Make up colors change with fashion styles and seasons. The latest new
color may or may not be right for you, so how do you take the gamble out of
buying make up? You can get a professional makeover to help you choose the
colors that are best for your skin tone, or you can learn to choose the best
colors.
Method 1 of 6: Determine Your Skin Tone
Wear a white shirt and look in the mirror.
Be sure you are in natural or incandescent light, as yellow light or
fluorescent light will reflect off your skin. See if your skin appears to have
more yellow-red -- warm skin tones; or more blue-pink -- cool skin tones. The
skin tone is not your skin color, it is the color that is under the skin color
that reflects or is enhanced against white. Skin undertone is often shortened
to simply skin tone when referring to color. There are many skin colors, but
only two basic skin tones -- warm and cool. Once you know your skin tone, you
can select your make-up colors.
Method 2 of 6: Assess Your Skin Color
People with the same skin color do not always
have the same skin tone. For example, you could be fair skinned and cool toned,
or fair skinned and warm toned. You could be dark skinned with either cool or
warm. It depends largely on your ethnicity and genetics. You may not be exactly
1 skin color category, and most people are in-between. Determining the nearest
category will help you find a color palette more quickly.
Method 3 of 6: Foundation Base
Select a foundation that matches
exactly with your skin color.
You
may need to switch foundations from summer to winter depending on whether your
skin is slightly darker in summer months.
Try the foundation on your skin.
The best place to test foundation is on the
skin between your lower cheek and jaw bone. Foundations are either yellow-based
or blue-based. Some make-up lines actually have words like "cool
beige" or "warm honey" on their labels to indicate the tone it
was made for.
· Choose a cool color foundation with
blue or pink undertones if you have a cool skin tone.
· Select yellow-toned foundation for a
warm skin tone.
· If your skin is darker, be sure that
the foundation does not make you look ashen. If so, try a different color or a
yellow-based foundation.
Method 4 of 6: Blush
Choose a blush that will complement
and blend into your skin.
Blush is used to highlight the cheeks
and should never look streaky, so choose something subtle within your skin tone
range.
· Darker-skinned people should choose
blush in shades of plums for cool skin tones, or burnt orange-bronze for warm
skin tones
· If you're olive skinned, browns and
copper blushes are for you.
· People with medium skin tones should
use apricot, coral, or peach blush.
· Fair and cool skin types should try
shades of pink or rose.
· Try beige or tawny if you are fair with
a warm skin tone.
Method 5 of 6: Eye Shadow
Choose a color that complements your skin tone and
enhances your eye color.
· People with warm skin tones can wear
eye shadow with a golden hue, such as greens, browns, gold or pinks.
· If you are a cool skin type, pick eye
shadows in blues, grays, silver, pinks, and plums. Choose an eye shadow that is
right for your eye color and skin color as well as your skin tone.
· For darker skin types and eye colors,
darker, bolder eye-shadow is easier to wear.
Method 6 of 6: Lipstick
Test the lipstick on a sheet of white
paper to determine the lipstick's dominant color.
· Warm reds and browns or pale warm
shades such as champagne are good for warm skin tones.
· Cool, dark skin types can wear purples,
rose, and sheer, pink gloss.
· Olive skin can choose lipsticks in warm
browns, beige, reds and pinks.
· Fair, warm skin types can wear
lipsticks in warm pinks and reds, while cool skin types can try purple and cool
pink.
Tips
· All the above maybe best options of
guide line but be creative, artistic and have a fun with colours.
· A new hair colour may change the
appearance of your skin tone. When you change your hair colour drastically or
go from cool to warm hair colour, check that your make-up complements the
colour your hair is reflecting.
· If you already bought a make-up
product, but it doesn't suit you, try putting on less or more than usual