Have you ever looked at a celebrity and thought their makeup looked so perfect it might be specially designed for them? It seems like makeup #goals, but it’s not hard to have a custom makeup look of your own!
The trick to perfect makeup is picking the right shades for you and your complexion. Each person has different skin tones, eye colors, and other factors that make their face different from the next. Picking the right products for your face, like the right foundation shade, will create a look that looks specially designed for you!
To easily find the best makeup shade for your skin, make sure to determine your skin tone. Use this tone to pick the right shades for foundation, bronzers, and blushes. When it comes to eyeshadow, use your eye color plus skin tone to pick the right shade. Read on through this helpful guide for more information!
Determine Your Skin Tone
If you ask any makeup expert what colors look best on you, they’ll make a decision based on your skin tone. Experts can tell your tone at a glance, but in case you aren’t quite there, here’s some information on the different types of skin tones. Keep in mind that your skin tone isn’t the shade of your skin, but rather the tone that comes through in your skin. People with light, medium, and dark skin shades all have a skin tone in addition to their shade.
Use these tips to help you determine your own skin tone, Kutie!
Warm
People with a warm skin tone tend to have undertones that range from golden to peach, including warm beige and caramel. One way to determine your skin tone is to look at your veins. Look in your elbow or on your wrist and if your veins appear green-tinted, you might have a warm undertone.
Warm skin tones also tend to not burn in the sun and find it easy to get a natural tan. If you’re lucky enough to avoid sunburns and instead get a golden tan in the sun, you probably have a warm skin tone.
Another quick test is to put on a bright white shirt or hold a bright white piece of paper next to your face. If this makes your face look yellow, your skin tone is warm. You probably prefer cream or off-white colors to stark white.
Cool
Cool skin tones will be very opposite from warm skin tones with pink, porcelain, or bluish undertones. Check your veins and if they look blue or purple, you probably have a cool skin tone. Cool skin tones are more likely to sunburn as well.
Another way to help determine your skin tone is to look at the jewelry you wear. People naturally wear shades that complement their skin tones, so if you notice yourself choosing silver or rose gold shades, you probably have a cool skin tone to coordinate with these.
Like we talked about above, try on a bright white shirt! If this color makes your skin look pink or rosy, you definitely have a cool undertone.
Neutral
Neutral skin tones don’t lean towards cool or warm undertones. Perhaps you have green veins, but sunburn easily. You might not notice any gold or blue undertones to your skin either. Lucky you! Your neutral undertones will make picking a makeup shade very easy!
How To Pick a Foundation Makeup Shade
Now that you know your skin tone, picking the best shade is going to be a piece of cake! Use that information to help guide you towards the right colors for proper coverage. If your skin is warm, pick a foundation shade or tinted moisturizer that has yellow undertones. Cool skin tones are recommended to pick a foundation with pink undertones to match their bare skin.
Once you pick a few shades, it’s time to test to find your perfect match! Some shade names can help you find the right match—warm tone shades may be named golden, tan, or chestnut, cool tones may be cocoa or rose, and neutral may be ivory or nude. You might have heard before to test your makeup on the inside of your wrist, but that’s not actually the best move. The best place to test your shades is actually on your jawline.
Gently place a few lines of foundation onto your jawline, and gently rub in. Make sure you have a list of other systems to remember which color is which! You want to find the one that blends in most seamlessly with your skin color.
If your skin is tanned, it’s recommended to avoid picking a foundation based on your tan. You will use bronzer to help add that glow to your skin later.
Once you think you have a match, test the color in different lighting to make sure it holds up. You can try bright lights at the store, but also take a look in natural sunlight if possible to check for discoloration. With these tricks, you’ll be able to find a foundation shade so perfect it looks custom-matched!
How To Pick a Blush Makeup Shade
Kuties, we’re about to rock your world with the easiest trick to pick out the right blush for your skin tone. Go look in the mirror and lightly pinch your cheeks. The color that appears on your cheeks is your natural flush color and you’ll want to pick a blush close to that tone. Can it get any easier?
If you want a little more information, here are some more tips:
- Warm skin tones: Look for an orange or red-based blush. Peach or coral shades will look the best on you! Olive-colored skin and dark skin can also look great in bright pink!
- Cool skin tones: A blue or pink-based blush will look best on you. Pale pinks will add color to your skin without looking too dark if you have pale, fair skin.
- Neutral skin tones: Stick to soft shades, but most blush colors will look great on you!
How To Pick Other Face Shades
You’re a pro at picking foundation and blush by now, so picking the right shade for the rest of your face should be a breeze! If you’re looking at a bronzer or highlighter, follow similar rules as you did for other face makeup.
Cool skin tones should stick to pink-based products to mimic their natural nude undertone and warm skin tones should look for something orange or red-based. Warm skin tones tend to tan more easily, so try to find a bronzer that matches your natural glow!
Remember that bronzer and highlighter are meant to add a glow or shimmer to your face and don’t need to perfectly blend in. If your bronzer matches your foundation, your foundation is way too dark, Kutie!
How To Pick an Eyeshadow Makeup Shade
Of course, your foundation and blush need to coordinate with your skin tone, but did you know your eyeshadow should also? While there is more freedom with eye makeup colors, the best way to have eyes that pop is to coordinate your eye makeup with your skin tone and/or your eye color.
Luckily, eyeshadows are normally purchased in a palette or set with multiple colors. Your favorite beauty brands have made it easier to find coordinating colors to complete your looks, but you still need to pick the right set!
Match To Your Skin Tone
Skin tone, skin tone, skin tone! We’ve talked about it a lot today, and we have one final lesson! Based on your skin tone, certain eyeshadow shades will help emphasize your skin’s coloring better than others.
Warmer skin tones should look for eye makeup in gold, brown, orange, or red to accentuate the warmth in your skin. If you have pale, warm skin, look for bronze eye makeup. Medium, warm skin can try cinnamon or rust-colored eye makeup.
If you have a cooler skin tone, try playing around with blue, green, or purple eye makeup. You can also try a washed-out copper if you have pale, cool skin.
If you have a neutral skin tone, try experimenting with all the colors listed previously, and more! Teal is a fun color palette for neutral skin tones. Metallics and other bright colors will look great on dark, neutral skin.
Match To Your Eye Color
When it comes to eye makeup, you can easily pick a makeup shade based on your eye color instead of your skin tone. This is the best way to really help make your eyes pop and draw attention to them!
Time To Shop!
It’s pretty easy to find the perfect makeup shade, isn’t it? With just a little knowledge and testing, you too can have makeup that looks custom-made for you!
When you go to buy new makeup, make sure you test the products in the store with swatches on your forearms. Try to find products that match your skin tone as seamlessly as possible in indoor lighting. If you’re buying online, look at the website to find models that have coloring similar to you and choose the products on them. The perfect foundation match can set the tone for your whole look.
Make sure to keep your skin tone (cool, warm, or neutral) in mind when picking out essentials like sheer foundation, blush, and bronzer. You can also use this skin tone to pick out eye makeup, as well as your eye color! Now that you have the right products, have fun experimenting with new looks and a mixture of elements!
Sources:
How To Identify Your Skin's Undertones | Healthline
How To Choose Foundation | In Style
How To Choose The Right Shade Of Foundation | Good Housekeeping