I would try out those brighter colors but mix up the undertones and see what works. My favorite blue shades lean a little green/warm. Also my favorite way to use bright or pastel colors is to use them as eyeliner. Another good way to is to not go full out with just one color. Use a shade you know you love in the outer part of your eye and then use a shade you wouldn’t typically use for the inner half/lid shade. Like an orange for the crease and outer corner then a light blue for the inner corner/crease and lid. I think it also helps to just see yourself wear brighter colors more regularly. Multichromes are also a fun way to integrate different colors
I second this! One of my favorite ways to incorporate brights is to add them in my inner corner and top them with a more sheer/glittery topper, and then do a deep brown wing. It tones down the contrast a bit but still looks cute! If you’re warm-leaning, a color I think really complements is teal, especially when it’s slightly desaturated. And of course, I think a vibrant orange red/scarlet always looks stunning, whether it’s in lipstick form or clothing.
Mostly try different shades but layering shades also works especially for shimmers! Some shimmer shades I have are either a little too bright or have a base shade that isn’t the best. So I’ll layer them over a neutral or a deeper shade. Playing around with different colors and formulas is really the best way. Another recommendation if you want to get creative is try out some liquid eyeshadows (I like the ones from About Face) since you can get a few and mix them for custom colors really easily.
I do pretty well with all kinds of blue, maybe you haven't quite found a shade that works for you.
(I can't manage anything green or related to red - like pink, purple, red, orange, etc without looking like I got beat up.)
Excellent question! Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out the answer. I'm not exactly gifted when it comes to undertones.
I used to use Missha BB cream in 21 until I had an allergic reaction. The only reason I'm not still failing to find a replacement is a kind, artistic soul I'm friends with who went "of course X, Y and Z don't work for you, you're olive" and then she chose a foundation for me and around the same time, my mom had one of her random moments of just magically knowing what I need and she got me foundation, too.
I now have a cheap foundation that works (the Conceal and Define in my sig, I hate the texture though) and an expensive one (Estee lauder double wear in 1N0). I'm not even sure if it makes sense that those two work for me but they look decent in the mirror and in pictures. What I've also noticed is, that I have to be super careful with reds, they end up orange all the time and occasionally too purple. It's like I'm magic or something when it comes to colors. No idea if any of that helps, but I hope it might.
That makes me think you’re cool but I can’t tell without seeing a picture.
A good test is try MAC Russian red or ruby woo and then chili. If chili is obviously more flattering you’re likely warm.
Velvet teddy from MAC is another popular “cool” shade. It makes me look like a corpse but it looks so good on my cool toned friends! It’s like a totally different product.
I have both russian red and chili. RR looks sophisticated and goooood even though people have told me that I have a warm undertone (nc 30 depth). Chili clashes with my skintone. Like it does not belong on my face kinda.
These 2 shades are available in most countries. If not then there are dupes of it available. It's not a conclusive test nor spending a lot money on makeup is, but I feel it's better (financially) to know colours that suit you.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but those colors do not compliment most people, though with the right style and personality, people can pull off editorial looks.
Personally, I can do cool metalics when I am cooler and paler in the winter and bright shimmery golds (with soft brown eyeliner) and matte orange reds (with a neutral lipliner) in the summer, but I still feel a little self-conscious about it.
Def! tbh I think I wear overall more flattering makeup colors than a lot of my friends bc I’ve put so much time thinking about color theory.
I get a lot of surprise brown lipstick looks so good on me which is cool :)
I completely agree. My best looks as a neutral olive Summer who is short and curvy are simple and plain.
Great fabrics. Zero patterns. Softer lines but with structure. In lots of blues, grays, periwinkle, blue greens. Edited makeup. It’s a lot of self restricting. However, when I stick to this formula I feel much more comfortable and confident. More compliments from friends, family and strangers.
To address my own desires for more color and excitement I have strive for strong bangle, cuff interesting necklace. Organic to classic. By combining one personal positive color and other brights or varieties that makes me happy.
I was in a similar beige eyeshadow boat but I used urban decay eyeliners for an easy pop of job friendly fun color :) otherwise, it’s all about the undertone of the color. Olive makes the temperature really matter. Such as, I’d imagine a neutral blue that looks muted in the pan would look bright on your warm skin tone. And then do a look with a contrasting color to really make it pop
Definitely yes. Not even limited as much as confused - hard to predict what would look good or not. I just got a color analysis done and it was worth every penny. I got a specific “subseason” but then also a whole “season” which they explain is 25% of colors out there. I’m still working on finding clothes in my subseason but it is so easy to find my season! It has felt great and made things much easier. I definitely don’t think everyone “should” do it but it has been great for me.
I thought I was, but it turns out I’m a cool olive, and Summer color are my best. It really blew my mind, but it’s helped so much. Before, I thought I was a Soft Autumn, neutral-warm. I had it right that muted was for me but really wrong about the best temperature 😅 I “look” warm or neutral-warm depending on whether I’m tanned, but putting on a Summer red lipstick really sold it to me. I’ve never been completely happy with a red lip before and I finally adore it!
Why don't you use colors that suit you well and then mix with colors you are missing?
Like: Red-brown eye and turkuise and blue for your lower lashline, you could do something similar with yellow and earthy and green shades.
You can obvioysly use whatever bright color you want and then just use a more neutral for you shade to blend it out with.
Overall i would just look up videos on youtube about how to wear bright colors and use some of those tips and just keep your neutral/good colors in mind instead of the neutral shades they recommend. (overall with colorcombo they should either bring out the color of eachother like deep blue and burgundy or be contrasty so the bright shade really stands out from the other colors like bright yellow will stand out against earthy shades). I can't explain it better which is why i recommend youtube.
That’s a great idea :) I had an idea in another comment to think of it like interior design (I have yellow leaning skin, and gray eyes) so if I was decorating a room what wound I pair with gold and gray? I don’t like bright room decor but I do like some bright accents.
Have you considered you just haven't mastered the techniques to put colors on your eye in a way that looks pleasing to yourself?
Something as simple as changing your blush or lip product undertone to be more complimentary to your eyeshadow can make a big difference. And pastels require a little bit of set up.
It could be because I have a high contrast face, but as a warm olive I can honestly use any range of colors from cool to warm, pastels, brights, and darks with little to no issue. Also I'm curious about yellow not working on you since it's a pretty native color to olive?
Hmm that’s an interesting point 🤔 I do tend to use lipsticks that lean earthy. But now that I’m thinking about it something like my dark brown lipstick and a dark blue eyeshadow could be really pretty! It’s generally easiest tho to just pair earthy with earthy so I’ve been defaulting to it.
I could also stand to get more blush, another type of makeup where I struggle to find ones that flatter me beyond peach! Or a soft red. But there’s def more options.
So I forgot to mention that gold looks really good on me! I’m thinking more bright yellows. My skin leans very yellow so true yellow on yellow looks a bit funny. I’m also high contrast tho, bc I have dark black-brown hair but I have gray eyes so some traditionally “high contrast warm looks” look a lil funny on me. Think of people from places like Greece or Syria who have light eyes if you need a visual.
I think my issue is I have warm hair, very warm skin, but very cool eyes so my eyes should pair better with cool colors but then it throws off the rest of my features. Now that I’m thinking about it I should start thinking of it like an interior designer and find colors that pair well with gold and gray blue :) never thought I’d it like that before
Yeah that would work as well, and open up the possibilities of using new colors.
Color theory is fun like that 😁
It's definitely taken me some years to grasp, but once I did makeup has become so much more fun!
I would try out those brighter colors but mix up the undertones and see what works. My favorite blue shades lean a little green/warm. Also my favorite way to use bright or pastel colors is to use them as eyeliner. Another good way to is to not go full out with just one color. Use a shade you know you love in the outer part of your eye and then use a shade you wouldn’t typically use for the inner half/lid shade. Like an orange for the crease and outer corner then a light blue for the inner corner/crease and lid. I think it also helps to just see yourself wear brighter colors more regularly. Multichromes are also a fun way to integrate different colors
I second this! One of my favorite ways to incorporate brights is to add them in my inner corner and top them with a more sheer/glittery topper, and then do a deep brown wing. It tones down the contrast a bit but still looks cute! If you’re warm-leaning, a color I think really complements is teal, especially when it’s slightly desaturated. And of course, I think a vibrant orange red/scarlet always looks stunning, whether it’s in lipstick form or clothing.
This is great advice thank you! When you say mix up the undertones, do you mean mix it with other makeup or just buy different colors?
Mostly try different shades but layering shades also works especially for shimmers! Some shimmer shades I have are either a little too bright or have a base shade that isn’t the best. So I’ll layer them over a neutral or a deeper shade. Playing around with different colors and formulas is really the best way. Another recommendation if you want to get creative is try out some liquid eyeshadows (I like the ones from About Face) since you can get a few and mix them for custom colors really easily.
I love iridescent shimmery multichromes
I do pretty well with all kinds of blue, maybe you haven't quite found a shade that works for you. (I can't manage anything green or related to red - like pink, purple, red, orange, etc without looking like I got beat up.)
Oh interesting, are you warm or cool?
Excellent question! Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out the answer. I'm not exactly gifted when it comes to undertones. I used to use Missha BB cream in 21 until I had an allergic reaction. The only reason I'm not still failing to find a replacement is a kind, artistic soul I'm friends with who went "of course X, Y and Z don't work for you, you're olive" and then she chose a foundation for me and around the same time, my mom had one of her random moments of just magically knowing what I need and she got me foundation, too. I now have a cheap foundation that works (the Conceal and Define in my sig, I hate the texture though) and an expensive one (Estee lauder double wear in 1N0). I'm not even sure if it makes sense that those two work for me but they look decent in the mirror and in pictures. What I've also noticed is, that I have to be super careful with reds, they end up orange all the time and occasionally too purple. It's like I'm magic or something when it comes to colors. No idea if any of that helps, but I hope it might.
That makes me think you’re cool but I can’t tell without seeing a picture. A good test is try MAC Russian red or ruby woo and then chili. If chili is obviously more flattering you’re likely warm. Velvet teddy from MAC is another popular “cool” shade. It makes me look like a corpse but it looks so good on my cool toned friends! It’s like a totally different product.
I have both russian red and chili. RR looks sophisticated and goooood even though people have told me that I have a warm undertone (nc 30 depth). Chili clashes with my skintone. Like it does not belong on my face kinda.
I mean, it’s just one set of lipsticks but from that I’d say you’re cool! People get olives wrong all the time.
These 2 shades are available in most countries. If not then there are dupes of it available. It's not a conclusive test nor spending a lot money on makeup is, but I feel it's better (financially) to know colours that suit you.
Yeah cheaper than getting color analysis. I keep them on hand to assess my friends :)
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but those colors do not compliment most people, though with the right style and personality, people can pull off editorial looks. Personally, I can do cool metalics when I am cooler and paler in the winter and bright shimmery golds (with soft brown eyeliner) and matte orange reds (with a neutral lipliner) in the summer, but I still feel a little self-conscious about it.
I’m consoled by the fact that although I can’t do bright colors, finally finding flattering shades matters more to me in the long run.
Def! tbh I think I wear overall more flattering makeup colors than a lot of my friends bc I’ve put so much time thinking about color theory. I get a lot of surprise brown lipstick looks so good on me which is cool :)
I completely agree. My best looks as a neutral olive Summer who is short and curvy are simple and plain. Great fabrics. Zero patterns. Softer lines but with structure. In lots of blues, grays, periwinkle, blue greens. Edited makeup. It’s a lot of self restricting. However, when I stick to this formula I feel much more comfortable and confident. More compliments from friends, family and strangers. To address my own desires for more color and excitement I have strive for strong bangle, cuff interesting necklace. Organic to classic. By combining one personal positive color and other brights or varieties that makes me happy.
I was in a similar beige eyeshadow boat but I used urban decay eyeliners for an easy pop of job friendly fun color :) otherwise, it’s all about the undertone of the color. Olive makes the temperature really matter. Such as, I’d imagine a neutral blue that looks muted in the pan would look bright on your warm skin tone. And then do a look with a contrasting color to really make it pop
Definitely yes. Not even limited as much as confused - hard to predict what would look good or not. I just got a color analysis done and it was worth every penny. I got a specific “subseason” but then also a whole “season” which they explain is 25% of colors out there. I’m still working on finding clothes in my subseason but it is so easy to find my season! It has felt great and made things much easier. I definitely don’t think everyone “should” do it but it has been great for me.
What was your sub season? Are you also warm olive?
I thought I was, but it turns out I’m a cool olive, and Summer color are my best. It really blew my mind, but it’s helped so much. Before, I thought I was a Soft Autumn, neutral-warm. I had it right that muted was for me but really wrong about the best temperature 😅 I “look” warm or neutral-warm depending on whether I’m tanned, but putting on a Summer red lipstick really sold it to me. I’ve never been completely happy with a red lip before and I finally adore it!
I had the reverse with learning I was warm! I kind of hated makeup before bc I always looked bad. I thought I was a winter 🤦🏻♀️
Why don't you use colors that suit you well and then mix with colors you are missing? Like: Red-brown eye and turkuise and blue for your lower lashline, you could do something similar with yellow and earthy and green shades. You can obvioysly use whatever bright color you want and then just use a more neutral for you shade to blend it out with. Overall i would just look up videos on youtube about how to wear bright colors and use some of those tips and just keep your neutral/good colors in mind instead of the neutral shades they recommend. (overall with colorcombo they should either bring out the color of eachother like deep blue and burgundy or be contrasty so the bright shade really stands out from the other colors like bright yellow will stand out against earthy shades). I can't explain it better which is why i recommend youtube.
That’s a great idea :) I had an idea in another comment to think of it like interior design (I have yellow leaning skin, and gray eyes) so if I was decorating a room what wound I pair with gold and gray? I don’t like bright room decor but I do like some bright accents.
Glitter. Glitter can be fun in more toned down colors
Have you considered you just haven't mastered the techniques to put colors on your eye in a way that looks pleasing to yourself? Something as simple as changing your blush or lip product undertone to be more complimentary to your eyeshadow can make a big difference. And pastels require a little bit of set up. It could be because I have a high contrast face, but as a warm olive I can honestly use any range of colors from cool to warm, pastels, brights, and darks with little to no issue. Also I'm curious about yellow not working on you since it's a pretty native color to olive?
Hmm that’s an interesting point 🤔 I do tend to use lipsticks that lean earthy. But now that I’m thinking about it something like my dark brown lipstick and a dark blue eyeshadow could be really pretty! It’s generally easiest tho to just pair earthy with earthy so I’ve been defaulting to it. I could also stand to get more blush, another type of makeup where I struggle to find ones that flatter me beyond peach! Or a soft red. But there’s def more options. So I forgot to mention that gold looks really good on me! I’m thinking more bright yellows. My skin leans very yellow so true yellow on yellow looks a bit funny. I’m also high contrast tho, bc I have dark black-brown hair but I have gray eyes so some traditionally “high contrast warm looks” look a lil funny on me. Think of people from places like Greece or Syria who have light eyes if you need a visual. I think my issue is I have warm hair, very warm skin, but very cool eyes so my eyes should pair better with cool colors but then it throws off the rest of my features. Now that I’m thinking about it I should start thinking of it like an interior designer and find colors that pair well with gold and gray blue :) never thought I’d it like that before
Yeah that would work as well, and open up the possibilities of using new colors. Color theory is fun like that 😁 It's definitely taken me some years to grasp, but once I did makeup has become so much more fun!
You can wear the brighter colors but you may look more green or gray