What is skin tone?
As mentioned above, your code is the color seen on the surface of your skin. These are largely determined by the amount of melanin present in your skin’s outermost layer. Your tone or complexion types can change from time to time based on exposure to sun or other factors (we’ll cover more on this later).
You would have also heard the term undertone being used often. They are the subtle and natural tones under your skin’s surface and aren’t subject to any external change. There are 3 main types – cool, warm, and neutral. Your skin tone’s color palette can vary from another person with a similar simply because of the undertones.
Types or names of skin tones
The skin tone color chart has four main tones:
- Fair meaning it is the lightest tone in the color codes. It’s very sensitive and due to less melanin, it is more likely to get sunburnt than tan due to sun exposure.
- Light which also appears fair but has some warm undertones. It can gain a minimal tan. It can take on a natural beige color.
- Medium is when the color moves from fair to medium skin tone and there is a lighter brown color with warm undertones. Medium olive skin tone can have both warm and neutral undertones and can tan easily.
- Dark skin tone is a melanin-rich that tans more easily and is less likely to burn. The skin color codes that fall in this category are deep black or brown skin tones.
While these are the four primary types, specific skin tones can range anywhere between these. An individual can simply have deep skin tones or medium-dark skin tones. Similarly, you can have light-medium skin tone, light brown skin tones, or warm ivory skin tones (which falls between fair to light skin).
Phew! With the human skin tones chart being so vast and varied, you might still be scratching your head wondering, ‘How to know my skin tone’? Stick around, because we are going to share some simple tips on how to know your skin color or tone.
How to know my skin tone: Try these 3 easy steps
1. Start by stepping into natural light
- Wash your skin thoroughly to remove any makeup or dust, wait for 15 minutes, and then find a natural light source.
- Try and sit by a window or balcony, or find some outdoor seating space. You might wonder why you can’t do detector test indoors or with an artificial light source. Since different types of light give different glows, it can slightly change the tone of color on your skin under each light.
- Grab a mirror and notice the color on the surface, whether it is dark, light, fair, or medium skin tone.
- Look carefully at the skin around your jawline as this is the least susceptible to color changes.
2. Look at your wrist
- When you are under natural light, hold your wrists up to the light and check the color of your veins.
- The blue, purple, or green veins can determine your skin undertones, which can help you better position yourself on the skin tones chart.
- If you can distinguish green veins or undertones will be warm.
- For those with blue or purple veins or undertones will be cool.
- If you can’t differentiate between blue-green veins, the skin tone or undertone is most likely neutral.
3. Assess your skin’s reaction to the sun
- Did you notice that when we listed โปรโมชั่นพิเศษจาก UFABET สมัครตอนนี้ รับโบนัสทันที out skin tone names, we mentioned reactions such as sunburns or tans? These reactions are largely dependent on the level of melanin in your body, so observing how your skin reacts to the sun can help you determine how to describe.
- If you tan easily under sun exposure with little to then you have a medium or deep skin tone that often appears as darker shades of brown or on the black chart.
- If you tan with some skin burns, you mostly have a light color.
- If you don’t tan at all but rather get sunburns, then you have fair or white skin tones.