Choosing the right colours for your wardrobe, makeup, and accessories starts with understanding your skin tone and undertones. These subtle hues beneath your skin’s surface influence how colours look on you — what makes you glow or what might wash you out. For anyone aiming to refine their personal style, especially in a diverse and vibrant setting like Singapore, identifying your undertone is an essential first step. This guide will help you understand what undertones are, how to identify yours, and how to use this knowledge for perfect colour matching.
What Are Skin Undertones?
Your skin tone is the surface colour of your skin — light, medium, dark, or deep. Your undertone, however, is the natural hue underneath the surface and remains consistent regardless of tanning or changes in your skin’s appearance. Undertones generally fall into three categories:
- Warm Undertones: Yellow, peachy, or golden hues beneath the skin.
- Cool Undertones: Pink, red, or blue hues beneath the skin.
- Neutral Undertones: A balanced mix of warm and cool hues, sometimes described as olive.
Knowing your undertone helps in selecting colours that harmonize with your natural colouring, making your skin appear healthier and more vibrant.
Why Undertones Matter
Matching your clothing, makeup, and hair colours to your undertone creates a natural, flattering look. Colours that clash with your undertone can make your skin look dull, tired, or washed out. Conversely, the right colours enhance your complexion, brighten your eyes, and highlight your best features.
How to Identify Your Undertone
Here are several simple methods you can try at home to determine your undertone:
- Vein Test:
Look at the veins on your wrist under natural light.
- If they appear blue or purple, you likely have cool undertones.
- If they look greenish, you have warm undertones.
- If you see both blue and green, you may have neutral undertones.
- Jewellery Test:
Think about whether gold or silver jewellery looks better on you.
- Gold tends to flatter warm undertones.
- Silver complements cool undertones.
- If both look good, you might have a neutral undertone.
- White Paper Test:
Hold a plain white piece of paper next to your face in natural light.
- If your skin looks rosy or pink against the white, you have cool undertones.
- If your skin looks yellowish or golden, you have warm undertones.
- If you can’t tell or your skin looks neither distinctly pink nor yellow, you might be neutral.
- Sun Reaction Test:
Consider how your skin reacts to sun exposure.
- If you tan easily and rarely burn, you likely have warm undertones.
- If you burn easily and tan minimally, you likely have cool undertones.
- If you tan gradually but still burn occasionally, you could have neutral undertones.
Using Your Undertone to Choose Colours
Once you know your undertone, you can pick colours that will enhance your natural beauty:
- Warm Undertones:
Opt for colours with warm bases like orange, gold, yellow, warm reds, peach, coral, olive green, and creamy whites. - Cool Undertones:
Choose colours with blue or pink bases like royal blue, emerald green, lavender, cool reds, magenta, and crisp whites. - Neutral Undertones:
Lucky you! Most colours will suit you. Aim for balanced shades like jade green, dusty pink, soft rose, and medium greys.
Applying This to Your Wardrobe and Makeup
- Clothing: Wearing colours aligned with your undertone makes your outfit look cohesive and your complexion radiant.
- Makeup: Foundation, blush, eyeshadow, and lip colours matched to your undertone avoid clashes and bring out your natural beauty.
- Hair Colour: If you colour your hair, pick shades that complement your undertones — golden highlights for warm undertones, ash tones for cool, and balanced hues for neutral.
Why It Matters in Singapore
Singapore’s multicultural environment means a rich variety of skin tones and undertones. Tropical sunlight and humidity can influence how colours appear, making understanding undertones even more valuable for selecting clothing and makeup that always look their best.
Final Tips
- Always test colours in natural light before buying or applying.
- Remember undertones don’t change, but skin tone may vary slightly with sun exposure or seasons.
- Don’t be afraid to experiment—your comfort and confidence matter most.
Conclusion
Understanding your skin’s undertones is a key step toward perfect colour matching in your style choices. With this knowledge, you can confidently select clothing and makeup that flatter your unique colouring, enhancing your natural glow and making dressing easier and more enjoyable. Whether you have warm, cool, or neutral undertones, embracing them allows you to build a personal style that feels authentic and looks stunning in any setting—especially in Singapore’s vibrant, diverse scene.