Choosing The Right Pigments For Your Clients

As Permanent Makeup Artists, we must understand colour theory. We need this for not only the brows on a client, but also for their lips, and eyeliner too. We know that there are many shades of brown, but our clients might not understand which shades will work better for their skin tone and the undertone of their skin. This is where we come in.

When you are first learning about ombre powder brows and permanent makeup, one of the first things your teacher should explain to you is colour theory. To first understand which colour is best for your client, we need to know what skin tone and undertone they are.

What is skin tone?

Skin tone is determined by the amount of melanin in your skin and is simply how your skin looks. People’s skin tone generally falls into one of three categories: Light, Medium, or Dark. Skin tones go a lot further than this as well. Sometimes you will see Light/Medium etc and every variation in-between.

What is the undertone?

Under tone is describing how the skin tone is being pulled to either a cooler tone or a warmer tone. Some kind of tones can also be neutral falling somewhere closer to the middle.

To know what your undertone is, we can simply look at your wrists. If your veins look green, this means you have a warm undertone. If your veins look blue, this means you have a cool undertone. If your veins look both blue and green, this means you have a neutral undertone.

Generally, very light and very dark skin tones will have a cool undertone, and most of the skin tones in the medium ranges will have a warm undertone. This is not true for everyone and there are certainly exceptions, but it is common.

What is the Fitzpatrick Scale?

The Fitzpatrick scale is a scale that is widely and commonly used in the permanent makeup industry to judge the level of their skin tone and undertone. By knowing where they land on the Fitzpatrick Scale, you can better choose an ombre powder brow pigment that will work best for them.

There are 6 levels on the Fitzpatrick Scale, which are 1 through 6. It is not an exact scale, but using this scale will give you an idea of what pigments you should use, as well as what undertones your client's skin has.

There are a couple of factors that fall into each level on the Fitzpatrick scale and we will go over those.

Fitzpatrick Type 1

Usually, this Fitzpatrick type will have red hair or light blonde hair. Sometimes they can have almost black hair as well - usually Irish descent. This type has very fair skin and burns easily in the sun. They usually have a cool undertone to the skin as well. You will see a lot of redheads with this Fitzpatrick type.

Some pigment types we recommend for them are:

Fitzpatrick Type 2

Similar to Fitzpatrick Type 1, but not quite as fair. They still burn easily in the sun from being fair, but will sometimes tan slightly afterward. You will see a lot of Caucasians with this skin type, and usually blonde or dark blonde hair.

Some pigment types we recommend for them are:

Fitzpatrick Type 3

Fitzpatrick Type 3’s is where we start to get into the beginning of the medium shades. These people can still be fairly light, but usually have a warmer undertone to their skin. They can still burn but will tan darker than the Fitzpatrick Type 2’s. We will start to see some light brown to dark brown hair here. Usually, these Fitzpatrick Types are darker Caucasians.

Pigments that we suggest for this Fitzpatrick Type are:

Fitzpatrick Type 4

Usually, this Fitzpatrick type will have dark brown hair and is often a true medium skin tone with a warm undertone. Sometimes they can be sensitive to the sun, but it is minimal. These Fitzpatrick types can be Hispanic or some of Mediterranean descent. Many Middle-Eastern and Asian ethnicities fall into this Fitzpatrick type as well.

Some pigments we recommend for this Fitzpatrick type are:

Fitzpatrick Type 5

This Fitzpatrick Type is the darkest of the medium skin tones - usually of Hispanic and sometimes African descent. This Fitzpatrick type rarely burns, tans very well, and usually has dark brown or black hair and a warm undertone.

Some pigments we suggest for this Fitzpatrick type are:

Fitzpatrick Type 6

The last Fitzpatrick Type is Type 6 and it includes the deepest shades and skin tones with the most melanin. This rich skin tone is usually people of African descent and usually have dark brown or black hair.

Pigments we suggest using for this Fitzpatrick type are:

Colour Correctors

We also carry colour correctors in the Perma Blend line which include

Remember - no client is the same! More often than not, you will have to mix colours for your client, and that’s okay! You can mix colours to get the perfect shade and add warmth or coolness to your pigment.

If you have any questions about any of our products, please text us at 647-542-4235, or email us at hello@torontobrowshop.ca!

For more information on what the difference is between microblading and Ombre Powder Brows click here !

For information on the aftercare of your ombre powder brows, click here !

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