How to find your Undertone

So often I talk to women and they want me to pick out a lipstick or eye shadow I think would go well on them.

“I don’t know anything about makeup,” they admit, often a little sheepish, “I don’t know how to pick a color that would look good on me.”

Now I completely understand! I used to be there too! But it really is so simple, so let me show you.

We have undertones in our skin. Some people are neutral, and they can pull off basically anything. But most people have an undertone that leans towards either warm or cool, towards one side of the color wheel or the other. Which then once you know what you are, you can choose makeup colors that are the same undertone as you.

*NOTE: This doesn’t mean that you can’t pull off colors that aren’t your undertone! Very warm orangey eyeshadow is trendy right now, and I’ve seen lots of cool toned girls pull it off just fine! This will simply show you the colors you may feel the most comfortable in, that you can pull off effortlessly.

Knowing this info will help you not buy a lipstick that you’ll never wear, and it will help you not dye your hair a color you’ll hate!

Take this quiz to figure it out!

What color are your veins on the inside of your wrists?

A. Blue

B. Green

C. Not sure? Blueish Green?

What color jewelry do you prefer?

A. Silver

B. Gold

C. I like both

What happens when you are out on the sun?

A. I burn immediately.

B. I get a tan.

Does your natural hair have a little glint of red in the sun?

A. No

B. Yes

If you were gonna wear a purple shirt, would you choose…

A. A ‘royal’ jewel toned shade.

B. A burgundy/maroon shade.

C. Depends on the day.

If you answered mostly A’s you’re cool.

If you answered mostly B’s you’re warm.

If you had some C’s you may be neutral, which means you’re neither and can wear whatever you want!

If you’re not sure, go with whatever you answered for the wrists as it’s the most reliable.

Based on this information, you can pick which colors would suit you best for not only makeup, but if you were to dye your hair, clothing selection, etc. I even know people who come to prefer their best colors so much they eventually got to where their home decor matches their skin tone because those are the colors they feel the most comfortable around!

So how does this translate into makeup?

Every color is either a warm, cool or neutral shade.

Lipstick for example will lean a little more purple for the cool tones, warm will lean coral etc.

A red, for example, can be worn by anyone! But so many people say, “Oh I can’t pull off reds.”

Honey, you just need to find the perfect shade of red for your undertone!

Foundations, since you may find it harder to tell, will often say in the name, but if not it will probably say on the label somewhere.

Other things like when you’re shopping for a bronzer for instance, if you’re cool, then don’t buy an orangey color! It’ll look absolutely orange! If you’re warm, make sure there is some orange for warmth, otherwise it will look like you put some brown dirt on your face!

I hope this all made sense, and that you found this helpful! And I hope you’re able to play with color in your wardrobe, makeup etc a lot more confidently now!

Do you have any tips on how to find your undertone other then what I mentioned? Let me know below in the comments and maybe I’ll update my post!

Thanks y’all

Liz

Ps. I do not own the rights to these photos and graphics. I got them off Pinterest.