A small, glutinous, reddish‑brown to lilac-pink Gliophorus with broadly adnate-subdecurrent lamellae, an even gill edge lacking true cystidia.

Note:As in other Gliophorus, colour shifts arise from water‑soluble pigments, underlying less‑soluble pigments, and UV‑labile dyes. In G. versicolor, the reddish‑brown → lilac‑pink transitions and pinkish drying colours are typical of mixed pigment systems where the more soluble brown pigments leach first, revealing lilac tones beneath.
Pileus: 5-20(-25) mm diam., hemispherical when young, later convex to plano-convex; centre often subdepressed and margin sometimes upturned in age. Colour reddish-brown, liver-brown, or lilac-pink, fading toward the strongly striated margin. Surface glutinous, glabrous; margin thin, membranaceous and translucidly striate when moist.
Lamellae: broadly adnate to subdecurrent, whitish or concolorous with pileus, occasionally grey‑lilac; distant. Gill edge even, concolorous, sometimes gelatinised, but without differentiated cystidia.
Stipe: 20-70 x 1.5-3 mm, cylindric, equal, rarely attenuated toward the base; colours grey, pinkish‑brown, or lilac above, ochraceous or whitish at the base. Entire stipe glutinous; hollow; occurring singly or in clusters.
Context: waxy; on drying reddish to pink.
Odour/tast: absent or slightly like burnt hair.