Many makeup brands have extended their foundation offerings to 40+ shades. This means that finding your exact match is more accessible than ever. So, an important part of finding your best shade is by knowing your undertone. Have you tried foundation to find that it is either too pink or too yellow? If so, you’ve most likely selected a foundation with the wrong undertone. The most common undertones in foundations are: olive, cool, warm, and neutral. The trial and error process of knowing your undertone can be confusing. So here are some basic ways of determining your undertone.

The Metallic Method

This method is easy for finding your undertone. Just answer the question: what metallic shades do I look best in? Select the option that fits you best below:

• Gold: If gold is a good color on you, you have either olive or warm undertones
• Silver: If silver is a good color on you, you have cool undertones
• Silver & Gold: If silver and gold both look good on you, you have neutral undertones

The White Paper Test

This method involves using a piece of printing paper in natural light. Take the paper and place it next to your face. If your skin looks pink next to the paper; you have cool undertones. If your face looks yellow; you have either warm or olive undertones. If you do not notice any difference, you likely have neutral undertones.

The Vein Test

This is my recommended method for figuring out your undertones. The paper test and metallics methods are simple. However, these methods don’t separate between warm and olive undertones. This can make it confusing for people who fall under those categories! I recommend using the metallic method to narrow it down at first. Then, use the vein method to differentiate olive vs warm undertones.

• Blue: If your veins appear blue, you have neutral undertones
• Purple: If your veins appear purple, you have cool undertones
• Green-Yellow: If your veins appear green-yellow, you have olive undertones
• Green: If your veins appear green, you have warm undertones

Olive vs. Warm

Why do most of these tests not differentiate between warm and olive undertones? Until recently, olive undertones weren’t widely available in the beauty market. People with these undertones often had to use warm foundations. Which is frustrating when they were in a different category entirely. Have you struggled to find a good brand for olive undertones? Here are some olive friendly foundations:

1. Revlon PhotoReady Candid Natural Finish Anti-Pollution Foundation: $10.99
2. Cover FX Power Play Foundation: $44.00
3. E.L.F. Flawless Finish Foundation: $6.00
4. Fenty Beauty Pro-Filtr Foundation: $36.00

Whether you are warm, olive, neutral, or cool, knowing your undertone can help you find the right foundation. I recommend using a combination of the metallic method and the vein test to narrow it down. Did you try any of these methods? Which method worked best for you?