So I've been fascinated with make-up for the last few months. Now I don't mean to say that I'd never played with make-up before, as I had, and I had found a few safe shades I liked well enough, and all was well.

But I wish I understood color theory, because I have this feeling that I know what I need to know, if I only knew what to do with it. See, finding the right colors, for me, is extremely frustrating. I think that it's the red hair that throws it all askew.

I have fair skin, with a pink cast to it. I have red hair--in terms of a color wheel, I think you'd think of it as orange, darkened a little, and leaning very slightly toward the yellow. (I have a lot of blonde-highlights, but not enough to append "blonde" to any description of my hair, I don't think.) I have blue eyes.

I have this feeling that if I could "plot" these "points" on a color wheel, I could then figure out what colors would look right with them. Only I'm not sure, do I want colors near these colors or opposite them? My skin and eyes are in the "cool" zones, but I've noticed that certain pinks, for instance, won't look right on me because of my hair. However I have, at times, found pinks that do work. Were those yellow-based pinks or blue-tone pinks? I know that anyone can wear about any color depending on the shade and how it's applied, but the more appropriate colors are easier to get right. What is it I need to balance to make a color look right on me?

I remember going to a make-up counter years ago and explaining that I wanted to get a red lip-color I could wear. The make-up artist (a Chanel make-up artist) did find me one...she explained that I could not wear pink-based reds, that I needed to find "true reds." But what does that mean? When I read descriptions of colors, am I looking for yellow-based reds? I've read that orange-reds are too harsh for pale skin, and that most fair-skinned people look best in pink reds and purple reds. I've found some brown reds that work on me, but I've never again found a red-red that seemed to work. Is it because they are mostly pink-reds? So I wonder if a yellow or orange red is what I need? To contrast the skin tone and complement the hair? I'm always recommended berry pinks...but anything described as a berry pink looks odd on me. Are berry pinks blue-pinks? Or purple-pinks? Do I need to find a yellow-pink, or just a different intensity of the berry pink?

I realize that part of the problem with reading advice from make-up artists to red-heads is that there are different types of red heads. (Large duh.) But even looking for advice on fair-skinned redheads yields contradictory advice. Notice that this woman, whose advice on eye-shadow colors seems sound to me, recommends blue-pinks for lips. This make-up artist, however, observing that red-hair can make skin tone look too pinkish (which I've noticed as a problem) says that yellow-based tones are usually better for the lips, as a countermeasure (to balance the color of the hair).

So I went to a Prescriptives counter, because they have a seemingly scientific system of determining the right colors. (I know, it's a marketing ploy, but I liked it.) I tested as a "blue-red" (01 I think--we wound up using the lightest shades) for skin tone. When I commented that I thought the foundation they used was a shade that made me look too pink, they switched to the "yellow-red" pallet. Now that was fine--I liked what that foundation did better. The thing is, I really don't wear foundation, and when I do will probably wear as little as possible, but it's nice to have a color I like. (I also have the L'Oreal palest warm and palest cool shades, and similar to what I discovered with the Prescriptives foundation, both work...the warm one seems to neutralize some of the pink in my skin better.) Also, I'm confused at the color system now--they didn't just use the yellow-red foundation, but then everything they used came from that yellow-red pallet instead of the blue-red pallet. Is that right? Did just wanting to neutralize the pink in my skin totally change my "good" color pallet? I liked what they did with my eyes, though I think it was probably a little heavy handed, but the blush was ridiculous -- I think it just wasn't the right tone, and wasn't applied with subtlety. I think I need to find some kind of sheer or liquid blush--I have found a tinted moisturizer that I think works better as a foundation for me. I don't feel like I need to add much color to my face, I'd rather have it on my eyes or lips. I used to find some great "stains" and "glosses" for my lips, but now that I'd like to find a few good shades that are real lipstick (the kind that doesn't come off for a long time) it's become much more difficult.

I guess I'm not really looking for more make-up advice (though I'm not refusing it if someone has some) so much as wishing I could crystallize why some colors work and others don't. I think it has to do with finding shades that contrast one feature (eyes, skin, or hair) without clashing with the other features. So now I'm going to go print out a color wheel and see if I can determine how to make that happen. (And see, I hadn't thought about it with that much clarity before, so writing it all out here was good.)

As a side note, I've fallen in love with MAC Cosmetics. Even buying the little bit I have online I've had better luck with them than I have with colors bought at the make-up counters or drug stores. Also their descriptions are fantastic, I think if I could figure out my color wheel, I could order the perfect shades just from their descriptions...