Finding your true skin undertone is a fundamental step in building a personal care routine that truly works for you. It’s the secret to choosing the right foundation that disappears into your skin, the lipstick that makes your face light up, and the clothing colors that make you look vibrant and healthy. This isn’t about guesswork; it’s about observation and a few simple tests. This guide will walk you through the definitive, practical steps to identify your undertone, eliminating the confusion and providing you with a roadmap to a more harmonized look.
Why Your Undertone Matters More Than Your Skin Tone
Before we dive into the tests, let’s clarify the difference between skin tone and undertone. Your skin tone, also known as your surface color, is what you see in the mirror—porcelain, fair, medium, olive, or deep. It can change with sun exposure, health, and age. Your undertone, however, is the subtle hue beneath the surface of your skin. It is always present and never changes. The three primary undertones are:
- Cool: A subtle pink, red, or bluish hue.
-
Warm: A subtle golden, peachy, or yellow hue.
-
Neutral: A blend of both warm and cool tones, often with no dominant color.
The goal is to find your undertone so that every product you apply, from makeup to self-tanner, complements this underlying color, creating a seamless, natural finish.
The Vein Test: A First Look at Your Undersurface
The vein test is the most common and often the simplest way to get a quick read on your undertone. This test relies on observing the color of your veins, usually on the underside of your wrist, where the skin is thinnest and most translucent.
How to do it:
- Stand in a well-lit area, preferably with natural sunlight. Avoid harsh artificial lighting, which can cast a yellow or blue tint and skew your results.
-
Look at the veins on the inside of your wrist. Relax your hand and arm to allow the blood flow to be natural.
-
Observe the color of the veins. Don’t just glance; really focus.
Interpreting the results:
- If your veins appear blue or purple: You likely have a cool undertone. The blue in your veins is more prominent because the red and pink tones in your skin are what’s reflecting back.
-
If your veins appear green or olive: You likely have a warm undertone. The yellow and golden tones in your skin are what’s making the blue of your veins appear green. Think of mixing blue and yellow—you get green.
-
If you see a mix of blue and green, or if you can’t tell the dominant color: You are likely neutral. You have an equal balance of cool and warm tones, making it difficult to pinpoint a single color.
Concrete Example:
Imagine you’re in a brightly lit room. You hold up your wrist and see distinct blue-purple lines snaking across the surface. These are your veins, and their clear blue color is a strong indicator that your undertone is cool. You should focus on foundations with a pink or red base.
The Jewelry Test: Gold vs. Silver
Your undertone dictates which metals naturally flatter your skin. This isn’t about personal preference; it’s about what makes your skin look radiant versus washed out.
How to do it:
- Gather two pieces of jewelry: one made of pure silver or white gold, and another of yellow gold. You can also use a silver and a gold-colored piece of foil or fabric if you don’t have jewelry.
-
Hold the silver piece up to your face and neck, then hold the gold piece up. Observe the effect each has on your skin.
-
Pay attention to how your skin reacts. Does one metal make you look more vibrant, while the other makes you look sallow or dull?
Interpreting the results:
- Silver jewelry makes your skin glow: You have a cool undertone. The cool tones in the silver complement the cool, rosy tones in your skin, making you look fresh and luminous.
-
Gold jewelry makes your skin look radiant: You have a warm undertone. The warm, golden tones in the metal harmonize with the golden, peachy tones in your skin, giving you a healthy, sun-kissed appearance.
-
Both silver and gold look good on you: You have a neutral undertone. You can wear either metal with ease because your undertone is a balanced blend of both cool and warm.
Concrete Example:
You hold a delicate silver chain up to your jawline. Your skin seems to brighten, and your complexion looks clear and fresh. Next, you hold a thick gold necklace to the same spot. Your skin looks a little sallow, and the necklace seems to overpower your natural coloring. The clear winner is silver, a strong sign that you have a cool undertone.
The White T-shirt Test: Eliminating External Colors
This test is about stripping away all external colors to see the true, unvarnished color of your skin. The goal is to see how your skin reacts to the stark contrast of a pure white object.
How to do it:
- Remove all makeup and stand in a room with natural light.
-
Hold a pure white piece of paper or a bright white t-shirt up to your face and neck. A pure white towel also works well.
-
Look at your skin in the mirror. Observe the subtle tones that are brought out by the white backdrop.
Interpreting the results:
- Your skin looks rosy, pink, or has a blueish tint: You have a cool undertone. The white accentuates the subtle red and pink pigments in your skin.
-
Your skin looks yellowish or golden: You have a warm undertone. The white fabric makes the underlying yellow and golden tones in your skin more apparent.
-
Your skin looks grayish or dull: This is a tricky one. If you have an olive skin tone, you may have a neutral undertone with a greenish cast, which a white backdrop can make appear gray. However, it can also be a sign of a neutral undertone in general, as there are no dominant colors to be brought out.
Concrete Example:
You are looking in a mirror with no makeup on. You hold a pristine white sheet of printer paper next to your jaw. The white starkly contrasts with your skin, and you notice a clear pinkish hue to your complexion. This is a definitive sign of a cool undertone.
The Sun Test: How Your Skin Reacts to UV Rays
How your skin naturally reacts to the sun is a very reliable indicator of your undertone. This test requires a bit of memory, not a trip to the beach. Think back to a time when you got a bit too much sun.
How to do it:
- Recall the last time you were in the sun without adequate protection.
-
Think about how your skin reacted. Did you burn easily? Did you tan well?
Interpreting the results:
- You burn easily and rarely tan: You have a cool undertone. The lack of melanin that produces a tan and the presence of more hemoglobin, which causes redness, is a common trait of those with cool undertones. You’ll likely go from pale to red to back to pale.
-
You tan easily and rarely burn: You have a warm undertone. You have more melanin, the pigment that produces a tan, which protects your skin and gives it a golden hue. You’ll likely go from pale to golden to a deeper golden shade.
-
You burn a little and then tan: You have a neutral undertone. You have a balanced amount of melanin and hemoglobin, so you may get a little pink initially, but it quickly turns into a tan.
Concrete Example:
You remember a beach trip where you forgot to reapply sunscreen. By the end of the day, your skin was a fiery red, and a few days later, it was peeling. You never developed a tan. This is a classic cool undertone reaction.
The Lip Color Test: A Quick Makeup Hack
Even without a full makeup collection, you can use your lips to get a sense of your undertone. This test uses the color of your lips as a clue to your overall coloring.
How to do it:
- Look at your natural, bare lips in a well-lit mirror.
-
Notice the color of your lips and the subtle tones around the edges.
Interpreting the results:
- Your lips are more of a purplish or pinkish-red: You have a cool undertone. The natural color of your lips is a great indicator of the kind of colors that will flatter you. Cool undertones often have a natural rosiness.
-
Your lips are more of a brownish or peachy color: You have a warm undertone. The subtle brown and peach tones in your lips point to a warm, golden base.
-
Your lips are a mix of both, or a muted mauve: You have a neutral undertone. Your lips may not have a strong dominant color, much like the rest of your skin.
Concrete Example:
In the mirror, your lips have a slight pinkish-red hue, like a delicate rose petal. This subtle color is a clue to your cool undertone. You can then confidently start exploring lipsticks with blue or purple bases.
The Hair Color Test: A Natural Correlation
Your natural hair color, particularly as a child, can offer some insight into your undertone. While hair color can be changed, the natural shade often aligns with your underlying skin tone.
How to do it:
- Think back to your natural hair color as a child, or look at your roots if you have not dyed your hair.
-
Consider the natural highlights or lowlights that appear in the sun.
Interpreting the results:
- Your natural hair color is ash blonde, cool brown, or black with a blue sheen: You have a cool undertone. These hair colors have a lack of golden or red pigments.
-
Your natural hair color is golden blonde, caramel, red, or warm brown with golden or red highlights: You have a warm undertone. These hair colors are rich in warm pigments.
-
You have a mix of tones, or a “bronde” color: You have a neutral undertone. Your hair may have both warm and cool pigments, which is common.
Concrete Example:
You remember your childhood hair was a light brown with a lot of natural golden highlights. As an adult, your roots show the same warm, brown shade. This is a very good sign that your undertone is warm.
The Fabric Drape Test: A Comprehensive Approach
This is a more advanced test that combines the principles of the white T-shirt and jewelry tests. It requires a few different colored pieces of fabric to see how your skin reacts to various hues.
How to do it:
- Gather four pieces of fabric: one pure white, one off-white or cream, one black, and one brown. Make sure they are solid colors.
-
Remove all makeup and stand in natural light.
-
Drape each piece of fabric around your neck, one at a time. Observe the effect each color has on your skin. Pay attention to how it makes your skin look in relation to your eyes, hair, and overall complexion.
Interpreting the results:
- Pure white and black make your skin look radiant, but off-white and brown make you look sallow: You have a cool undertone. The stark contrast of black and white complements the coolness in your skin, while the warmth of off-white and brown drains the life from it.
-
Off-white and brown make your skin look vibrant, but pure white and black make you look harsh or washed out: You have a warm undertone. The softness of the warm colors complements your skin, while the starkness of the cool colors is unflattering.
-
You look equally good in all four colors: You have a neutral undertone. Your skin is versatile and can pull off both warm and cool shades.
Concrete Example:
You drape a black scarf around your neck. Your face seems to pop, your eyes look brighter, and your complexion looks smooth. You then drape a cream-colored scarf. Your face looks dull, and you notice dark circles under your eyes that weren’t there before. The black scarf is a clear win, pointing to a cool undertone.
Final Thoughts on Your Undertone Journey
Identifying your undertone is not about a single test but a convergence of evidence. By performing a few of these tests, you can build a strong, confident case for your undertone. Once you have a clear idea, you can begin to make smarter, more informed choices about your personal care products. Your makeup will look more natural, your clothing will make you look more vibrant, and your confidence will soar. This knowledge is a powerful tool for building a cohesive and personalized aesthetic that truly celebrates your unique beauty.