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fairview
August 19th, 2012, 01:02 PM
Sometimes hair color is selected to make a statement. A color is intentionally selected that does not support the complexion. Outside of that choice, I always think color as well as style for that matter should be in a supporting role of the face. The face should be noticed first and not overwhelmed by color and style.

Picking a color with a warm or cool tonality with a complexion opposite of the choice won't make the total package look ugly but it will give an appearance that something is off. It will look okay but there will be something about it that just isn't right, a quality that doesn't match.

The solution to this challenge is simple and can be found in any school supply section of any store. Purchase a sheet a green and orange construction paper. Hod each under the chin while looking in a mirror. One of the sheets will complement your complexion, the other will make you look like an extra for the 'Walking Dead'.

If green is your choice, the color selected should have a cool tonality. If orange then go with a warm tonality. It's that simple to go from an okay, muddy color to a color that looks fabulous and makes your face the star attraction.

auburntressed
August 19th, 2012, 01:06 PM
LOL! Yeah, skin tone tests NEVER work for me. Result is always inconclusive. I think my tone is closer to warm than it is to cool, but not solidly warm either. Maybe it is my lack of color that mucks up the "tests."

millyaulait
August 19th, 2012, 01:15 PM
I'm very pale, but also very warm (yellow).

My natural hair color is ashy & it doesn't suit me at all, so I always dye it a richer, warmer brown.

millyaulait
August 19th, 2012, 01:16 PM
LOL! Yeah, skin tone tests NEVER work for me. Result is always inconclusive. I think my tone is closer to warm than it is to cool, but not solidly warm either. Maybe it is my lack of color that mucks up the "tests."

You can be Neutral, Neutral-Cool & Neutral-Warm, too. :flower:

Simone_Fatale
August 19th, 2012, 01:22 PM
I read somewhere that if your veins near the wrists look greenish in daylight, you have a warmer complexion, and your complexion is colder if they look bluish.

palaeoqueen
August 19th, 2012, 01:30 PM
I'm very pale and very yellow-toned but definitely cool-toned even though yellow is generally thought of as being a warm colour. Warm colours make me look ill, this is one of the reasons I hate the brassy yellow of my bleached hair, my natural ash blonde looks so much nicer against my skin. My complexions warms up a bit when I tan but this is not very often.

katfemme89
August 19th, 2012, 01:35 PM
I have a very ruddy complexion. I have auburn hair mixed with dark ash blonde.

Black and purple are the colors that look the best on me.

Tia2010
August 19th, 2012, 01:37 PM
I always thought it was a cool simply because I was pale and didn't have an olive/tan complexion...I thought I had to be cool because of that... but now I'm actually leaning more towards a neutral or warm complexion. Not really warm but not cool either...But those test all confuse me, so I may never know for sure :confused:

vanillabones
August 19th, 2012, 01:46 PM
I have a cool skin tone, I'm extremely fair and more towards pinky so 'cool' toned for me. I'm see-through!

Arianwen
August 19th, 2012, 03:23 PM
I *think* I am a Summer but don't quote me on that. It took me years to figure out I have an oval-shaped face, as it is. lol

Loveisaverb
August 19th, 2012, 03:23 PM
Pretty certain I'm cool toned since my veins look blue under my skin and sometimes people ask if I'm sick because I'm so pale.
Nope just genetics. :o

Avital88
August 19th, 2012, 04:01 PM
i think i am warm,
darker(olive) skin with freckles and natural medium brown/auburn hair,, a really strange combo,i dont know many freckled that tan easily

Rufflebutt
August 19th, 2012, 04:30 PM
This sounds like a copy and paste from an article.

I can never tell if I'm warm or cool toned. I've just settled on neutral.

Mya
August 19th, 2012, 04:42 PM
I read somewhere that if your veins near the wrists look greenish in daylight, you have a warmer complexion, and your complexion is colder if they look bluish.
Oh well. I'm the factory of blue veins. I believed I was warm toned...

Now that I think of it, even the lightest concealer, foundation and powder makes me look orange, but I believed it was a problem of products and not that my skin really was so grey.

BambooBeauty
August 19th, 2012, 04:53 PM
My veins are blue but i am warm toned. I have tan skin and brown hair and eyes. A good way to figure it out is if silver looks better on you your cool and if gold looks good on you your warm. Gold looks better on me lol

Mischamiu
August 19th, 2012, 05:28 PM
My natural skin tone is very pale and I have even been said I needed a tan many times but I don't burn in the sun and get a taned... I wished my hair was a couple tones lighter :( I think it is way too dark

cecemutt
August 19th, 2012, 05:37 PM
Thanks so much Fairview! I never had really thought about this before and I have been having my hair colored since about 19 years of age.(that's when the white started in the bang area)

I am going to do the paper test. Should I do it outside in the sunshine or indoors?
I use those money-saving bulbs in the vanity.(fluorescent) So, the lighting is never quite right.

I do not think my stylist has ever given any thought to my skin tone and hair color matching to it.
I will have a little convo with her this week. :)

Here is a short video on you tube that mentions skin tone and hair color.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbolTPzDedo

It doesn’t mention the “paper test”, but does mention the gold vs. silver jewelry thing that BambooBeauty just posted.
It also mentions NEUTRAL skin tones as well as WHITE hair.
Wow, I never knew NOT to put anything ASH on my white hair! Lol
Explains why when I used to trim my bangs they would look “greenish brown” in the sink!lol
Since moving to a gold undertone color they look normal again. :)

misspriss
August 19th, 2012, 05:38 PM
I am cool, really cool. Warm colors look horrid on me. Black, royal blue, charcoal, hot pink, kelly green, all look great on me. Orange, yellow, mustard, all look bad. I can actually wear gold jewelry, but only when I tan. Silver looks best on my naturally. All the jewelry I have ever bought is silver.

cecemutt
August 19th, 2012, 05:38 PM
Thanks so much Fairview! I never had really thought about this before and I have been having my hair colored since about 19 years of age.(that's when the white started in the bang area)

I am going to do the paper test. Should I do it outside in the sunshine or indoors?
I use those money-saving bulbs in the vanity.(fluorescent) So, the lighting is never quite right.

I do not think my stylist has ever given any thought to my skin tone and hair color matching to it.
I will have a little convo with her this week. :)

Here is a short video on you tube that mentions skin tone and hair color.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbolTPzDedo

It doesn’t mention the “paper test”, but does mention the gold vs. silver jewelry thing that BambooBeauty just posted.
It also mentions NEUTRAL skin tones as well as WHITE hair.
Wow, I never knew NOT to put anything ASH on my white hair! Lol
Explains why when I used to trim my bangs they would look “greenish brown” in the sink!lol
Since moving to a gold undertone color they look normal again. :)

aisha.christine
August 19th, 2012, 05:49 PM
I have warm-neutral skin tone; It's definitely hard to tell which way I "lean," but if I had to pick, I'd say I'm warmer than I am cool.

earthnut
August 19th, 2012, 06:07 PM
I read Color Me Beautiful years ago and as it said in the book, I'm cool, a very cool winter, with my yellow-toned skin. (pale olive)

I don't know when it became popular to call yellow toned skin (& by extension green veins) warm, but I've never met anyone with yellow skin that was warm. :shrug:

Ambystoma
August 19th, 2012, 06:23 PM
I've never been able to work it out from the guidelines given, I'm pale with yellow undertones, purple blue veins, hazel green eyes with a grey green ring around the outside and warm dark brown hair that goes auburn if I even think about going out in the sun so... :confused:

But in practice it's pretty easy since warm colours and gold look nicer on me than cool tones.

edit: well there we go, I did some online quizzes and I'm a warm autumn apparently.

koala
August 19th, 2012, 06:47 PM
I don't like the tests that use which color looks better. I personally find I look much better in green than in orange because orange makes my skin look warmer and more tanned, which I hate. I like bringing out the paleness of my skin because it gives more contrast with my lips and eyes, which are my better features. But those tests would want me to do the opposite. I'm also much more warm toned in my body than in my face. Eczema gives my face a bit of pinkness that makes cool-toned foundations look better. I wear cool-toned blushes, but always very warm lip colors.

Mountaingrrl
August 19th, 2012, 06:51 PM
I think redheads tend to break these rules. :-)

kitcatsmeow
August 19th, 2012, 06:54 PM
I am definitely without a doubt golden (warm).

CurlyCap
August 19th, 2012, 06:58 PM
Hee hee.

I'm medium brown and all colors work for me. I've always found the "does this match my skin tone?" conversations completely perplexing...but I figure brown skin has it's own similar types of conversations.

I've only ever worn one color that freaked me out and made me look dead. It was a very particular brand's silver eyeshadow. Never again.

Diamond.Eyes
August 19th, 2012, 06:59 PM
I have peach/coral undertones and I don't feel like I really fall into a category here :shrug:. This can be tricky with jewelry and makeup. I look alright in gold or silver, but I love the way rose gold and looks with my skin. :p

Demi-Plum
August 19th, 2012, 07:20 PM
I have a cool skin tone. Cooler colors tend to look slightly better on me than warmer colors, but I can make any colors work. My hair is a very dark brown but it has red strands and undertones in the sunlight. My skin is pretty pale though so my dark hair makes my pale skin stand out a bit more. The color blood red looks good on me though.

You can also find out by looking at your veins. If your veins have a blue-ish tint then you are cool skin toned, if your veins have a more green-ish tint your are warm skin toned. Of course this isn't scientific or anything so please don't yell or bother me with any smart ass remarks. I simply heard of this method and thought I would tell you about it!

palaeoqueen
August 20th, 2012, 12:49 PM
I read Color Me Beautiful years ago and as it said in the book, I'm cool, a very cool winter, with my yellow-toned skin. (pale olive)

I don't know when it became popular to call yellow toned skin (& by extension green veins) warm, but I've never met anyone with yellow skin that was warm. :shrug:

I'm so glad you said this, I sometimes think I'm the only person who knows this! I have very typical Scandinavian colouring - very pale yellow-toned skin, ash blonde hair and blue-grey eyes - and I'm so fed up of make-up counters trying to sell me warm foundations because I'm yellow-toned OR try to sell me pink foundations because I'm pale. It's not an uncommon skin colour so why do most make-up companies not actually cater for it?

Oh and I have green veins too but definitely still not warm-toned! When I was experimenting with mineral make-up a pale olive foundation was my second closest match.

Piyo
August 20th, 2012, 01:02 PM
All my clothes, makeup and accessories are carefully put together to compliment my (cool) skin tone. I wear a lot of grays, blues, pinks but neutrals also look flattering. It's a major reason I stopped dying my hair; it make my hair brassy rather than ashy. D:



I have peach/coral undertones and I don't feel like I really fall into a category here :shrug:. This can be tricky with jewelry and makeup. I look alright in gold or silver, but I love the way rose gold and looks with my skin. :p

Peach/coral is classified as warm, it's just not what people tend to think of when they think of warm (they think gold or bronze) that's why rose gold probably looks so lovely on you, it's kind of a lighter warm color. :)

1nuitblanche
August 20th, 2012, 01:20 PM
Going by orange and green makes it so much easier for me to figure out than looking at my veins, the colour of metal, or white vs. off-white. Thank you!

I've got yellow undertones but very rosy cheeks, so it's almost as if my face is different than the rest of me in terms of colouring. Orange is awful on me. But green is ok!

sloth
August 20th, 2012, 01:30 PM
I'm pretty neutral I think. Both orange and green look fine.

I tend to weird green a lot more, clothing-wise, but I dye my hair red, which is warmer, so.