Understanding your skin undertones: The guide to choosing better clothing colours, jewellery and skin foundations

Have you ever noticed that wearing certain colours elicit more praises than others? I was first informed about skin undertones by a friend of mine who told me that my undertone was suited to autumn colours. Quite frankly, she was right. I did notice that browns, yellows and beige seemed more complimentary and I was therefore more inclined to buying those colours. So how do we know what type we are?

All skin types are generally divided into three undertones:

·        Warm – Yellow-ish or gold

·        Cool-  Blue, pink or even red

·        Neutral- Either a mixture of both warm and cool or the same colour as your actual skin colour

How do we know what is our undertone?

Vein Colours

One great way to help you figure out your undertone is to look at your vein colour. If they appear greenish, you may have a warm undertone. If you have blue or purple looking veins, you may have a cooler undertone. If your veins appear colourless or match your skin tone, you may be neutral.

Reaction to Sun Exposure

Another great way to tell your skin tone is your reaction to sun exposure. Persons with cool undertones tend to burn easily. Persons with warm undertones tan easily. Persons who are neutral tend to burn and then tan.

How does this knowledge benefit us?

Choosing Jewellery

If you have a warm undertone, you tend to look better in gold. If you have a cool undertone, you look better in silver. If you are neutral, you can get away with either.

Choosing Clothing

Some colours look better with certain undertones:

Warm skin undertone- Honey, Olive, Coral and Cream

Cool skin undertone- Blue, Lavender, Rose and Grey

Neutral skin undertone- Sky Blue, Jade, Red and White

Choosing Skin Foundation

Now that you know your skin undertone, pay attention to foundation colours. Observe the pinkish or yellowish tones in the foundations. If you are a warm undertone, look at my video where I review a few of my favourite foundations!

Dying your own Hair

I don’t know about you, but it’s hard for me to spend a lot of money on my hair. When I hear the price some people pay for simple haircuts or hair colour treatments, I am appalled. I prefer to do it myself!

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about helping out small businesses. They will have it for my eyebrows and……um…...nope……..nothing else. I cut my hair, do my own nails and dye my own hair. This is how I save money.

Believe it or not, I’ve found the cheapest hair dye brand, Revlon to work effectively for me. I have tried L’oreal and Garnier and was very disappointed. I recently used L’oreal’s Bright Auburn. It was messy from the start, and the red kept washing out with each wash until my original colour resurfaced. Garnier took forever to change my hair colour and when the timeframe was complete, the change was barely noticeable. Revlon has never let me down. Perhaps the experience is due to my hair type? Let me know if you’ve had good experiences with L’oreal and Garnier below.

In this post, I wish to share a few tips for you who are thinking about dying your own hair.

#1

Wash your hair a day before dying hair to ensure that most of the oils are removed. I remembered a time when I disregarded washing out the products that were in my hair and realised that they acted as a barrier to my hair reacting to the dye. Unfortunately, the colour didn’t show up.

#2

You should always buy an additional box. So for my long hair, I use three boxes. It’s always better to have more than less since the excess can always be used to recoat your hair. In the event I don’t use the third, I keep it for hair root touch-ups in the future.

#3

Spread old newspapers on the floor and wear old clothing that can afford to get trashed. It’s ideal if you have a salon cape to cover your upper body. If you don't, a simple garbage bag will work. It can get messy and you don’t want to spend too much time cleaning up after.

#4

Don’t keep a hair dye in your hair too long. I know it can be tempting to wait longer than the stipulated time to see an emerging colour that you want. I strongly advise against it. You can severely damage your hair. If you don’t see the colour coming in after the allotted timeframe given in the specific instructions, wash your hair and wait for it to dry in order to properly re-assess its actual colour. If you still aren’t satisfied, colour again in a month or two! It’s better to have the option to colour again than have brittle and weakened hair.

#5

Don’t start colouring at the top of your hairline in front of your face! I’ve paid a dear price for this poor decision many times in the earlies…..It’s the worst thing when you end up with very light hair at the top and darker shades at the base. It is better if the error occurs the other way around. I recommend you start at the ends of your hair and work your way up. Many times, the virgin hair roots easily absorb and react with the chemical dyes, and tend to change faster. Regardless, try to move fast when you are colouring. The aim is for all areas of your hair to look generally even.

#6

If you have black or very dark, and thick hair, choose a colour two shades lighter than the colour you actually want. Be very careful with this as different people have different hair types and this may not work for everyone. If I want a medium to light brown shade, I usually choose light blonde shades. In the end, I get the colour I want.

Share your experiences and tips below! I look forward to reading them J

Skin-Care Products that work for acne related issues

                               

My face can’t really give a testimony to the products I want to highlight since along the way, I’ve experimented with other brands that really didn’t agree with my skin. My skin, for some strange reason quickly gets darkly scarred if ever I give in to the temptation of touching a bump or pimple. What’s worse, is my constant battle with PMS that dispatches a new batch of acne that tempts me to touch. While I’ve discovered a few brands over the years that don’t cause my skin negative reactions, I’m still very open to discovering more organic-based products that contain fewer chemicals.

I have a friend, who was a University roommate that still has flawless skin and she rarely uses makeup. Her secret? Water….just water! She rinses with water! Someone asked her how she got rid of the oils on her skin, and again she simply responded “Water”. As a Chemistry expert, she knows that most of the skincare products we use contain chemicals that are too harsh for our skin.

Unfortunately for me, the one product I can swear by is pretty harsh..but it actually works! So here are some of the skin-care products that I’m really fond of:

#1

This is amazing!!! AAAAAND it actually works!! It stops pimples from maturing and has prevented many catastrophes in my life, once I acted swiftly.

#2

So, as far as I can tell, this has been working well also. I don’t seem to have breakout issues when I use this wash. It may be a bit harsh for some, but effective.

#3

If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it…. No need to change a product if it’s been working! I was introduced to Clean and Clean products, as a teenager when a representative came to my High school. As mentioned in an earlier blog, moisturising is very important. For me, that also means extra help to prevent acne. My sister told me that the tingles she felt on her face after using it was scary for her. Not a product for everyone I guess...

#4

Clean and Clear has been such a household name for so long and hasn't caused me any problems, so it makes sense that I try out other products that they have. I was told that these washes are more suited to dry skin, so I should really be using their cream-based versions. However, I just love the feel of dry, clean skin after and the lovely subtle scents of both products.

#5

So this was a discovery I stumbled upon. In my search to diversify my options, I looked to organic and plant-based products. I was informed that Tamanu oil would naturally help eradicate dark spots. Just a warning, according to my husband, it smells terrible, so I suggest you mix it with some other product or oil that can make the scent more tolerable.

Moisturise! Moisturise! Moisturise!

I must confess that I’ve been that girl who packs her face with makeup and never really takes time to actually care for her skin. I’m certainly paying for that now. I believe that I have enlarged pores and excessively oil-prone areas encouraged by over washing with harsh products.

While I know every person has their own skin type and skin condition also influenced by the environmental conditions in which they operate, I do believe that there are basic routines that can benefit all.

When I was a teenager, there was a lady in my church whose skin was simply flawless. One day I roused the courage to tell and was rewarded by her secret…”Cleanse…Tone…Moisturise…and Moisturise.” While I know many product lines come with products to deal with all three areas, I believe many of us don’t actually follow through on all…especially the need to moisturise!

Why is Moisturising so important?

Skin is our body’s largest organ and demands attention to remain healthy, youthful and blemish-free. Our body naturally functions to moisturise our skin by producing sebum. Sebum is produced by the body’s sebaceous glands, which coats and moisturises the skin and protects it. The face has close to 900 sebaceous glands per square centimetre of skin!

Unfortunately, as a teenager, I was guilty of over-washing my face believing that it would help me with acne. I ended up with my sebaceous glands overcompensating for my dry skin resulting in an overproduction of sebum in the face. Presently, I am faced with challenges resulting from overly oily skin. While I’ve learned that oil-prone skin is beneficial in the long run as it will keep my face supple, it’s a nightmare to keep makeup intact and maintain a fresh, clean look!

The Benefits of Moisturising

·        Protects your body from irritation and dryness
·        Improves cell function and speeded cell turnover
·        Helps protect against environmental damage
·        Slows the signs of aging
·        Soothes sensitive skin
·        Balances skin complexion
·        Can prevent acne breakout

So do your skin a favour and take the time to moisturise. Your skin will reward you later :)