Totally confused with these colorings.

Makeuptalk.com forums

Help Support Makeuptalk.com forums:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Joined
Apr 26, 2010
Messages
44
Reaction score
0
I'm in the process of trying to buy a new foundation and I'm totally confused with these colorings and undertones.

Unfortunately every time I go to my nearest Sephora the same sales people are there and they are rude and never give me the correct shades. And there is only one guy at the MAC counter who seems to be able to match me correctly and I haven't seen him there the past few days.

So, currently I use N4 in the Studio Fix Powder foundation and that seems to match well. But not all their foundations/concealers say just N4 they are like NC or NW and then some number...how do I know what N4 means in the other foundations? Would that be NC or NW? I'm assuming I'd be around NC15 or 20?

I can't really tell if I have pink or yellow undertones but I'm thinking yellow or neutral?

I went to get matched for the MUFE HD last time and he said I was 115 Ivory but when I went in lighting it was WAY pink. (Like when it was on my jawline I could definitely see just a pink color, no skin coloring at all.)

He said to go with that or 117, he said either shade would work for me. But one is pink under toned and the other yellow (according to Sephora.com) I'm assuming I have yellow under tones since 115 was too pink for me then?

I didn't go back and give 117 a try because I wasn't impressed with the first one despite the mismatch.

I'm trying to determine if I was a cool, warm or neutral shade to make things a bit easier.

Since everyone seems to mention reference to their MAC shade I haven't had much luck trying to google it. The only MAC shade I know of for me is N4 but most people use the liquid foundations so they have the NC or NW shades and I can't compare it.

From what I read I'd assume I would be the NC15 or NC20? Or for non MAC any neutral tone?

Sorry if this is confusing, lol.

P.S

I can add a picture without makeup on if it'd help any?

 
Wish I could help. I've never used those foundations and I toohave a difficult time matching colors. I think I'm yellow undertoned. In the store it's so hard to tell the undertone of the colors, especially in that flurecent lighting. Have you checked temptalia.com? They have great dupe lists.

 
First thing's first, we need to figure out your tone! Go outside when it's light out, and look at the veins on the inside of your wrist. What color are they? Blue means you're cool toned (pink), green-ish means you're warm (yellow). If you can't tell if they're blue or green, you're most likely a neutral.

 
I find the stores and counters use these fancy numbers but I am still about three shades away from the lightest bottle when they pull one off the shelf and tell me that's my number, I think its a wack of mumbo jumbo if you ask me, but that's just my opinion. :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

 
I don't have a MAC store or counter anywhere close to me. The closest one is about 8-9hrs away.  So I bought both NW and NC 25.  I'm going to swatch them this weekend and figure out which color I am.  That was the best way I could think to figure out what color I am.  MAC will return or refund the one I don't want.  But I may like them both for different reasons.  After I spoke with a MAC MUA I could go either way with the different colorings.  It's just personal preference.  I've already decided that I'm keeping them both regardless, well, unless they are way too far off.  I do have a tinting kit, so if one is not the right color, I can play around and try to 'fix' it with my tinting kit.  I figure if they both don't work, then I will be doing some exchanging, but if at least one works, I'm happy.

The lady I spoke with at MAC yesterday said that the NW, which is warm, is for pink undertones, and the NC is cool for yellow undertones.  That's different than what AmourAnnette said, so which one is right?  I've always been told the same way. Hmmm......guess it's a good thing I have both foundations! I have pink undertones and was told that the NW would work well for me.  I usually wear neutral or cool and it looks great on me, so this really will be an experiment for me.  If I remember, I will try to come back and report which foundation looks best.

 
I have really really obvious yellow undertones, so that helps. In some lights, I look jaundiced, and it's not a symptom of anything- so picking shades, I'm a bit lucky.

Go and swatch all their testers on you after finding your undertone, or find another staffer at MAC you like. Also, Mac's really good for giving you a mini-bottle as a sample-  you could try a couple colours or formulas that way.

 
I'm an N3 in MAC's Studio Fix PPF; skintone wise, I'm probably about an NW10, maybe NW15 at an absolute push. That said, though I am cool-toned, anything very cool-toned (MAC's NWs generally, MUFEHD 110, Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua in BR10 - besides being too dark, CoverFX's E0) does not work. A lot of pinker foundations are way too salmony to match with my neck, which is more neutral (though still cool) and has less surface redness than my face. A foundation base that is more neutral with slight yellow or pink undertones tends to suit me best. So, the comparitively yellow, Pro Lumiere 0.5/10 Limpide/Nude in Chanel, and Maybelline Fit Me 110 are pretty good matches - both are slightly yellower than my neck, but still match well, and probably also cut down on redness. Neither are overwhelmingly yellow, unlike NARS SG Siberia which makes me look jaundiced. BB Skin in Alabaster leans much pinker (comparitively) than her other shades, but it still works because it's not overwhelmingly salmon like a lot of fair shades (107 in MUFEHD is so very pink, I have no idea who could wear it!) It's a possibility you might also be neutral, and the N shades in the Studio Fix PPF are supposed to be neutral. If you wanted to stay in the MAC family, the F&B in N1 might work.

 
I'm going to be no help but i'm sorry to hear this. Personally, i strongly dislike people who work at makeup stores/counters. They're always rude t me :/ I have not had one good experience at a Sephora, MAC, or makeup counter. I'm good with my drug store brands now....snooty witches.

 
I've had good luck at two different MACs, and Sephora was meh (I don't have a local Sephora, so I've been maybe twice). Our local drugstore actually has the rudest manager though, and she's just unbearable. I can't even explain why- she's not pushy, but just feels demeaning to you.

 

Latest posts

Back
Top