Deciding Undertones

[#1]

How can I tell what my skin's undertone is?  I mostly consider myself with a warm undertone (as some people say "which looks best on you, gold or silver?" gold=warm, silver=cool, either=neutral, and I look best in gold), but other times I'm not so sure.  Some people say "Look at your veins" (greenish=warm, blue=cool, inbetween=neutral), and when I look at my veins they seem more blue than green, which kind of contradicts what I decided earlier with the gold/silver thing.

Any advice?  It'd be helpful so I can get a really perfect foundation color/bb cream (I've been trying for that natural look and clear skin is part of it).

[#2]

Hi,

This may be confusing, but what you described earlier is both true. Here are some things to consider. When you think about undertone, imagine baby skin that is untouched. That is your undertone, the skin you were born with. Thus, you can use your veins as a point of reference.

However, as we get older our skin is exposed to environmental damages and what not, which causes harm to our skin. Our skin can produce pigmentation, redness, and so forth. This becomes our surface tone. The surface tone is what our skin looks like to the naked eye.

So when we color match we take both into consideration, but because we can see the surface tone, most makeup artist will recommend color choice based on this. So if you're looking for eyeshadow and actual color products I would go with warm tones to match the surface tone of your body.

My suggestion would be to match on the décolleté and in the center of the chest if you are matching for a new foundation versus on the side of your neck, so that you are one tone.

Hope this helps.

[#3]

Hi!  I agree that you might be neutral, but I'm warm and the veins on my arm appear mostly blue.  I wouldn't go completely by the rules, since they don't apply to everyone.  Instead, I would try going into a room with a bright light (like a bathroom), taking off all makeup, putting a white towel around your hair, and wearing a white t shirt.  Look into the mirror at your skin and try to decide-does it look yellow? does it look pinkish? Don't let any redness on your cheeks or face confuse you-really just look for the underlying color.  

Hope this is helpful, if not, go to a Sephora store and an employee will definitely help you figure it out.

[#4]

Hi hotcoco1124!

Well, you might just have neutral undertones like me. I found another conversation that would be helpful to answering your question. Here's the link:

http://community.sephora.com/t5/Face-Q-A/How-do-I-know-if-I-have-yellow-beige-or-yellow-undertones/q... 

Hope this helps!