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It Ain't Easy Being Green

We show you how to wear the spectrum of Pantone's "color of the year"
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Cool/Light

To determine your skin tone, makeup artists and color experts say to inspect the veins on the inside of your wrists. If the veins look blue or purplish, you probably have a cool/light skin tone.

Women in the cool/light category generally have beige, pink or rosy coloring and blue, gray, greenish-blue, or black-brown eyes. Your hair color can be dark or light, ranging from ashy blonde to jet-black.

Anne Hathaway is the perfect example of a cool/light skin tone. Her hair is typically very dark and her skin almost looks ivory. The high contrast between her skin and hair make her look a bit like Snow White. Other celebrities with cool/light skin tone are Kiera Knightly, Emma Roberts, and America Ferrera.

The best greens for cool/light skin tones are emerald, sea green, and spruce.


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Cool/Dark

You can have a cool skin tone even if you have a dark complexion. Cool/darks have blue or purplish veins, but your complexion is darker, so you won't have as much contrast between your hair color, eye color, and skin tone. Your skin is more muted than golden, which is why you look best in the muted shades of green.

Arlenis Sosa is darker with cool undertones. While most people with dark skin are put in the warm category, notice that Sosa's skin looks more brown than golden. Other celebrities with cool/dark skin tone are Alex Wek and Oprah Winfrey.

The best greens for cool/dark skin tones are emerald, hunter green, and teal.


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Warm/Light

If the veins on the inside of your wrist look greenish, your skin tone is most likely warm/light.

Women with a warm/light skin tend to have golden, yellowish or peach skin coloring with green undertones. Warm/light tones with lighter features will often have golden blonde, strawberry blonde or golden brown hair and lighter eyes.

Look at Emma Stone's cheeks and you'll see a peachy golden glow. A few other celebrities with warm/light skin tone include Michelle Williams, Cameron Diaz, and Lindsay Lohan.

The best greens for warm/light skin tones are emerald, moss, and pine green.


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Warm/Dark

Women with warm/dark skin also have greenish veins and yellowish or green undertones. Their features are usually a bit darker. Think: chestnut hair and brown eyes.

Eva Mendes has that same golden glow we mentioned for warm/lights, but her skin is a little bit darker. Eva's golden brown hair is also similar to her skin tone, so there is less contrast between her features than women in the warm/light category. Other celebrities in the warm/dark group are Jessica Alba, Beyonce, and Jennifer Lopez.

The best greens for dark warm skin tones are emerald, olive, and deep lichen green.


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Neutral

If you see blue and green veins on the inside of your wrist, you have a neutral skin tone.

People with neutral skin tones are not easily categorized -- your eyes and hair can range from light to dark. Neutrals have the most versatility and can wear pretty much any color, but most neutrals will gravitate toward one color set. Some like to wear colors recommended for cool skin, while others will feel more comfortable in warm colors.

The best greens for neutral skin tones are -- well, all of them, but our favorites are emerald, olive, and linden green.

Drew Barrymore has neutral skin, as do Selena Gomez and Cindy Crawford.



Green is the "it" color for Fall 2013 according to Pantone, the authority on all things color. The color gurus featured three shades of green in their fall color palette (deep lichen green, linden green, and emerald) and selected emerald as "color of the year."

"Green is the most abundant hue in nature -- the human eye sees more green than any other color in the spectrum," said Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute.

My reaction to the news? Great. I look like a tree in green. Green is the color of pale-skinned, freckled, red-haired wood nymphs -- not for an olive skinned Latina with brown hair and eyes so dark you can barely see the pupils. Put me in just about any shade of green, and I look like a swamp monster. Plus, green reminds me of fungus and mold. Not exactly what I want to wear.

But the color gods have spoken, and we're seeing green everywhere, so it's time to get a grip on how to wear it. But then, there's this:

"Green is a very tricky color. The wrong shade will make you look like you're sick or really tired," says image consultant and fashion blogger Elaine Wiart.

If you don't want to walk around looking like you're ready to hurl, key in to the right shades that complement your skin tone and features. And when in doubt, remember this rule of thumb: emerald (think: Wizard of Oz) works on everyone, according to Wiart.

Click through to learn more about your skin tone and see which shades of green work best for you. Keep in mind that rules are meant to be broken -- if you love it, you can work it, says Liat Arad, owner of fashion agency Rimon Design House. "It's not about how specific Pantones coordinate with your skin color, but more about how that bit of bold/striking/muted/bright green makes you feel."
BY FRANCES VEGA | SEP 10, 2013 | SHARES
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