Flesh Tones

Have you ever noticed the wide range of flesh tones used by designers in cross stitching charts?
I think it's wonderful that we have such a range of colours available to us.

A few years ago I bought my first cross stitching magazine in nearly 10 years because of the Cicely Mary Barker fairy on the cover. I'm very gald I did buy it as it has sparked my love of cross stitching and designing once more. The designer of the fairy used the 3770s as flesh tones. I use them sometimes myself.

Though lately I have discovered 543 is a great skin tone with not too much pink. I used to use a lot of 819, but now I use it more for blushes in the cheeks.

Joan Elliott seems to like 951 and 945 for her pale flesh tones and they certainly give a ethereal glow to her fantasy characters.

Have you noticed they are all very pale anglo skins?
I dont' have my hands on the Native American series that Joan Elliott created, so I can't comment on those colours. But I do wonder to myself if we are a little narrow in our selection.

Or maybe that's just what I like to buy?
Perhaps it's me that's narrow in my selection?

Well in any case, I may look for some models with darker skin to use in my next design. That will certainly prove a challenge choosing colours for flesh tones.