When people hear 'warm' or 'cool' in color analysis, they often confuse it with how light or dark their skin is. or even how bright a color is.
And I get a lot of clients thinking they are warm just because they have darker skin. But undertone is something entirely different. It's a subtle hue that isn't necessarily under your skin; but instead it is the underlying temperature of your skin, and it stays consistent even when you get a tan.
A very basic description would be that warm undertones lean golden or peachy. They are more yellow/orange based. A cool undertone leans more pink or red. But usually in terms of skin, it is the lack of that orange warmth that makes a person lean cool.
Something that I've also noticed in my practice is that a lot of Asian skin tones actually run more neutral and lean slightly warm or cool.
Knowing your undertone is the first step because it determines which color families will make your skin look clear and radiant versus sallow or washed out.
Let's take the color Red for example. Most people think red is warm.
But a red with a warm undertone has a more fiery and orange quality. Think tomato reds or rusts. A red with a cooler undertone leans more blue or purple. Think more like a cherry or berry type of red.
Someone who has a warm undertone will suit a tomato red more. However, you will still notice not all tomato reds will work. Because a color analysis is understanding more than just your undertone. You also need to equally consider your value, intensity, and even contrast.
With all the contradicting information out there it can be confusing. But here's the thing — you don't have to figure this out alone, and you shouldn't have to guess. During a proper draping session, we test colors directly against your skin and observe what actually happens. The drapes don't lie. Theory gives us the framework, but your face and the way your skin changes tells us the truth.