Conflicted by Nature

[ladyciel]

Robbie''s post on coloring her hair got me thinking about something that frustrates me off and on, and I''d like some opinions. I have pale, cool colored skin w/ blue and pink undertones. However, I have warm green eyes and gold hair that treads the line between dark blond and light brown so well that nobody can agree what to call it. I feel like the clash of my cool skin and warm features makes it difficult to get a unified look. When I wear browns it plays up my hair and eyes but my skin looks washed out. Wearing cool colors does the opposite - my skin looks good, but my hair looks brassy and my eyes get lost in the mix. Basically, I can only wear colors in that very fine line of neutral (neither cool or warm) and have everything blend ok.

I''ve been debating coloring my hair, but I can''t make up my mind whether or I should and if so to what color. Any ideas? I''ll try and find some pics to show what I mean...

Thanks!!

 

[firebirdgold]

Other than black I''m not sure what hair color qualifies as cool.

Maybe a red?

 

[Cehrabehra]

what about just some ashy blonde highlights? or a tanning salon LOL

 

[laine]

I''ve actually been thinking a bit about colors lately. I found one webpage thats pretty good for determining your season and what colors you should wear: http://www.colorconnections.com/colorconnections_2007/dress.html

One thing I got from this is that there is a lot more to color than just warm and cool. If you look at the color cards that they show there, winter and summer are both cool, but the colors are really different, and I know I''d look bad in a lot of the winter colors (I''m a summer).

Maybe try wearing some different shades of the colors that almost look good on you. For example, try a cooler brown (one with more grey undertones than orangey), see if that works better with both your hair and skin.

I apologize if these are things you already know or have tried, I know these things have been useful to me lately (I''m expanding a college student wardrobe into a more professional one, and don''t want to make "mistakes").

Sorry, no advice on the hair coloring--I''ve only done the super cheap temporary drug store stuff, which I wouldn''t really recommend--though it would give you an idea of how you would look with a different color, you could try it before you go permanent.

 

[AmberGretchen]

Before you color your hair, I think you should try out some different makeup looks with those different colored clothes to see if that might help with your problem. I have a similar issue, though not with my hair, just my eyes, which depending on the the light can be hazel or gold-looking, but I have porcelain skin and dark hair. I''ve found that adjusting my makeup to what I''m wearing makes a big difference. Given your coloring, here is what I would suggest as a starting point (or points).

With cool colored clothing:

-purple eyeliner and shadow (plummy purple, not sparkly teenage colors) - this will bring out the green in your eyes but make it cooler, and will keep your eyes from getting lost. My favorite is Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner in violet ink - stays on even through a 12-hour day plus a workout but comes off with a good facewash.
-purple eyeshadow as necessary - I don''t normally wear eyeshadow during the day, only at night. Bobbi Brown heather and lilac are nice purple colors, but there''s a wide array of nice subtle purple eyeshadows on the market to choose from.
-depending on how dark your eyelashes are normally, either a dark brown or black mascara, and curl your eyelashes. Again, this will keep your eyes from getting lost.
-a plummy pink blush. One of my current faves for this is from Laura Mercier called Oleander. Another nice option is Stila powder blush - the color is either Blush or Cozy, don''t remember which but it will be obvious as its the purply one.
-a lipstick with a cool/purple undertone. Some of my favorites are Laura mercier sheers in purple haze or black orchid, and benefit''s new silky lipstick in dessert first is also great for this

The overall goal of this look is to make sure that your eyes don''t get lost, and also to create an overall "cool" look which will tone down the warmth of your eyes hopefulyl without making your hair look brassy by contrast. If you''re still finding your hair looking brassy, you might want to play around with a headband or bands in different colors (dark plum or tortoiseshell both might work, or a bright, fun pattern) might put the best final touch on this to tone down your hair color.

With warm colored clothing:
-a subtle bronzer to warm you up. I don''t know how pale you are, but maybe even look at powders that aren''t intended for bronzing but just for warmer skin tones. I LOVE Stila illuminating powder foundation for powder, and if they make a dark enough shade it would be a fantastic bronzer. Just dust gently where the sun would naturally hit you.
-a slightly warm pink, or, if that doesn''t add enough warmth, a peachy or apricot blush. Stila stick cream blush in pink flash is a good one to try, and Laura Mercier makes some nice subtle apricot tones. Its really important to have both the pinky/peachy/apricot blush and the bronzer on the face (and neck and chest if necessary).
-a soft brown eyeliner. Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner in Sepia is great for this, but again, there are lots of options - you''re looking for an almost chestnut color, a soft brown with some warmth.
-mascara can be the same.
-a warm apricot or peachy or warm pink lipstick or gloss.
-for dress-up, you could add a warm glow with a Bobbi Brown shimmer brick or similar shimmer powder on the face and/or shimmery gold eyeshadow on the eyes (Stila oasis is a great one for this).

Again, the concept is that you are warming up the whole face. This can be especially tricky to do with very fair complexions, and the trick is often to use products that aren''t necessarily intended for bronzing or darkening, but are at least several shades lighter than that. The other trick is the blush in addition to bronxer of some sort - people with pale skin most often look better with some extra color, and here the blush over the bronzer does the trick.

OK, so I realize that that was a lot of information and probably way more than you were asking for -sorry about that, I just love makeup and have struggled so much to find things that work for my fair skin that I wanted to share my knowledge, for whatever its worth. I think that coloring your hair might be another good option, and putting in some ashy tones is a good possibility as it would tone down the warmth. The nice thing about all of these things (makeup, hair color, etc...) is that they are temporary and can be changed if they don''t work. But you should be happy with the way you look, so I would encourage you to explore all the options and have fun doing it

 

[ladyciel]

I managed to get some photos that are pretty accurate for color, at least on my screen. Man do I have some awful frizzies today....

No makeup, nothing in my hair, surrounded by white walls/window and white shirt.

 

[ladyciel]

Inside of my wrist (since it''s so often cited as a good place to check your skin tone). Blue and pink, all the way, baby. When I recently bought some of L''Oreal''s True Match powder, I was a C1 on their scale - aka "cool" and as pale as it gets on a scale of 1-10. The name of the shade? Alabaster. With a little more sun I can probably move a shade darker, but my ability to tan is pretty much nada. Burn, baby, burn.

 

[ladyciel]

Thanks for all the makeup tips, AG. I find most often that I end up with liners and shadows in the plum to bronzy-brown range, depending on what I''m wearing. Brown mascara, because anything darker looks silly on me. As for blush, I''m pretty rosy as is, so unless I completely cover up w/ a liquid foundation, I find going with anything other than something close to my natural color ends up competing with what''s already there. Does that make sense? My natural pink bleeds through and can quickly clash with the wrong blush color.

As for lipstick, I have issues. I find I can''t stray from anything pretty close to my normal lip color without looking silly. I often just stick to a gloss to give a slight tint and some shine. For a while I thought maybe I just sucked at picking colors and applying them, but the same thing happens when I get my makeup touched up at the salon or when I visit a makeup counter in the mall. Inevitably the stylist/artist says "oooh, this color should be great on you!", she applies it, and then immediately reaches for a lighter gloss or tissue to try and bring it back to a shade I can actually pull off.

 

[NYCsparkle]

if i were you i''d go for a consultation with a really good hair colorist. adding low lights and high lights would really briing out your eyes.

 

[AmberGretchen]

I''m EXACTLY that same way with lipstick - I have had that experience with the makeup counter ladies more times than I can tell you! The worst is when they try to pretend its OK when my lips look bright orange and freakish and they keep saying in this really cheery voice how lovely it looks. See if you can get your hands on a lipstick called Gracie from Stila - its technically discontinued but I''ve been able to find it. Its my "magic" shade - the perfect natural pink that pretty much looks good no matter what I''m wearing. Since our skin and lip colors are so similar (judging from your pictures), it might just work for you too

I get it about the blush - that totally makes sense. I usually wear a light foundation because its the only way I remember to wear sunscreen every day! I also have to be careful about the colors though and all the ones I recommended are very sheer and natural on me. Oh and I wore the C1 of the L''Oreal makeup as well, but the fragrance was so strong and something in it irritated my skin so I couldn''t wear it. I now wear Paula''s Choice makeup in the lightest shade with SPF 15 and/or Stila illuminating powder foundation in 10 watts - that''s my couldn''t live without it makeup - makes my skin look natural and glowy and even

I also agree about seeing a talented colorist - I think the right shades of highlights/lowlights could bring out the color of your eyes beautifully!

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I think certain blondes would be considered a "cool" color. I second the blonde highlight idea.

 

[diamondfan]

there are cool blondes, like ash or champagne or platinum, and there are warmer blondes, like golden or honey or caramel. You can get a good colorist who can do high and low lights in a blending of some warm and cool tones, at least a couple of each, so they all harmonize together. You want to boost things so your skin and hair and eyes have some contrasts. Also, I have turned lipsticks into funky shades, something will look great on in the store and by the time I get home it is pumpkin colored or orange or muddy and it is gross. It is my chemistry mixed with the formula of that particular brand.

Once the hair color is resolved to your liking, then play with the make up tones that work. You want to play features up, without washing you out or being to much in contrast and therefore too garish on your skin. You can have a more subtle day look and a more intense evening or dressy look, but I really think you need to get the hair color dealt with first and foremost. Once you do that, it will by default help direct you where the make up colors are concerned. Perscriptives has a color category blue red, and then the contrast is yellow orange if I am not mistaken. That means the shade that is most in sync with your tones is your most natural and then the other shade group would be your most striking for contrast.

 

[rainwood]

I see your dilemma. I too am a blue undertone, pale skin person. The usual way to make hair less warm or brassy is to add ash tones, but I''m not sure you''d like the results. Having light ash brown hair usually translates to drab. Trust me, I know - that''s my natural hair color. Yours is a lot more attractive. Ash light blonde is nice or maybe even a darker brown but not a light brown.

It took me a long time to realize that blue undertones can wear almost any color as long as they find a shade of that color that also has the blue undertone (2 exceptions - bright orange and bright yellow never have a blue undertone). Finding those blue undertone versions of color is often easier said than done because pale/blue undertone I believe is the least common skin color. People like Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, and Renee Zellweger are pale but have gold undertones which are far more common. Julianna Margulies (used to be on ER in the George Clooney days) is an example of blue undertone/pale.

With your hair and eyes, I can easily see you in a burgundy color that has that slight blue undertone. It could be a great color on you and would show off your eyes and not make your hair brassy looking. And the way to make your eyes pop is to wear an eye shadow that doesn''t compete with your eye color. So wearing a cool taupe or cool brown shadow should make your green eyes pop a lot more than a green or gold or other warm shadow would.

 

[eks6426]

From your picture, it looks to me like you have cooler toned hair too. I would have called it dark ash blonde. If I were you, I''d consider adding lighter cool toned blonde highlights. This would add dimension to your hair and brighten up your whole look. Really the old fashioned concept of "frosting" would probably work on you.


In make-up you can find bronzers that have a more gold-pink tone rather than the normal bronze. Those might help you too.