost too perfect.
Animal print — leopard and tortoiseshell prints share the same warm, tawny palette as copper hair. They work together rather than compete. A leopard print dress is practically a uniform for strawberry blondes.
Abstract prints in warm tones — terracotta, ochre, sage, deep teal. The warm, earthy abstract prints that have been everywhere recently are genuinely perfect for this hair colour.

The Colours to Approach with Caution

These shades can work against you

Stark, cool white — drains warmth from the complexion and can make copper hair look brassy rather than burnished. Swap for ivory or warm white every time.
Pastel pink and baby blue — these cool, muted pastels compete with the warmth in your colouring and rarely win. Dusty rose and warm coral are the better alternatives.
Cool grey — a cold, mid-grey can wash out warm skin tones significantly. If you love grey (and it is useful), lean towards warm greige or charcoal rather than a cool dove grey.
Cool-toned black — pure, cool black can be harsh against warm colouring. If you wear black, soften it with warm accessories or opt for very dark navy instead.
Neon or fluorescent shades — they fight with copper hair for attention rather than complementing it. Neither wins.

That said — fashion rules exist to be broken. If you love a cool grey suit and it makes you feel incredible, wear it. These are guidelines, not laws. But as a starting point, these are the shades that take more effort to make work.

Metals and Accessories

A quick note on jewellery and accessories because this matters more than people think: gold and bronze metals are your best friends. They sit in exactly the same warm tonal family as copper hair and create a cohesive, pulled-together look with very little effort. Rose gold is also beautiful. Cool-toned silver can work but often looks slightly disconnected — if you wear it, pair it with a cool-toned outfit so everything reads as intentional.

Where to Shop Your Palette: Our Picks by Budget

HIGH STREET — BEST FOR YOUR PALETTE RIGHT NOW

Anthropologie — consistently one of the best high street sources for warm, earthy prints and botanicals. Their autumnal florals and rich jewel-toned pieces are absolutely made for copper-haired women. A genuinely great edit for this palette.
Zara — brilliant for terracotta, rust and forest green at any given season. Their earthy tonal dressing is some of the best on the high street, and the cuts are always current.
Mango — excellent for camel coats, teal knitwear and warm-toned tailoring. They do the earthy, warm palette better than almost anyone at this price point.
Fat Face — wonderful for warm checks, tartans and cosy autumnal prints. Their colour palette leans naturally earthy and warm, which makes it ideal for strawberry blonde and copper colouring.
White Stuff — warm florals, rich jewel tones and earthy brights done in a relaxed, wearable way. Their print story often reads like it was designed with copper hair in mind.
Boden — reliable for warm tartan, autumnal colourways and the kind of rich, saturated colour that genuinely flatters warm complexions. Their camel and forest green pieces are consistently good.
Oliver Bonas — brilliant for accessories and statement pieces in warm, earthy tones. Their jewellery skews warm-toned and their print dresses often nail the botanical and autumnal aesthetic perfectly.
Seasalt Cornwall — earthy, warm-toned prints and coastal botanicals that sit beautifully with copper colouring. Their linen and cotton pieces in sage, teal and rust are genuinely flattering.

PREMIUM

Hush — warm, considered basics in earthy neutrals and rich jewel tones. Their camel knitwear and deep teal pieces are particularly strong, and the quality feels a step above most high street.
Mint Velvet — a brilliant source of warm, grown-up print dressing. They do the leopard print, the earthy florals, the tonal rust layering — everything this palette needs, at a premium high street price.

LUXURY & INVESTMENT

Max Mara — if you're going to invest in one camel coat in your lifetime, make it a Max Mara. Their camel — arguably the single most iconic camel coat in fashion — is made for warm, copper-toned women.
Barbour — the original earthy-toned brand. Warm tartans, forest greens and navy waxed jackets that are practically a love letter to copper-haired women who spend any time outdoors. Genuinely timeless.

INDEPENDENT BRANDS WORTH DISCOVERING

Roisin Cross Jewellery — a Dublin-based independent designer known for warm, organic gold jewellery with a Celtic-inspired aesthetic. Absolutely beautiful with copper hair and a world away from anything on the high street.
Nobody's Child — a sustainable independent brand with a brilliant print story. Their warm botanicals, autumn florals and earthy-toned dresses are genuinely lovely for this colour palette — and the ethical credentials are excellent.

The Quick Reference: Your Palette at a Glance

Best neutrals: warm cream, camel, navy, warm greige — never stark white or cool grey
Best statement colours: forest green, teal, petrol, plum, burgundy
Best warm tones: rust, terracotta, mustard, burnt orange
Best prints: autumnal florals, warm tartan, leopard, earthy abstract
Best metals: gold, bronze, rose gold ahead of cool silver
Handle with care: stark white, cool pastels, neon, cool grey

If I had to leave you with just one thought: stop defaulting to black. I know it feels safe, but navy, forest green and deep plum do everything black does — and they actually work with your colouring rather than in spite of it. Your hair is extraordinary. Dress like it is.

Found Your Palette — Now Find Your Perfect Size

Once you know what colours work for you, the next step is making sure everything actually fits. Because even the most beautifully-chosen forest green dress loses its magic if the sizing is off — and with sizing so inconsistent across brands, getting it right can feel like a lottery.

Tellar is the UK's leading free sizing tool, and it takes all the guesswork out of it. Measure once — just your bust, waist and hips, or enter your size in a brand you already know — and Tellar instantly matches you to your correct size across 1,500+ brands. No downloads, no subscriptions, no faff. Just your exact size, every time.

The Tellar Fashion Hub is also home to a growing library of free, honest style guides from independent stylists. No sponsored content. No brand agendas. Just genuinely useful advice — always free.

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