Your undertone informs your entire shopping experience and affects how you choose products for your beauty routine. This post will explore how undertones have been traditionally used, and how you can use this concept to elevate your look.
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How to Find Your Skin Undertone
Your skin tone, the true tone of your skin, is different than your undertone. Undertones are elements of the color that characterize your skin as cool, warm, olive or neutral. Knowing your undertone matters, because it will inform your shopping experience. Every time you need to buy foundation or lipstick, you can use your undertone to find shades that suit you.
Within these categories are subcategories to undertones such as rose and peach. Warm colors fall on one side of the color wheel, while cool colors fall on the other. Even if your skin tone is neutral, you may find that warm or cool colors look better on you. There are several ways to tell if you have warm or cool undertones (more below).
Foundation Matching Tools
You can use a foundation matching tool on your favorite cosmetics website to see if your skin tone fits mostly warm, cool, or neutral shades. You can try this out with more than one virtual foundation matching tool to help you determine your undertone quickly.
You can also use natural sunlight to pick up on the undertones in your skin. Photos of yourself will also reveal the warmth of colors in your skin tone. However, if you don’t have professional editing software there are other ways to use technology to find your undertone.
White vs Cream Clothing
The colors you wear will help you discover your undertone. Those with warmer tones will likely wear more cream and off-white colors while those with cooler tones look best in cool, crisp white shades.
If you tend to wear more cream, then you likely have a warmer undertone. If you tend to wear more crisp whites, you likely have a cool undertone. If both flatter you, then you have a neutral undertone.
Tip: Review Your Wardrobe
Notice which colors you gravitate toward in your wardrobe. You’ll likely already be drawn to colors that suit your undertone. If you have mostly warm of cool clothing, this will help you determine your skin’s undertone.
Jewelry
The type of jewelry you wear will usually reveal your undertone. People with warm undertones will gravitate toward warm jewelry. People with cooler undertones will likely wear more silver jewelry or cool-tones accessories. If you tend to have more warm tones in your jewelry box such as gold and copper, you likely have a warm undertone. If you have a neutral undertone, you will likely find that you wear multiple types of jewelry.
Hair Colors and Skin Undertones
Your hair color can reveal a lot about your undertone. If you dye your hair and tend to wear warmer hair tones, this is likely because your stylist is matching your hair due to your warm undertone. If you have a cool undertone and gravitate to the “winter” and “summer” shades above then you likely have a cool undertone.
You can also look at your natural hair color to learn more about your undertone and match it to the chart above.
If you have a neutral undertone, you can use this to see which way your undertone leans (warm or cool). Often, even if you have a neutral undertone, you will find that you lean one way or the other.
Sun Exposure Test
If you burn easily, you might have a cool undertone. If you tan easily, you likely have a warm undertone. However, this isn’t always the case.
Sometimes a tan will bring out the tendency toward warmer colors in neutral undertones. Sometimes those with warm undertones will burn.
Other Ways to Find Undertones
The color of your veins also reveal your undertones. If you have a warm undertone, your veins will likely be green. If you have a cool undertone, your veins will be blue.
If you have a neutral undertone, your veins will either be slightly warm or cool and will tell you which shades your neutral undertone leans toward. You might also have a combination of both cool and warm tones underneath your skin.
Your Undertone Affects Your Beauty Routine
Your skin undertone affects the makeup colors you choose. If you buy a foundation in an undertone that doesn’t match yours, you might end up with an ashy look or your face will be a slightly different color than the rest of your body.
You’ll want to choose colors that match your undertone and this includes all types of makeup. You can find bold, bright colors for statement looks in your undertone as well. Just because a product matches your undertone doesn’t mean you can’t create a statement look.
Products To Try
Tone Matching Foundation
RMS Beauty “Un” cover-up foundation and the “un” cover-up concealer adjust to your skin tone so if you tan easily, this is a fantastic choice for summer. Please keep in mind that you need to choose the closest shade possible to your skin tone. If you tan and your skin tone changes by several shades, you will likely need to buy the next shade in the RMS Beauty line.
Light Coverage Concealer
The RMS Beauty “Un” Cover-Up Concealer is ideal for coverage that looks natural. It is buildable, and also adjusts slightly to your skin tone.
However, this product does contain coconut oil and is not recommended for oily skin types. If you have combination skin, you can try this with a setting powder, but if your skin is extremely oily it’s best to look at another option.
This foundation is extremely sheer. This was a bit too sheer for me, but if you like makeup that is barely there and don’t want any coverage this is the perfect product for you. The consistency is very thin and the coverage is not very buildable.
Recap
Your skin’s undertone is a tool that will help you find the perfect foundation match. The process of discovering your undertone is important, because you will be able to find more products that work for you if you use this tool as you shop.
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