Understanding Temperature in Color Analysis: Cool vs Warm
All colors either have a cool or warm undertone, meaning that they are either blue-based or yellow-based. By mixing colors we can get both cool and warm tones of each color. For example, we can have a cool green or a warm green, a cool pink or a warm pink, a cool brown or a warm brown. Below are two graphs of warm and cool colors - one with bright colors and the other with muted colors.
Warm vs Cool Colors: How to Tell the Difference?
Tips for Determining a Color’s Temperature
Compare Side by Side: Place two shades of green next to each other. The one that appears more blueish is cool, while the one that seems more yellowish is warm.
Check the Undertone: If the green has hints of blue mixed in, it’s a cool green. If it leans towards yellow, it’s a warm green.
Use the Color Wheel: On a color wheel, cool colors are those closer to blue, while warm colors are closer to yellow and red. Identify where your green falls on this spectrum.
Test Against Neutrals: Hold the color next to a true neutral like pure white or gray. Cool greens will pop against cool neutrals, while warm greens will harmonize better with warm neutrals like beige or cream.
Discovering Your Undertone
Your undertone is one of the most fundamental aspects when it comes to figuring out your color season. Every person will either lean cool or warm. Some people are more obviously cool or obviously warm, and for some, their undertone might be harder to determine, as they might be more on the neutral side.
Assessing your undertone can also be one of the hardest aspects of color analysis since it is not always obvious at first glance and often requires looking at multiple aspects of a person's features and seeing how their skin reacts to different colors. These reactions can also be subtle and not always obvious to the untrained eye.
However, there are a few simple steps you can take to see whether you lead cool or warm. Try to keep an open mind since the results might surprise you!
Determining Skin Undertone
The first step in identifying your undertone is to analyze your skin. Your skin is the most important feature to look at when it comes to undertone. We are looking for the subtle hue beneath the surface of your skin to see if it is more blue-based (cool) or yellow-based (warm).
Cool Undertones: People with cool undertones typically have a pink, red, blueish or grayish hue to their skin. Their skin can be fair, medium or deep.
Warm Undertones: People with warm undertones have a golden, yellow, or peachy hue to their skin. Like people with cool skin, their skin can also be fair, medium or deep.
To further clarify your skin undertone, try the following tests:
The White Paper Test: Hold a piece of pure white paper next to your face in natural light. Does your skin appear more yellow or golden than the paper, or does it appear pink, rosy or bluish? If your skin looks more yellow or golden, you might have a warm undertone. If your skin appears pink, rosy, or blueish, you might have a cool undertone.
Identifying Eye Undertone
Your eye color can also provide clues about your undertone. While eye colors can vary widely, the undertones within the iris are what matter most.
Cool Undertones: Eyes with cool undertones typically have a lot of blue, gray, cool greens, or cool browns in them. The eyes can be light or dark in color but the undertone will be cool.
Warm Undertones: Eyes with warm undertones can be brown, amber, warm green, hazel and contain golden flecks. The eyes can also be light or dark in color but there will be a certain level of warmth to them.
Examining your eyes under natural light and looking closely at the flecks or hues within the iris can help you determine if your eyes lean towards cool or warm undertones.
Assessing Hair Undertone
Your natural hair color also plays a role in determining your undertone and whether you fall in a cool or warm season.
Cool Undertones: People with cooler undertones typically have hair that contains ashy tones, whether that is ash blonde, ash brown or almost black. Cool-toned hair usually lacks warmth or golden hues.
Warm Undertones: People with warmer undertones usually have hair that contains hues of gold, red, yellow, or honey. These tones should be visible both in the sunlight as well as in other lighting.
If your hair naturally reflects warmth or coolness, it can reinforce the undertone indicated by your skin and eyes.
The Role of Draping Colors
Looking at your features and the undertones present there can provide valuable clues, however, the best way to find out if you are cool-toned are warm-toned is to do a draping test in natural lighting.
Stand next to a window with no makeup on. If you have hair that is dyed, put it up. Place a cool-toned blue or silver/gray fabric next to your face and observe how the color affects your complexion. Then do the same with a warm-toned orange fabric. Compare the two.
A color with the right undertone should:
Smooth out your skin
Make your eyes and lips pop
Appear harmonious with your natural coloring
A color with the wrong undertone will:
Bring out any imperfections (circles under the eyes, discoloring of the skin)
Wash you out, blending all your features into one.
Overpower your natural features
Dull your skin, making it appear gray
Make your skin too yellow or sallow.
You can try this draping with different colors in your wardrobe. Take note of the colors you feel compliment you, as well as the ones that look off. Are they warm colors or cool colors?
For those unable to access in-person draping, online draping tools can offer a convenient alternative. Many websites and apps allow you to upload your photo and digitally “drape” different colors to see which shades harmonize with your undertones.
Metals: Silver vs. Gold
Jewelry can also be a useful tool in determining your undertone.
Cool Undertones: Silver jewelry tends to enhance cool undertones, making your skin appear fresh and bright. If silver complements your complexion better than gold, you likely have cool undertones.
Warm Undertones: Gold jewelry flatters warm undertones by bringing out the golden hues in your skin. If you find that gold suits you better, you probably have warm undertones.
Results: Cool, Warm or Neutral
These tests should show you whether you are cool, warm or neutral.
If your undertones are obviously cool or warm, then you might fall into one of the “True” seasons - True Winter and True Summer (cool), or True Autumn and True Spring (warm). Below are examples of the cool seasons and warm seasons, where you can see the clear distinction between the coolness and warmth.
If it’s harder to determine (say your skin is cool but your hair color is warm or you feel like both silver and gold look good on you, etc), then you might be a neutral season. This means that your primary feature is not your warmth or coolness, but something else, like value or chroma.
Warm: True Autumn or True Spring
Cool: True Summer or True Winter
Neutral
Neutral warm: Soft Autumn, Deep Autumn, Bright Spring, Light Spring
Neutral cool: Soft Summer, Deep Winter, Bright Winter, Light Summer
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