Dr. Google says skin with cool undertones tend to look best in pinks, reds, greens, and purples. Skin with warm undertones look best in bright or light earthy undertones like yellow, peach, coral, amber and gold. And finally, those with neutral undertones look best in bold, bright colors like blues and reds, but really almost all hues. What exactly does this mean? Should you consider this advice or ignore it?
Skin-tone matching or personal color analysis is a method to help determine the colors of clothing, makeup, and hair that are most flattering with a person's skin and eye color. It is often used by stylists and wardrobe consultants. I don't know about you but, the only people I know who use stylists and wardrobe consultants are celebrities. Does this mean the rest of us are shopping colorblind?
I had a conversation with one of my influencer friends recently who changed my mind about this concept. My philosophy on choosing the color of my clothing had previously been if I like it, I wear it. No extra thought on does this shade enhance or hide my freckles? My friend then explained that that wearing the wrong colors can draw attention to wrinkles or uneven skin tone while the right colors will enhance your beauty. This is done by making you appear younger, healthier, brighter, and more put-together. Now I'm starting to buy in on this concept.
So, how do we determine if we have cool, warm, or neutral skin tone? If you want to keep it simple stick to the following: Warm undertones: Your skin has yellow, peach, or golden underlying colors. Cool undertones: You’ve got hints of pink or blue tones under your skin. Neutral undertones: You see a mixture of both warm and cool tones.
Still confused? Me too! Next, try the "wear white" test. Does your skin turn rosy or yellow when you wear white? Put on a white shirt or dress in natural light (next to a window), then hold the white garment up to your face. If your skin looks slightly rosy next to it, you are “cool-toned.” If your face looks more yellow, you are warm-toned. If you don’t see a change at all, you are neutral. Write down your match then look at your veins. (Particularly the veins near your face). If they look blue or purple, go with cool. If they are more green, choose warm. Mix of the two? Neutral. Again record your answer. Last, do you have dark or light hair and eyes?
If you have fair skin, sunburn easily, have light eyes, and cool-toned hair, like ash blonde, you are cool for this one. If you have skin that doesn’t burn in the sun, darker hair with warmer tones, and dark eyes, your answer is warm. If you feel like you’re somewhere in the middle, go with neutral. Now look at your answers and majority wins.
My answers were cool for all three. So
pinks, reds, greens, and purples are "my colors." I find this interesting because I've always loved wearing red but avoided wearing pink until recently. I think pink may be my new favorite color to wear and apparently it makes me look healthier and younger!
If you still need assistance with color matching go to houseofcolour.com to find a list of consultants who specialize in color analysis.
