An open blank notebook with a navy ribbon bookmark lies on cream paper beside overlapping translucent blue and rose sheets, a berry cloth and a small painted swatch card.Lead story · Makeup

The journal: myths, taken apart.

What you have been told about color, and how much of it holds up.

Why lipstick turns ashy, orange or disappearsRead it

More in the journal

  1. Four folds of fabric meet on ivory paper: deep rust and dark plum above, pale peach and pale lilac below.MythDeep skin is not automatically Autumn
  2. Berry and plum fabric lies on a pale ledge between a sunlit window on the left and a warm frosted bulb on the right.LightWhy apps give you a different season every time
  3. A fold of rust orange fabric meets a fold of cool burgundy fabric on ivory paper.MythThe vein test, and why it fails so many skin tones
  4. Four curved metal bands lie on folded ink navy fabric: polished silver and brushed silver on the left, polished gold and brushed gold on the right.MythGold or silver does not tell your undertone
  5. A translucent ice blue ribbon curls beside a matte dusty blue ribbon on pale paper.StyleWhy gray can make you look tired
  6. HairWhat hair color suits you? Start with contrast
  7. White poplin, soft white linen and ivory satin overlap in neutral light on pale paper.StyleKeep your black: what to wear next to it
  8. MethodWhy your season is only one layer
  9. PhotosWhy you look different in photos than in the mirror
  10. Skin toneCan dark skin wear yellow, orange or bright colors?
  11. ChangeDoes your color season change? Gray hair, dye, a baby
  12. MakeupDeep Winter makeup for a normal day
  13. MakeupBright Winter makeup without a bold lip
  14. MakeupWhy blush looks orange on olive skin
  15. MakeupLove the shade, not the formula
  16. ShoppingHow to shop your palette, and when to stop
  17. MakeupMakeup after color analysis: start with your bag
  18. MethodDark Winter or Deep Winter? Why the names differ
  19. MakeupYour shade was discontinued: what to look for
  20. GuidesWhat a color guide should show before you pay