Red Nail Polish on Olive Skin

Olive skin has a warm cast the bottle never shows you. Something that looks perfectly neutral on a card will usually pull warm — or slightly green — once it’s on your hand.

Start with Rich red crème (RC21) — a true pillar red, and it stands well clear of your skin. 45 of the 106 will read as a real contrast on your hand, and eight will blend almost all the way in if that’s what you’re after. If you’d rather go lighter, Pale red crème (RC29) is more of a blush rose.

Change the nail shape and length as you go — the same red is a different manicure short and round than it is long and stiletto.

The same reds on another skin tone: Pale skin · Fair skin · Tan skin · Brown skin · Dark skin

Or start wider: all red shades · every color on olive skin