Colors for Redheads

[mysterygal]

I've been very interested in getting information about choosing right colors for skin tone and hair color. I just went back to red not too long ago and have been hearing from a couple of people comments like, 'oh, be careful, there are so many colors that just does not look good on redheads!', is this true? and what are great colors ? It would also probably be interesting for women with blond, brunette and gray hair to have a run down on what to look for as well [huh]

 

[jitterbugdoll]

Red hair is not as limiting as one would think--you simply need to choose colors in the right tones for your hair color and skin tone (and the same goes for blondes and brunettes.) For example, if you are a warm redhead, then in general, warm colors work well for you. A redhead with cooler hair and skin would do well to stick with cooler colors. Greens, pinks, yellows, blues--there is probably a shade of each out there that is perfect for you.

Redheads tend to look especially nice in shades of autumn colors--warm reds, deep/burnt oranges, rich yellows, browns, etc. But, as Ann Sheridan shows us, you aren't limited to just that palette (see post below):

And a few Rita Hayworth pics for good measure:

 

[maisie]

I can't seem to see the above pictures??

 

[jitterbugdoll]

'Tis because I was in a hurry and hot-linked to the Web site. I shall remedy the problem shortly...

 

[Daisy Buchanan]

I always thought ladies with red hair and fare skin looked fantastic in shades of green.

 

[jitterbugdoll]

I always thought ladies with red hair and fare skin looked fantastic in shades of green.

This is because red and green are complementary colors (blue and orange, and yellow and purple being the other pairs.) Complementary colors both play off each other, making the total picture "pop"

 

[decodoll]

Having red hair can be slightly more challenging than other colours, but it's nothing to be warned about in dire tones. You do have to pay more attention to colours clashing with your hair unlike other natural hair colours. Personally, with my shade of red and skin tone, bright greens and aquas look particularly good. I also wear a lot of navy (I think navy looks good on most people ) and that is how I sneak in the bright red as accents. Too much bright red on me looks ghastly, but I can wear it mixed with other colours. Bright pink is a no no most of the time, but pale pink is fine. Yellows and oranges you have to be careful of which shade you get as well. I remember a particular commercial growing up with a orangey-red haired actress wearing solid bright yellow. She looked horrid. I still don't wear much yellow due to that commercial!

 

[fortworthgal]

My hair is naturally auburn. I am definitely a warm redhead, with freckles, gold undertones, and dark brown eyes. I find that I look best in warm autumny colors - browns, golden yellows, burnt oranges, brick reds, olive greens. I get the most compliments when I wear dark brown, or a medium dusty pink. The colors that don't work on me are blue reds, bright colors like neon yellows or hot pinks, and although I like wearing black and white, I try to mix them with other colors so I don't end up looking washed out.

 

[maisie]

I can see the pics now, and they are fab! I love the colour of Rita Hayworth's hair and the way she always had it styled to perfection, but hey, thats Hollywood!
I also love leopard print blouse and the red and white outfit in the last picture!!

 

[jitterbugdoll]

I'm going to repost the Ann Sheridan pictures later--they are amazing and show her wearing a variety of colors, from teal to deep yellow

 

[Crookshanks]

I agree

with Jitterbugdoll. I'm a natural redhead but I use Henna to make the colour stronger. When I was younger people always said to me I looked great in green and I ended up wearing a green garment every single day. After some years I got sick of it and started to experiment with other colours (that was when I was in to the 60's and thought I would be better off as a hippie). Nowadays I experiment with colours but I'm much more careful about what shades I use. I believe there's a shade in every colour scheme for everyone, you just have to find it.
People also used to tell me I should watch out for red and pink but I'd say the right shade can look great. Pink is difficult but "old rose" can work for me. It also depends on how much of that colour is near your face and hair or how the garment is cut or if it's a lot of it or just a small detail.
Yellow is probobaly the trickiest one but even that one can look good with the right accessories, like in my avatar. I was surprised myself when putting a yellow dress on but I think it looks great. (But maybe I'll always going to need a portable spotlight with my yellow outfit to make it work lol

 

[jitterbugdoll]

The Ann Sheridan photos from my earlier post:

 

[Caledonia]

I don't think there's many restrictions on redheads except graying tones, ie watching out for anything that has an ash effect against the skin. I'm a strawberry blonde, ie light red with some darker auburn tones, but mostly go blondish in the summer. I am also going seriously grey - upside is the grey is coming in totally white. Great because I can't do ash'ed out tones at all. Can do orange but it has to have a warm red tone. Can't do red/purple, but can do red-orange/blue-purple if that makes sense. Teal is fabulous. I wear copper or rose gold for warm jewellery, silver otherwise. Never yellow gold. Clear sky tones are fantastic as are some of the storm clouds. Early autumn works, but not early spring. Winter is too harsh, although I love it as a season. And against all advice, I look great in black, also dark green, clear but dark blue, red but not purple red, never white, but ivory, cream. It's a confusing world!

 

[jitterbugdoll]

A few more photos of Ann:

As Caedonia mentioned, Ann shows that teal looks smashing on a redhead:

I am also going seriously grey - upside is the grey is coming in totally white.

I was once told that blondes darken with age, and redheads fade to a blondish-white color. A friend of the family had very striking strawberry blonde hair, and her daugher had a deep red color. Apparently, the mother's hair had originally been the same color as the daughter's

 

[Rebecca D]

My hair is orange/coppery red, and my skin is pale with very yellow undertones; I even have light green eyes with big gold speckles in them, making me look like I have yellow eyes (just like Scott Farkus in a Christmas Story). In other words, I’m REALLY yellow.

Strangely, I look great in red, especially dark red. Of course, I look good in green, but I also look good in white (which always surprises people). Aqua and turquoise always look good, and my best colors are peach and certain shades of pink.

As mentioned before, brown always seems to go great with red hair, and I like the way redheads look in black.

And I had a yellow nightgown that strangely looked amazing against my skin and hair, and butterscotch is another great color for me.

There really isn't much of a limitation for redheads, short of certains shades, but that goes for all people, regardless of their hair or skin color.

 

[Shimmy Sally]

Speaking as an actual natural redhead myself, I can say these products have worked well for me:
http://just4rh.stores.yahoo.net/

 

[Mad Molly]

I am a "redhead-by-choice". Light to medium auburn shade, usually, because my skin is slightly sallow and I don't want to look like a jaundice victim!

So mostly cool tones for me - greens, blues, some purple - along with the typical redhead-friendly colors of brown, black, ivory shades of white.

Yellows and true red as accents only - a real pity. Love the colors, but I look sick in them!

Burgundy works, though, if I'm in that mood, but mostly I stick with the cool shades.

 

[decodoll]

My hair is orange/coppery red, and my skin is pale with very yellow undertones; I even have light green eyes with big gold speckles in them, making me look like I have yellow eyes (just like Scott Farkus in a Christmas Story).

Sounds like we have the same colour eyes, Rebecca. I remember my mom telling me years ago what that gold ring around the pupils is called, but I've forgotten now. And hair too...although, nowadays, mine is helped along by hair colouring. When I was younger though, we used to go play tennis during the summer, and I remember one friend telling me I had an unfair advantage because the sun hitting my red hair was blinding him! lol I am very fair with pink tones to my skin.

I also look good in black even though apparently I should look horrible in it.

 

[decodoll]

I was once told that blondes darken with age, and redheads fade to a blondish-white color. A friend of the family had very striking strawberry blonde hair, and her daugher had a deep red color. Apparently, the mother's hair had originally been the same color as the daughter's

In my family, when it starts going white, you start dyeing it and gradually going lighter and lighter as you age, so that you don't end up the 80 year old woman with the unnaturally bright red hair! Eventually, you end up blonde for a while, then just let it all go and embrace the white! That might explain the gradual fade in other redheads as well!

 

[fortworthgal]

In my family, when it starts going white, you start dyeing it and gradually going lighter and lighter as you age, so that you don't end up the 80 year old woman with the unnaturally bright red hair! Eventually, you end up blonde for a while, then just let it all go and embrace the white! That might explain the gradual fade in other redheads as well!

My grandmother, mother, and myself all have the same color of auburn hair naturally. When my grandmother was quite elderly, her hair was a strawberry blonde color - almost a bright orange, but very light. Almost the color of the inside of a cantaloupe. It had lightened up so much, but she never colored it. It stayed so red that it almost looked unnatural! I don't even remember her having any grays, although I'm sure she must have had a few.

My mother colors her hair so it is still fairly dark. I color mine now as well - just re-dying to the natural color, as I started going gray at an early age.