When I asked my non-makeup loving sister about what she thought I should write a post about one of her suggestions was to tell people not to wear the wrong kind of foundation. Right after that my sister-in-law asked what I thought about different types of foundations. Apparently foundation is a hot topic.
Until about two years ago I never even wore foundation. I wore a full face of makeup, minus the foundation. I had very good skin back then and didn't really need it and for some reason I didn't like the thought of putting something ALL over my face. As I've gotten older my skin has gotten much worse with breakouts and other things I want to cover and foundation has become my friend. Since I"m still fairly new to even wearing it I am far from an expert but I'll share the things I've found along the way.
Types
The main types are liquid and powder. The most basic is the liquid, so many brands carry a liquid foundation. I'm still experimenting with powder foundations, they can be a bit chalky and dusty on the skin.
Finishes
Matte- great for those who have oily skin. A matte foundation has no shimmer to it and helps to keep the skin from becoming oil city.
Dewy- this is for those who want their skin to glow. This is my favorite type of foundation because I love skin that looks healthy and fresh. You do have to be careful with this type, if you're too oily it just won't work and if you have a lot of blemishes it can enhance them.
Satin- a satin finish is right in between, its more of a natural look. While it does have a bit of a sheen its nothing dramatic.
Coverage
Full- nothing is going to show through this baby. It will cover EVERYTHING. The challenge here is it can look like a "cake face". It can be difficult to make it look natural.
Medium- this is my favorite right here, it covers mostly everything but doesn't look like its been overdone. Anything it doesn't cover can be gone over with concealer later.
Light- a light coverage will give your skin a little boost but won't be doing any heavy duty covering of anything. Things like BB creams and tinted moisturizers belong in this category. They are used to even out the skin tone and make the face just kind of "smoothed out" in a way.
Shades
Light to Dark (Self explanatory) (I hope)
Undertones
All skin types have an undertone to them. There are three different ones: Cool, Warm and Neutral. They are exactly as they sound. Cool skin has a bit of a blue or ashy tone to it, Warm has a pink tint or a yellow one and neutral is right perfectly in the middle with not enough ash or pink to be cool or warm.
The two most common mistakes are: picking the wrong color and not blending! And there are two very simple solutions.
As far as picking the wrong color the very best thing you can do is go to a beauty counter like Mac and get color matched. They will be able to pick the best match for your skin. Now I realize that not everyone is going to want to spend 20-35 dollars on a foundation so another good tip is to put the foundation on your jawline/neck. Some stores like Ulta have products you can try on before you buy them. Once you figure out what your color is, half the battle is over. Then comes the blending.
Another great one is the Real Techniques Expert Face Brush from Ulta. $8.99 They have a foundation brush as well but I do not like that one at all so don't get that one!
I always apply my foundation after my eye makeup and blend blend blend. If you're just using your hands you've still gotta blend blend blend. Bring it down onto your neck as well as into your hairline so it will be seamless. If you're using a BB Cream or a tinted moisturizer your hands will do just fine, there's no need for a brush because it's such a light coverage there's not much need to blend. If possible apply your makeup in natural light or at least check it in natural light before you head out the door.
Those are my best tips for foundation! As always leave questions below and I will do my best to answer them.
No comments:
Post a Comment