±What colour? P Y N
§Part 3...Yellow Undertones
Following on from my previous posts, What colour? P Y N, - if you missed them have a quick read of part 1 and Part 2 - Im going to focus on Yellow Undertones this week. (All the brilliant pictures for this post are from the wonderful website Humanae by Artist Angélica Dass, she has used the colour chart of Pantone to match her models pigmentation and applied it as the back drop for each photograph).
Warm, Gold, Tan, Honey, Olive, Caramel and Peach are a few terms used to describe a yellow complexion. Yellow undertones have such a wide variation that sometimes I think this category could be divided again. It ranges from Olive through to Golden. Take a moment and have a good look at all the portraits, especially the top row and note the difference in warmth between them.
All complexions vary in shade around the face; neck and décolletage but I think the difference is more noticeable in the yellow family, mainly between the forehead, cheeks nose and jaw area; sometimes there is up to three shades difference especially the darker the complexion. So when choosing a foundation it can be confusing which shade to match. That is why I nearly always use two shades, one to match the darkest area and one that matches the lighter areas, where the two shades meet I softly blend so they seamlessly fade into one another, I also find I mix more colours together for this category. (Keep an eye out for future posts on how I approach applying foundation).
If you are more on the Olive side of this group a foundation that matches can leave you looking sallow (for a better understanding of sallow, read here - WARNING it does not make for pleasant read), so in situations like this I apply a colour corrector likeWARNING it does not make for pleasant read), so in situations like this I apply colour correctors like Givenchy Acti’Mine ; Cover FX Face & Eye Primer; Smash Box Photo finish Primer or MAC Prep + Prime CC Correcting then the matching foundation on top, it just adds warmth and brings life to the skin...I know this from personal experience because I’m a Yellow/Olive undertone and during the winter months I can look sallow to the point where I’m often asked If I’m feeling well; so I use a foundation that is a little warm like the Bareminerals Bareskin Pure Brightening Serum Foundation. I find this a tiny bit ( and I mean a tiny bit) on the caramel side, so no more sallowness! In sunnier weather my complexion not only darkens but my under colour becomes deeper and richer, warm like the colour of a fresh chestnut. :-)
|I’ve thrown in a Pink and Neutral portrait can you spot them?
§Next week I will focus on Neutral undertones...
