6 ways to determine skin tone

Every girl dreams that the make-up on her face looks beautiful and natural, emphasizes the merits and hides the flaws. This can be achieved only if, when choosing cosmetics, pay great attention to the features, individual characteristics of the skin on the face. Foundation, lip gloss, blush, even eye shadow may simply not match the complexion and ruin the overall look. The journalists found out all the information about skin tones, about what kind of underdone she might have and what these indicators affect.

Features and characteristics of the epidermis – tone, subtone

The concept of epidermis color consists of two aspects – tone and subtone (undertones). The tone, that is, the color itself, the shade, can change during a person's life, and more than once. For example, in winter, the skin may be ivory, and in summer, a woman tans and her face becomes bronze.

The anderton of the skin does not change, it is due to how strongly the tissues located below 'see through' the epidermis. It is enough to define it once, and this information will always be relevant. You've probably noticed that some women have a yellowish or bluish skin. This is the subtone – in the first case it is warm, in the second it is cold. However, underton is also neutral if it combines both warm and cold shades. It is because of the peculiarities of the skin tone that some decorative cosmetics can be suitable for some girls and not at all suitable for others. For example, if a foundation of a light but warm color is applied to a very light epidermis with a bluish cold anderton, the result will be unsatisfactory, the face will seem kind of gray and tired.

The most accurate shade of the epidermis can be determined using a colorimeter – a special portable device. Large shops and supermarkets of decorative cosmetics are often equipped with such devices. But if you do not have the opportunity to visit such an institution, you can find out the shade and undertones of your skin on your own, at home. Only you need to prepare for the procedure so that the results are as accurate as possible.

Short preparatory stage

How to determine the shade of the facial epidermis – preparation for the test:

1. Wash off makeup, dirt, dust from your face.

2. After washing, wait 15 minutes for the color of the epidermis to return to normal. Immediately after the hygiene procedure, the skin may be slightly pinkish or too pale due to drying with a towel or the temperature of the water. If you have recently returned from the street, especially from the cold, you also need to wait for the blush or severe pallor to subside.

3. Remove jewelry from the ears and neck, as they will distract attention and interfere with perception.

4. The hair on the head must be fixed with a bandage or hidden under a scarf so that it does not fall on the face, making it difficult to determine its shade.

The test should be carried out near a window, as artificial lighting can distort the color of the skin, giving it a yellowish or greenish tint.

Determination of color and undertones – method 1

You will need a blank sheet of white paper. You can take regular A4 office paper. Stand in front of a mirror and place the sheet over your face. First, determine how much darker the skin is than the paper. There are seven basic colors of the epidermis, which make-up manufacturers are guided by, you must understand which version your skin is closest to against the background of a white sheet:

1. Very pale, almost porcelain, 'ivory' or Very Fair.

2. Pale or Fair.

3. Medium, Beige or Medium.

4. Olive or Olive.

5. Dark or Dusty.

6. Tanned or Tan.

7. Dark or Dark.

Without removing the paper from your face, determine if your skin looks yellowish, bluish, or pinkish. In the first case, you have a warm underton, in the second and third – a cold one.

If you have red spots on your face, especially large ones, areas of irritation or scaling, a large number of pimples or scars from them, it can be difficult to correctly determine the tone. But you can place the paper over your neck instead of your face, it will be the best 'sample' for the test.

Determination of color and undertones – method 2

For the test, you need gold and silver rings or earrings without unnecessary details such as stones and glaze. And also small pieces of foil, both golden and silver. First you need to stand in front of a mirror and apply jewelry to your face one by one. You should try to understand which suits you best – yellow or white metal. If yellow, then most likely you have a warm underton. If white, accordingly, your undertones are cold.

But this method of determining the subtone is considered very subjective, since your preferences can influence the perception, which metal you like best. Therefore, it is recommended to perform another test with pieces of foil. Apply them alternately to your face in such a way that the foil reflects the sunlight and shines onto the skin. You need to assess whether such a reflection makes the face more radiant, or does it, on the contrary, look dull and lifeless? If you haven't noticed much of a difference, most likely you have a neutral undertone.

Determination of color and undertones – methods 3, 4, 5 and 6

There are several more ways in which you can try to determine the subtone of the skin:

1. Look at the skin around the inside of the elbow or wrist. The epidermis there is very thin and delicate, it is not under the influence of any extraneous factors, veins should clearly show through it. You just need to look at them carefully and understand what color they are. If the wreaths appear greenish, this indicates that you are the owner of the epidermis of a warm undertone. If the veins appear bluish, blue, deep purple, then you have a cold type with a pinkish or bluish undertone. If some blood vessels appear blue to you and others green, or you simply find it difficult to determine their color, then your skin has a neutral undertone.

2. Think about how your skin reacts to exposure to direct sunlight in summer. If you tan easily even after a short time in the sun, chances are you have a warm undertone due to the large amount of melanin in the upper layers of the epidermis. If you are Snow White, get a tan with difficulty, or often sunburn, this may indicate a cold undertones of the skin.

3. Look at your hair on your head, if its color has not been changed by coloring, and also remember what your eye color is. Cold undertones of the skin are characteristic of blue-eyed, green-eyed and gray-eyed girls. Warm – for women with brown and amber eyes. If the curls are brown or red, the underton is most likely warm. And if you are the owner of platinum, light blond curls, you must have cold skin.

4. You can also try to determine the shade and undertones of the epidermis by what nationality you are of. Typically, a warm skin tone is inherent in Japanese women, Chinese women, Korean girls, Italians, Spanish women and Arab women. And American, German, French, Norwegian and Russian girls have mostly cold anderton. By the way, experts note that Indian and Chinese girls buy most of the gold jewelry. But among American and European women, jewelry made of white gold, platinum and silver is in great demand.

Skin tones – the correct selection of decorative cosmetics

Makeup artists recommend starting from the characteristics of the skin when choosing cosmetics for makeup:

1. If you have a very light complexion, you need to use a foundation with a pinkish tint. It will refresh the face, make it not so pale. The blush should be pink with a cool undertones. But there are no restrictions on the choice of eye shadows, they can be any that you like. Bronzers and any dark skin products should not be used, as well as a highlighter, which emphasizes the porcelain of the skin. Lipstick suitable for light skin can be pink, both discreet and bright, deep, rich tones are suitable. It is better to focus in makeup on the lips, as this allows you to relieve the appearance of the seemingly painful pallor.

2. If you have olive skin, it can appear earthy as it combines both warm and cold pigments. This must be taken into account when choosing a foundation. Better to give preference to cosmetics that have a light satin or shiny finish. And you can choose the undertones to your taste. For a warmer look, go for a beige and yellow product. Ivory foundation will help to give restraint to the image. When choosing eye shadow, start from a warm palette, as cold colors will enhance the earthiness and dullness of the skin. For lips, it is better to choose lipsticks and glosses of a bright red range. Nude and cold pink tones are not suitable for women with olive skin.

3. If you have tanned, medium and very dark skin, the only suitable foundation color is beige and yellow of varying saturation. It is absolutely impossible to use a toner with a pinkish undertone, the face will look unnatural. A bronzer will help to emphasize dark skin. Shadows should be intense, saturated colors. Pastel and light options may not work. Bright neon shades and dark lipsticks look good on the lips, creating a drama effect.