What is the skin-eyes-hair method? The skin-eyes-hair method is a method that you can use to find out your undertone and the seasonal colour palette that suits it and your features the most by looking at your features. Basically, the secret of looking good is to wear your characteristics and this is one of the ways you can do that. Note that all your features have the same undertone, even if in the mirror your eyes may look warm and your hair and skin look cool. They are all warm(-leaning) or cool(-leaning). This may often be the case with Deep Winter complexions.
Colour analysts and image consultants usually don’t talk about the skin-eyes-hair method, but they do sneakily make the connection between the colours of your features and the colour palettes that suit them the best. Here, I will talk about the skin-eyes-hair method in a comprehensive way.
The skin
This is the first step of the skin-eyes-hair method, and usually the most accurate one. If you can’t get to a definite result here, look for traces of warmth or coolness in your eyes and hair too.
Defining undertone, overtone and skin tone
Undertone: it’s the combination of melanin (black, brown and blue pigments) and carotene (yellow, orange and red pigments). In cool undertones, often there is more melanin and in warm undertones there is more carotene.
Overtone: it’s your skin as you see it in the mirror, and it determines what skin colour you have.
Skin tone: it’s the combination of the undertone and the overtone.
Look at your skin tone
Now, to determine what your undertone could possibly be, look at the various skin tones down below and see which one matches the closest to yours. Then, if you want, go to a colour analyst to confirm this result.
The characteristics of cool-toned and warm-toned skin
Note that warmer skin tones are golden and react well to gold. They tan easily and evenly, with a rich golden hue. If you have freckles, they will be reddish. On the other hand, cool skin tones are rosy or greyish and react well to silver. When in contact with gold and warm colours in general, they become yellow. The skin burns and if it tans, it will be more of a brick colour. Freckles are of a coffee colour, and will darken with sun exposure.
Also note that if you are a gingerhead (meaning you naturally have ginger or red hair), despite your skin looking rosy (and so, cool-toned) you are actually warm. It’s looking at the intensity within your complexion that then you can determine whether you are an Autumn or a Spring.
The eyes
It’s pretty common to see and perceive multiple colours and patterns in your irises, and that is why they aren’t the most reliable way to find your undertone. Instead, they will help you figure out which kind of warm or cool colour you should wear. In fact, there are bright colours, soft colours, light colours and dark colours.
The eye colours
Still, wearing the colours in your eyes you will nail that look because those colours are naturally present in your complexion. For example, why does Kate Middleton look amazing in green? It’s because the green in her eyes is enhanced by the green in her clothes. To see what I mean, look at the picture of the eye below and the colours I’ve “extracted” from it. These colours will most probably flatter this person if worn, as these are his/her eye colours and so naturally harmonious.
The characteristics of warm-toned eyes
If you have a warm undertone, your eyes will have some golden or auburn colour to them. The typical patterns are freckles, the starburst and the halo. When the pictures of your eyes are black and white, you’ll be able to notice that the contrast between the iris and the sclera is pretty high even if your eyes are of a lighter colour.
The characteristics of cool-toned eyes
If you have a cool undertone, your eyes will have a bit of blue or grey to them. The typical patterns for the cool-toned eyes are clouds, flower petals and the wheel. Unless your eyes are dark, the contrast between the colour of your iris and that of your sclera will be pretty low.
The colour of your sclera (the white bit of the eye)
Also, you can look at the colour of your sclera, if your eyes are of the kind that “change colour”. Still, remember that drinking alcohol and smoking can make your sclera look more yellowy. If you are cool-toned, your sclera will look optic white or close enough. If you are warm-toned, your sclera will look ivory. This is one of the ways I can say that Kendall Jenner is cool, despite wearing warm-toned makeup: her sclera is very white, not ivory.
The hair
The colour of your hair can help you figure out your dominant temperature. If you are warm, your hair has red or golden highlights (or strands) and if you are cool it will either be ashy or blueish. In the latter case, if you dye your hair it may give a mahogany(ish) reflect against a camera flash. If you lean more neutral, the colour is warm or cool but less obviously.
When greying, warm hair will look slightly yellowish. When the hair is cool, there will silvery strands that whiten as they grow out of their roots.
The hair colours
There are at least 7 colours (yes,7) in your hair that together, make the hair colour you see in the mirror. If you want to see the colours in your hair, look at your hair under artificial light and see which colours are more obvious. Then, see if these colours are for the majority on the warmer or on the cooler side of the spectrum.
For example, black is the dominant colour in my hair and so my hair is cool. (Black in colour analysis is a cool colour.) Note that hair dye is not calculated in this. Look at your natural hair colour instead. Or, you can look at the hair colours below and have an idea that way, dye or no dye.
If you already certainly know that dyeing your hair black makes you look worn-down and tired, you can immediately exclude being a Winter.
Value and contrast
How to see the contrast
Alright. Now that we’ve seen what the whole method is about, it’s time to see how much contrast there is in your complexion. It’s a good idea if you have somebody to do this for you, yet you can also do this step by yourself. Basically take a picture of your face (with no makeup on) and make the picture black and white.
Then, looking at the graphic I have made down below, observe the shades of grey. You will fall in one of the three categories. If you can’t really figure out where you are, start working from medium contrast, which is usually the safest option.
Possible results (in general)
You have low contrast and a light value if your features are lighter and similar shades of grey. If they are darker, you may have a dark value. In case they are different shades of grey, you have high contrast, and probably you also have a dark value (but this depends on the undertone).
If you have medium contrast, either one feature is very dark and two aren’t that dark, or two are very dark and the other one isn’t that dark. In that case, you have medium contrast. The value and the chroma will depend a lot on your undertone.
If you have low contrast, you may find that colours worn ton sur ton (French for “tone on tone”) will suit you better. With high contrast, preferably wear tints and shades next to each other.
If you can’t really get to grips with value, chroma and temperature, you can take a look below, where I have broken down these terms:
Note that if you are a person of colour, you need to see the contrast between your features, your sclera and your teeth. To calculate your undertone and season, you will need to pay a bit more attention, but I promise that you will be able to do it.
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