The Color Of Your Veins Will Help You Determine Your Skin's Undertone - Here's How

It used to be that makeup would only come in limited shades based on your general skin tone. If you wanted to get your exact shade, you would have to mix other shades to achieve that. These days, there are so many hues and tones available when you go makeup shopping, and for good reason. Makeup brands are taking into cognizance the fact that two people can have the same shade but different undertones, and hence wouldn't use the same foundation color.

Learning your skin's undertone is a major game changer when it comes to how you purchase makeup products. Getting products like foundation and concealer that match your undertone just blend better and prevent you from looking like a ghost. Also, you don't have to worry about your face matching your neck because it'll be a close match. If you don't know your skin's undertone, there is a quick and easy way you can figure it out just by looking at your veins.

The color of your veins indicate your undertone

Figuring out your skin's undertone is as simple as glancing at the veins on your wrist. This is because the veins are prominent here and their colors are more visible to the eye. According to Healthline, if your veins appear to be greenish, then you have a warm undertone. However, if your veins are blue then you have a cool undertone. If your veins don't really show up at all, then you have a neutral undertone.

The importance of knowing your skin's undertones is so that you can match your makeup to your skin precisely. If you have warm undertones and use a cool foundation, your face would end up looking pasty and vice versa. Also, it helps to know your skin's undertone for your blush and lipstick decisions. Different hues suit different undertones better. Pale skin with cool undertones tends to wear pink natural blush well, but medium skin with warm undertones would probably best be suited to an orange blush. 

Your skin shade is different from your undertone

It's easy to confuse your skin shade with your undertone — we know that all too well. Per Mineral Air, your skin shade refers to the actual color of your skin while your undertone essentially refers not to the shade of your skin but the underlying hues below your skin. You are either fair, light, medium, or dark-skinned. Fair skin contains the least amount of melanin. People with this skin shade are the palest. Light-skinned people are a step below them and have some warmth to their color. Medium skin is much tanner than light skin and usually has a golden hue to it, like a perfect tan without needing to step into the sun. Dark skin contains the most amount of melanin and is visibly dark brown.

There are three main types of undertones: cool, warm, and neutral. Cool undertones have a pinkish or bluish hue to their skin. Warm undertones have a golden, yellowish, or tanned glow to their skin. People with neutral undertones have neither warm nor cool tones because their undertone matches their surface color. Once know your skin and have your best colors down pat, you can up your makeup game and work with the colors that work for you.