It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when faced with a choice of lipsticks.

Our Colour Intense Cream Lipsticks come in 9 beautiful shades. With so many to choose from, how are you supposed to know what looks best? At delilah, we think you should wear whatever colour you feel most confident in. But, if you’re still stuck — here’s some handy things to remember when trying to find your perfect match.

Skin Tone vs Undertone

To know which shades suit you best, it’s important to identify your skin’s undertone. Skin tone and undertone are slightly different, so first let’s look at that. Skin tone (determined by the amount of melanin in your skin) is the surface skin colour and can change depending on the season. For example, fairer skin might look deeper after a good few hours sunbathing! Undertone is a subtle hue just beneath the surface. The four main types of skin tone are light, fair, medium, and deep (dark). There’s just three undertones: warm, cool, and neutral.


Determining your Undertone

Determining your skin tone is straightforward - just take a peek in a mirror under natural light. Your jawline is a good place to look, as it’s less affected by changes. Undertone can be trickier, so we have some simple ways for you to find out:

Hue - Do you notice a hue to your skin? Cool undertones have pink, red, or bluish hues, whilst warm presents as a more yellow, golden, or olive tone. If you can spot a mix of pink and yellow in your base then you’re neutral.

Veins - If you’re not too squeamish, take a look at the veins in your wrist. If they’re blue then you have a cool undertone. Green veins suggest a warmer undertone and neutral appears as a bluey-greeny shade.

Jewellery - We love this method. Do you feel your best in a certain type of bling? Silver typically complements skin with cool undertones, whilst gold jewellery is better suited to warmer hues. If you have neutral undertones, you’ll look fabulous in both!


So, Which Shade?

Depending on whether you fancy a bold lipstick or a more neutral base, your undertone will determine which pigment makes the most impact. Let’s start with bold and brave looks. 

For warm undertones, you can’t go wrong with an orange-based red, as the warmth brings out a healthy glow in the skin. Floozy is a lovely example of this. For cooler undertones, plum shades with a blue base will bring the wow factor. What do we mean by a bluish plum? Think of a deep shade, something like Honesty.

And for low-key looks? Follow the same rules! Warm undertone? Think of warmer shades. Orange based neutrals such as Foxy will look gorgeous. If you have a cooler undertone, then a lighter, more pink based neutral will suit your lip  — why not try Muse. 

Blessed with a neutral undertone? We’re jealous. Whether you want drama, or an everyday look, you can close your eyes and pick a shade. Any pigment will bring the best out in you.