Beauty

[just bee]

I struggled with this for years and I still don't know my "season."  Recently I found this guideline and for some reason something clicked.

Hold a white piece of paper up to your face. Determine the hue of your skin in contrast to the paper.

Warm Undertone

• Your skin has yellow, gold, peach hues
• You have green-tinted veins on your wrist.
• Your skin tans easily

Neutral Undertone

• Your skin has a mix of warm and cool tones
• You have blue-green veins on your wrist
• Your skin tans, but also burns

Cool Undertone

• Your skin has pink, blue, or red hues
• You have blue or purple veins on your wrist
• Your skin burns easily and tans minimally

This is pretty standard information, but I've always had trouble determining the color of my veins.  Sometimes they look blue, sometimes they look green, sometimes they look blue-green.  I can look at someone else and immediately know their skin tone but now I think I can say I'm neutral.

Still don't know if gold or silver is more flattering, but neutrals can wear both.

[sgraham30]

My coloring is medium, with definite yellow undertones, the veins on my wrists are a definite blue-green color. If we go by seasons, I'm pretty sure I'm autumn.

[suzyQ3]

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@Skyegirl21 wrote:

I seriously wonder who approves these tsv. This can't be marketed toward mature buyers, but then the $70 price tag wouldn't fly with young buyers either. I don't understand... 

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@Skyegirl21, did you meant to post about a TSV here? Because this very old thread is about cool or warm undertones.

[sidsmom]

@suzyQ3

[beach-mom]

FWIW:

I'm very interested in all this and have been for a long time. Years ago, I was used as a "model" when one of Carole Jackson's original instructors came to the salon where my friend worked to train the staff. They were going to start selling her makeup. Here is my take on this in case you're interested - it's makeup based more than fashion!

She taught me this, which I still use today to give advice to anyone who asks me:

One of the easiest ways to determine if you lean to cool or warm is to put off-white/ivory and pure white next to your face. Which looks better? If your face stands out with one, that is not the color for you. You want a blended look. If it looks better with pure white, that's usually cool; off-white is usually warm. If pure white gives your face a greyish look, you're probably warm. One lady wondered if anyone could look good with stark white next to her face. Think of Snow White with very dark hair and red lips. I have a friend who has black hair and she looks terrific in stark white. I don't look that great! It washes me out. I still wear it if I feel like it, but I adjust my makeup (which is another trick my friend taught me). If cream or off-white gives your face a creamy, glowing look, you're probably warm. If you look good in jewel-toned colors (emerald, sapphire, ruby), you are probably "cool." If you look good in earth-toned colors or the colors of leaves, you're probably "warm."

THIS IS JUST A GUIDELINE! I believe that any woman can wear any color of makeup or clothes she wants. Even the MAC website says our skin changes. We know what looks good on us, and if it gives us pleasure to wear it, we will. But some colors make us look terrific, and this is a guideline for finding those colors. And if you read the Board comments, we are constantly saying things like "I can't wear blue e/s," or "Peach blush disappears on me." Trial and error is fun, and I LOVE TO PLAY WITH MY MAKEUP!

We've all had compliments when we wear certain colors. IMO, that doesn't mean we can't wear other colors. And we all have colors we don't like to wear. Springs are warm and can usually wear the colors of nature you'd find in springtime, leaf green, aqua, etc. Autumns are warm and can usually wear the colors you think of with that season, fall leaf colors, pumpkin, darker intensity nature colors. Winters are cool and can usually wear bright jewel-toned colors. And summers are cool and can wear light bright jewels - white pearl, light silver, watery blue, etc.

Usually the cool seasons look better in silver jewelry; the warm in gold. I like to look at female TV newscasters. I can usually tell what color jewelry they look better in! It's just fun to play with this! 

[Katcat1]

@granddi,  You are correct.  I am a cool pink undertone but I can also go neutral, if necessary.  So many cosmetic companies only offer warm undertones which I absolutely hate on my skin.  What I don't understand is if they are selling foundations they need to include everyone, including all the undertones and skin colors.  Makes sense to me.  Laura Mercier, Bare Minerals, are two that carry a wide range of shades/undertones.  

[depglass]

I'm another one who thinks Bobbi Brown is just plain NUTS.  The only way a really pink toned person can wear her yellow look is if they have a high collar, long sleeves, and gloves.  Only then would you not see the jarring pink-yellow contrast. 

[Trinity11]

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[shoesnbags]

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@seniorcitizen wrote:

I believe that ""cool"" undertones are always people with very fair coloring. I am a redhead so I am very fair and cool toned. And i still have tons of freckles even though I am older.

@seniorcitizen

No, that's not true.  I'm extremely fair (German/Irish/French) and my fair skin has always had a yellow tone to it. I too have freckles, and green eyes.  Absolutely NO pink tones in my skin whatsoever.  And if it were any lighter, I'd be Casper the ghost!  I have classic Spring coloring, which is warm.  (and I'm a senior citizen, too)

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[shoesnbags]

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@just bee wrote:

I struggled with this for years and I still don't know my "season."  Recently I found this guideline and for some reason something clicked.

Hold a white piece of paper up to your face. Determine the hue of your skin in contrast to the paper.

Warm Undertone

• Your skin has yellow, gold, peach hues
• You have green-tinted veins on your wrist.
• Your skin tans easily

Neutral Undertone

• Your skin has a mix of warm and cool tones
• You have blue-green veins on your wrist
• Your skin tans, but also burns

Cool Undertone

• Your skin has pink, blue, or red hues
• You have blue or purple veins on your wrist
• Your skin burns easily and tans minimally

This is pretty standard information, but I've always had trouble determining the color of my veins.  Sometimes they look blue, sometimes they look green, sometimes they look blue-green.  I can look at someone else and immediately know their skin tone but now I think I can say I'm neutral.

Still don't know if gold or silver is more flattering, but neutrals can wear both.

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@just bee

I don't know who wrote these guidelines, but the part I highlighted doesn't make sense.  It implies that only people who "tan easily" (ie darker complexions) are "warm" toned.  That's simply not so.  It leaves out all of us very fair people who are yellow-toned fair rather than pink-toned fair.  And when I say "fair," in my case I mean practically white.  I have absolutely no pink in my skin, and I don't tan at all.  I freckle and burn.  That's a classic "Spring" by the original seasons color theory.  The description that I highlighted is of an "Autumn."  The writer totally left us Springs out.