A Redhead Color Typology
Below is somethng I wrote after MUCH contemplating on the whole Color Me Beautiful/Seasonality thing. As a redhead with dark hair and pale skin, I was always typed as an Autumn, which really didn't do much for either my mood or my coloring, truthfully. So I set out to fine tune color typing for redheads myself. I first posted this over at the Aromaleigh Forums - you can read the original post along with a bunch of feedback from other redheads by clicking on the blog title.
Enjoy!
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I’m sure you’ve probably heard or been told by well meaning people, cosmetics sales associates, image consultants, moms and sisters that “you look best in green.” Or “ you should stick with earth tones and neutrals.” Or “never wear black.” Or “you don’t look good in pink/red/orange/purple/grey/whatever.” How many times have you been told that you are “an autumn?” Or that your coloring “requires muted shades so as to not overpower you.” In my opinion - and that of top makeup artists and stylists - that’s all nonsense.
There are so many variations on the theme of Redheads - it makes choosing makeup and clothing colors both exhilarating and challenging! There are muted, Autumnal redheads with golden ivory skin and coppery hair. There are those ethereal, gossamer creatures with translucent, milky white skin and fiery or deep red hair. There are redheads with pinked, English rose complexions and strawberry locks. Peaches and cream redheads. A full range of high contrast, low contrast, clear and muted redheads!
With so many skin and hair combinations, how could it possibly make sense that all redheads will wear the same foundation, look best in the same colors of clothing, and choose the same (limited) palette of eye shadows and lip colors? Truth is, it doesn’t. And unless the person dispensing with advice is herself (or himself) a redhead passionate about fashion and makeup, they probably haven’t really given the topic a whole lot of thought.
On the other hand, I have.
Here are some breakdowns on redhead types and colors that can really make them stand out - even more than any of us already does! Remember - it is possible to be two or even three distinct types, although one type will probably feel the best, look the most polished or sophisticated or natural.
Muted: You might be a muted redhead if your skin tone is light with golden undertones. You might even have pale olive skin. Your hair can range from the coppery end of strawberry to the chestnut end of auburn. Your eyes might be grey-blue, any variant of green, brown, hazel, or amber. You instinctively reach for olive green rather than forest green, or chocolate brown rather than charcoal. If this is you, then you probably got some good advice from those well-meaning folks who recommended earth tones, neutrals, pumpkin, olive, russet and such. However, while those shades might be phenomenal on you in clothing, they might not serve you as well in makeup. Your coloring is gorgeously characterized by the relatively low level of contrast between your hair and skin tone - putting a dark, muted-to-the-point-of-drab tone on your face could end up making you look sallow and lack-luster. Rather than matte olive shadow, try a medium golden olive or khaki. Instead of pumpkin lipstick, blush or shadow, look for a warm bronzy shade with some life to it. Try some slightly subdued reddened coral on lips and cheeks. And remember to go for the gold - subtle, warm sparkle can really lift your look while still remaining appropriate for daytime.
Gossamer: You might be a gossamer redhead if your skin is translucent to the point of being nearly transparent. Your skin tone likely carries more pink and blue than it does yellow and olive tones. Your hair likely ranges from strawberry to medium coppery red. And your eyes are probably blue or green - from true blue indigo, through aqua to nearly emerald. Left to your own devices, you probably reach for clothing at the lighter end of the spectrum - pinks (even though someone told you redheads should avoid pink!), lavenders, gentle mint greens, dove grey and so on. If this is you, you might have been feeling like you just can’t make it work - the colors that you like - and that look great on you - just aren’t the shades recommended by the color typing books, the sales person at the cosmetics counter, or the clothing sales associate. Relax! Forget what others have been telling you about those earthy, rich tones that look so lovely on your muted sister, and reach for the colors present in a springtime garden. All those pastels you love? Go for it - in sweet sorbet tones for your eyes, and petal soft washes of color on your lips and cheeks. Just avoid colors that are distinctly cool-white based - instead of that milky pink gloss, try one that is just a bit less washed out, perhaps a pale rose with a golden highlight.
High contrast: The most distinctive aspect of your coloring is that your hair and skin sharply contrast. Your skin might be either pale golden ivory like your Muted sister, or the gentle pink or blue based pale of those Gossamer girls. Either way, your hair is dark red - auburn, burgundy, black-red (yes - this hair color is even present naturally!) and contrasts highly with the light value of your skin. Your eyes are probably in the blue/green/grey range, but hazel, amber and limpid chocolate are possible, too. This is a tricky redhead to dress and make up because all those rich earth tones which look smashing on a Muted and overpowering on a Gossamer really just make you look drab. And dull. And tired. If you have ever read the books Color Me Beautiful or Color Wonderful, you probably found colors on the Contrast and Winter palettes that worked beautifully for you. You need rich shades that are just slightly muted rather than clear and sharp like those found in those cool Winter palettes. In clothing, you probably can carry off black as well as a raven haired beauty. And shades like clear peacock blue, sharp, fresh apple green, slightly burnt orange, indigo, plum, and slightly browned wine make you sparkle! In makeup, look for colors that preserve that balance of clear to muted, but in slightly softer tones. Try a soft slate grey shadow along with tones of rich, fleshy pinks and wines (for a color cue, look at the inside of your lip, or pinch the end of your finger - the color of the blood under the skin is a great red tone for you !). Coppers that lean pink will be amazing on you, as will mahoganies, reddened plums, chocolate browns and golds. In lips, you can go a little cooler than your Muted sister - try a warmed up plum or burgundy along with nudes, and don’t forget the power of a deep, dark chocolate mouth, too. When you find the right red - a clear, just barely browned neutral red with just a slight hint of blue - the result will be stunning! I fall into this category myself, as did an old friend of mine with alabaster skin and bright copper hair. She could have been a Gossamer, but her skin tone was perfectly neutral - not heavily pink/blue. She wasn’t nearly as delicately translucent as a Gossamer, either. She wore colors straight from the Winter palette - cobalt blue, fuchsia, and anything that was a cool, clear bright. She even wore beautiful, hot flushed pink lipstick. She was a stunner!
English Rose: You might be an English Rose if the contrast level between skin and hair is relatively low. Your hair is probably a soft auburn, strawberry or gentled copper. Your skin tone is more pink, and you might be pale to medium complected. Your eyes are most likely blue or blue/grey. Like your Muted sister, your best colors will be slightly muted, but steer clear of the yellow-based shades she prefers. Instead, look at the colors of a vintage Chintz or English floral - those soft, lush shades of hushed rose, butter yellow, taupe, sage green, wisteria and iris. These are your best bets for clothing and makeup both! Accent your eyes with gentle, glowy yellows, lavender-rose, and fleshy, cooler taupe. Lips and cheeks shimmer in more roses, from tender baby pink to full-blown raspberry, just make sure to keep the colors on the muted end of the spectrum.
Peaches and Cream: Closely related to the Gossamer girl, you are also like Muted’s lighter, brighter sister. Your skin tone is pale to fair, with peachy golden tones rather than the pure yellow and olive of the Muted or the pink and blue of the Gossamer. Your hair, likewise, is lighter than that of the Muted - likely strawberry with mango highlights, oranged-copper, and brighter auburn. Your eyes are probably in the green-hazel-amber range. You need clothing in warm, barely muted light to medium tones. A softer apple green, a brighter butter yellow, fresh picked peach (of course!!), chambray blue all suit you beautifully! In your makeup, accent the gorgeous peachy orange tones in your skin and hair with glorious coppers (at the bright end of the spectrum), mid-tone mossy greens, café-au-lait brown, coffee and toffee. Just remember to keep the shades just barely muted - if you drab them down too much, your sparkly beauty will tarnish and dull.
So - armed with the information on your best color ranges, how do you put that into action as the cosmetics counter? Firstly, start with a foundation, concealer and powder that match your skin perfectly in both depth and tone. And if mineral makeup is your thing - as it is mine - then you will undoubtedly find your match at http://www.aromaleigh.com And remember that you do not have to apply foundation over your entire face. In fact, it is more modern to spot apply only where needed - usually under the eyes, around the nose and on the chin - blend well, and dust with translucent powder. If you have chosen the right shades for your skin, there will be no line of demarcation!
Once you’ve got your bases covered - you have chosen the very best match for your skin - you have the delight of playing with colors.
If you are torn between two - or maybe more - redhead types, samples can really help you to narrow it down. Lipsticks, especially, are helpful. If you are an Autumnal redhead, then a swipe of a warm, rich copper will look great on your skin (even if you wouldn’t want to wear it on your mouth for style or personality reasons), while a cool burgundy will just look a bit off. Gossamers can look at the difference between a medium depth clear rose and a muted, tauped-rose. The clear rose will be gorgeous against your skin, while the muted shade, although pretty, will just sort of sit there. High Contrasts can look at the difference between a very muted and subdued browned red and a clear, true red - again, even if you aren’t in the market or the mood for a clear red lipstick, this can be a good color cue. English Roses can use the same shades as a Gossamer would - a clear rose or raspberry against a muted rose or raspberry. And Peaches and cream can test between a copper or russet versus a gentle peach. Your type should become very clear from these experiments. And once you know your type - or types! - color selection gets a whole lot easier and way more fun!
Enjoy!
*************************************************************************************
I’m sure you’ve probably heard or been told by well meaning people, cosmetics sales associates, image consultants, moms and sisters that “you look best in green.” Or “ you should stick with earth tones and neutrals.” Or “never wear black.” Or “you don’t look good in pink/red/orange/purple/grey/whatever.” How many times have you been told that you are “an autumn?” Or that your coloring “requires muted shades so as to not overpower you.” In my opinion - and that of top makeup artists and stylists - that’s all nonsense.
There are so many variations on the theme of Redheads - it makes choosing makeup and clothing colors both exhilarating and challenging! There are muted, Autumnal redheads with golden ivory skin and coppery hair. There are those ethereal, gossamer creatures with translucent, milky white skin and fiery or deep red hair. There are redheads with pinked, English rose complexions and strawberry locks. Peaches and cream redheads. A full range of high contrast, low contrast, clear and muted redheads!
With so many skin and hair combinations, how could it possibly make sense that all redheads will wear the same foundation, look best in the same colors of clothing, and choose the same (limited) palette of eye shadows and lip colors? Truth is, it doesn’t. And unless the person dispensing with advice is herself (or himself) a redhead passionate about fashion and makeup, they probably haven’t really given the topic a whole lot of thought.
On the other hand, I have.
Here are some breakdowns on redhead types and colors that can really make them stand out - even more than any of us already does! Remember - it is possible to be two or even three distinct types, although one type will probably feel the best, look the most polished or sophisticated or natural.
Muted: You might be a muted redhead if your skin tone is light with golden undertones. You might even have pale olive skin. Your hair can range from the coppery end of strawberry to the chestnut end of auburn. Your eyes might be grey-blue, any variant of green, brown, hazel, or amber. You instinctively reach for olive green rather than forest green, or chocolate brown rather than charcoal. If this is you, then you probably got some good advice from those well-meaning folks who recommended earth tones, neutrals, pumpkin, olive, russet and such. However, while those shades might be phenomenal on you in clothing, they might not serve you as well in makeup. Your coloring is gorgeously characterized by the relatively low level of contrast between your hair and skin tone - putting a dark, muted-to-the-point-of-drab tone on your face could end up making you look sallow and lack-luster. Rather than matte olive shadow, try a medium golden olive or khaki. Instead of pumpkin lipstick, blush or shadow, look for a warm bronzy shade with some life to it. Try some slightly subdued reddened coral on lips and cheeks. And remember to go for the gold - subtle, warm sparkle can really lift your look while still remaining appropriate for daytime.
Gossamer: You might be a gossamer redhead if your skin is translucent to the point of being nearly transparent. Your skin tone likely carries more pink and blue than it does yellow and olive tones. Your hair likely ranges from strawberry to medium coppery red. And your eyes are probably blue or green - from true blue indigo, through aqua to nearly emerald. Left to your own devices, you probably reach for clothing at the lighter end of the spectrum - pinks (even though someone told you redheads should avoid pink!), lavenders, gentle mint greens, dove grey and so on. If this is you, you might have been feeling like you just can’t make it work - the colors that you like - and that look great on you - just aren’t the shades recommended by the color typing books, the sales person at the cosmetics counter, or the clothing sales associate. Relax! Forget what others have been telling you about those earthy, rich tones that look so lovely on your muted sister, and reach for the colors present in a springtime garden. All those pastels you love? Go for it - in sweet sorbet tones for your eyes, and petal soft washes of color on your lips and cheeks. Just avoid colors that are distinctly cool-white based - instead of that milky pink gloss, try one that is just a bit less washed out, perhaps a pale rose with a golden highlight.
High contrast: The most distinctive aspect of your coloring is that your hair and skin sharply contrast. Your skin might be either pale golden ivory like your Muted sister, or the gentle pink or blue based pale of those Gossamer girls. Either way, your hair is dark red - auburn, burgundy, black-red (yes - this hair color is even present naturally!) and contrasts highly with the light value of your skin. Your eyes are probably in the blue/green/grey range, but hazel, amber and limpid chocolate are possible, too. This is a tricky redhead to dress and make up because all those rich earth tones which look smashing on a Muted and overpowering on a Gossamer really just make you look drab. And dull. And tired. If you have ever read the books Color Me Beautiful or Color Wonderful, you probably found colors on the Contrast and Winter palettes that worked beautifully for you. You need rich shades that are just slightly muted rather than clear and sharp like those found in those cool Winter palettes. In clothing, you probably can carry off black as well as a raven haired beauty. And shades like clear peacock blue, sharp, fresh apple green, slightly burnt orange, indigo, plum, and slightly browned wine make you sparkle! In makeup, look for colors that preserve that balance of clear to muted, but in slightly softer tones. Try a soft slate grey shadow along with tones of rich, fleshy pinks and wines (for a color cue, look at the inside of your lip, or pinch the end of your finger - the color of the blood under the skin is a great red tone for you !). Coppers that lean pink will be amazing on you, as will mahoganies, reddened plums, chocolate browns and golds. In lips, you can go a little cooler than your Muted sister - try a warmed up plum or burgundy along with nudes, and don’t forget the power of a deep, dark chocolate mouth, too. When you find the right red - a clear, just barely browned neutral red with just a slight hint of blue - the result will be stunning! I fall into this category myself, as did an old friend of mine with alabaster skin and bright copper hair. She could have been a Gossamer, but her skin tone was perfectly neutral - not heavily pink/blue. She wasn’t nearly as delicately translucent as a Gossamer, either. She wore colors straight from the Winter palette - cobalt blue, fuchsia, and anything that was a cool, clear bright. She even wore beautiful, hot flushed pink lipstick. She was a stunner!
English Rose: You might be an English Rose if the contrast level between skin and hair is relatively low. Your hair is probably a soft auburn, strawberry or gentled copper. Your skin tone is more pink, and you might be pale to medium complected. Your eyes are most likely blue or blue/grey. Like your Muted sister, your best colors will be slightly muted, but steer clear of the yellow-based shades she prefers. Instead, look at the colors of a vintage Chintz or English floral - those soft, lush shades of hushed rose, butter yellow, taupe, sage green, wisteria and iris. These are your best bets for clothing and makeup both! Accent your eyes with gentle, glowy yellows, lavender-rose, and fleshy, cooler taupe. Lips and cheeks shimmer in more roses, from tender baby pink to full-blown raspberry, just make sure to keep the colors on the muted end of the spectrum.
Peaches and Cream: Closely related to the Gossamer girl, you are also like Muted’s lighter, brighter sister. Your skin tone is pale to fair, with peachy golden tones rather than the pure yellow and olive of the Muted or the pink and blue of the Gossamer. Your hair, likewise, is lighter than that of the Muted - likely strawberry with mango highlights, oranged-copper, and brighter auburn. Your eyes are probably in the green-hazel-amber range. You need clothing in warm, barely muted light to medium tones. A softer apple green, a brighter butter yellow, fresh picked peach (of course!!), chambray blue all suit you beautifully! In your makeup, accent the gorgeous peachy orange tones in your skin and hair with glorious coppers (at the bright end of the spectrum), mid-tone mossy greens, café-au-lait brown, coffee and toffee. Just remember to keep the shades just barely muted - if you drab them down too much, your sparkly beauty will tarnish and dull.
So - armed with the information on your best color ranges, how do you put that into action as the cosmetics counter? Firstly, start with a foundation, concealer and powder that match your skin perfectly in both depth and tone. And if mineral makeup is your thing - as it is mine - then you will undoubtedly find your match at http://www.aromaleigh.com And remember that you do not have to apply foundation over your entire face. In fact, it is more modern to spot apply only where needed - usually under the eyes, around the nose and on the chin - blend well, and dust with translucent powder. If you have chosen the right shades for your skin, there will be no line of demarcation!
Once you’ve got your bases covered - you have chosen the very best match for your skin - you have the delight of playing with colors.
If you are torn between two - or maybe more - redhead types, samples can really help you to narrow it down. Lipsticks, especially, are helpful. If you are an Autumnal redhead, then a swipe of a warm, rich copper will look great on your skin (even if you wouldn’t want to wear it on your mouth for style or personality reasons), while a cool burgundy will just look a bit off. Gossamers can look at the difference between a medium depth clear rose and a muted, tauped-rose. The clear rose will be gorgeous against your skin, while the muted shade, although pretty, will just sort of sit there. High Contrasts can look at the difference between a very muted and subdued browned red and a clear, true red - again, even if you aren’t in the market or the mood for a clear red lipstick, this can be a good color cue. English Roses can use the same shades as a Gossamer would - a clear rose or raspberry against a muted rose or raspberry. And Peaches and cream can test between a copper or russet versus a gentle peach. Your type should become very clear from these experiments. And once you know your type - or types! - color selection gets a whole lot easier and way more fun!
posted by Your Style Muse at 1:34 PM
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