Changing your hair color can be easy and difficult in the same time, depending on what your actual shade is now. It is very easy to darken bright colors, but it is harder to lighten darker shades. It’s important to take these two things into consideration: 1. Identifying the color of your complexion; and 2. Determining the hair color undertone that makes the best match for you.

When it comes to choosing the right hair color, your skin tone is a major factor when figuring which hue is right for you. Since your hair is right next to your face, picking the right shade can make your skin glow, and make you look years younger.

Identifying Your Skin Tone

To uncover your complexion’s undertones, look at your wrists or the top of your hands. See blue or purple veins? That’s an indicator your skin tone is cool. More greenish-looking veins peeking through? Then your skin has warm undertones. For those that see both, you’re most likely neutral.

If you’re still unsure, try this trick: Put on silver earrings or a silver necklace and look in the mirror. Then switch to gold jewelry. Which color looks better? Cooler skin tones look more radiant in silver, while gold jewelry pops against warm skin.

Finding Your Best Hair Color Match

Now that you’ve determined your skin’s undertones, pick a hair color shade that will highlight all of your best features! Our colorists suggest this rule of thumb to follow, “Select a hair color tone that’s opposite of your skin undertones.”

The Best Wig Color For You

Picking a wig for your skin tone is simple enough when you get the hang of it, but it can be tricky to start. In general, you want to choose colors that are no more than two shades lighter or darker than your natural hair color—or, to be really safe, stay within your natural shade for your first few wigs. When you want to go much lighter or darker, change the color gradually so that you can get used to it.

Of course, you don’t have to stick with just one color! Feel free to play within the color range of your hair’s temperature. All hair has a warm tone or cool tone. While you’ll want the base to be within two shades of your natural hair color, you can absolutely pick a wig with much lighter or darker highlights to spice things up. Just be careful if you’re considering investing in a human hair wig. Make sure it’s a color that’ll work for you for a long time!

Wig Color For Warm Skin Tones

In the warm family, you should avoid wigs with blue, violet, (beige) and ash based colors which will "wash out" your skin tone. Instead, choose golden tones like caramel and bronze in a darker shade than your skin. Dark, warm browns, chestnuts, rich golden browns and auburn, warm gold and red highlights, and golden blond shades will look best on you. Any color that has red-orange or gold base will look great on you. Try highlights with golden blondes, copper streaks, golden brown shades as a great way to add warm tones to your hair. Avoid jet-black hair which will wash you out and if you do opt for a golden shade, don't go too light.

Wig Color For Cool Skin Tones

The best wig colors for a cool toned person are shiny jet blacks, cool browns, cool blondes in shades from mink to platinum and icy white – avoid the yellow or golden blondes. Try highlights in wheat, honey, taupe or ash shades. It is best to stick with neutral, ash and beige bases when choosing a wig color.

You're also fortunate enough to be able to wear many exciting "unnatural" hair colors like lipstick reds, burgundies, and orchids, purples.

People with in cool family, should avoid gold, yellow, red and bronze tones in wig color. These warm tones have a tendency to make you look sallow and drawn.

If this is all too confusing, then we suggest standing outside in the sunlight with a mirror. Look for the glint of color in your natural hair color. If you see reds, orange or yellows, then choose from the warm tones. If you see blue, green or purple tones, then stick with the cool tones.