Find The Right Foundation Shade For Your Skin Tone

Finding the right foundation shade is a lot like finding true love. It's either a hit or a miss — and a lot of times, you miss. You try to make an educated choice, but one day you look in the mirror and wonder if you've made a huge mistake. In makeup (as in love) there are a huge range options out there, so it can be overwhelming to find the right match. All love metaphors aside, I sometimes wonder why it's so difficult to find the right foundation. It's 2016, and we're able to pay for our coffee with our phones and 3D-print bras, so why hasn't anyone figured out a color-matching app that actually works?

Instead of scratching our heads about that debacle, we've teamed up with Charlotte Tilbury's Magic Foundation to bring you a foolproof guide to finding the right foundation shade — and a product that is up to the task. You'll no longer have to worry about accidentally skewing too light or too dark, too warm or too cool, or anything in between, because we've got all the expert tips and tools for finding just the right match.

1. Determining Your Undertones

"The first key to finding the right foundation shade is determining your undertones," says Charlotte Tilbury National Lead Artist Maria Riskakis. Generally, you'll fall under one of the following three categories: warm, cool, or neutral. There are a few ways to determine your undertone, but looking at your wrists under natural light is the easiest. If your veins look green, you have a warm undertone. If they appear blue or purple, you have a cool skin tone. And if you're not sure, then your skin tone is probably neutral.

"After you've established your undertone, choose a foundation that also has the same undertone," says Riskakis. Earthy shades such as beige, gold, and caramel tend to complement warm skin tones, while blue-based colors such as rose, cocoa, and porcelain complement cool skin tones. Oh, and if you're neutral — you can basically rock any shade. (Lucky you!)

2. Match It To Your Chest

Always match your foundation to your chest, not your neck.

"Your neck doesn't get the same sun exposure that your chest does," explains Riskakis. Just remember to start applying foundation on your face and then blend downward towards your neck and chest when you're actually wearing it.

3. Stand In Natural Light

Take a second and go outside or near a window to see what color your skin really is. Low lights and fluorescents are the worst when it comes to makeup application and finding the right shade.

4. Always Go Darker

"You always want your skin to look warmer as a shade too light will make you appear ashy and pale," says Riskakis. If you're still not sure which shade matches best, go a little darker. (The key word: "little.")

That's It!

You should now be able to find the perfect foundation match without agonizing over your decision every time. Now, if only finding true love were this easy!

This post is sponsored by Charlotte Tilbury.

Images: Giphy (5)