So, for the first segment in the requested ‘makeup for dummies’ series I thought we would start with the foundations for it all. While to some this may mean primers – I hate primers (too many layers, foundation can ’slip off’ in hot weather etc etc) therefore I’ll start with the appropriately named ‘foundation’.
There are many factors that have to be considered when picking out a foundation, and they are all non-negotiable if you want a flawless face.
- Formulation – Choosing the correct formulation of foundation is a tricky business, you need to consider both the qualities of your skin, and also the environment within which you will be wearing it.
Most foundations are either targeted towards ‘dry’ or ‘oily’ or ‘normal’ skin, so I won’t really go into that, it is pretty self explanatory. However, a lot of oily people prefer powder foundations, so if that is your issue, it may be something to consider.
If you are going to be in a hot environment (especially a muggy and humid one) take into account that your skin may be more oily that usual.If you are going to have your picture taken, you will want to avoid that awful ‘white face’ that occurs in photographs using a flash. This is caused by the ingredient Titanium Dioxide, used within foundations both as a SPF (it reflects light, hence the white face) but also as a colour pigment. This bascially exludes all mineral foundations. Check the ingredients list, and if unsure don’t use any foundation that claims to have sun protection (NB *most* foundations contain this ingredient. Small levels present no problem, just look out for SPF levels over 8. If you need SPF try looking for a chemical rather than physical one if you are going to get photographed.) Other ingredients that need to be avoided for photos are mica – again commonly found in mineral based foundations and again reflects light, and bismuth oxychoride – the ingedient that gives that glow in mineral foundations (I think we now know what type of foundation is best avoided in photos :oP) which will look greasy and sweaty once under the influence of a flash.
- Coverage – foundation coverage can run from very sheer tinted moisterisers to full tattoo coverage. Though you may want to look as flawless as a doll, try to choose the least amount of coverage you can get away with. A lot of teenagers just grab full coverage in order to cover problematic skin, however I really wouldn’t recommend this. It will aggravate the skin, and appear very heavy and unnatural. If you want to cover something use concealer – the clue is in the name. Foundation is not made to cover any issues, merely to even out skin tone. Most people (including teenagers…infact, especially teenagers can get away with a good concealer, and either a light dusting of powder to set, or a very sheer tinted moisteriser. Only up the coverage of your foundation if your ‘issues’ are too widespread for a concealer to be dealt with (i.e. if you are starting to use a concealer as a foundation, that’s when you know you need more coverage).
The darker it is, the heavier makeup you can go for – so during the winter, and for the evening you can ‘get away with’ a more covering foundation without it aging you badly. During the blaze of the summer – keep it as sheer as possible. - Colour Match – Make sure that the foundation matches you perfectly. I understand that some people have issues with face colour not matching neck colour, and being unsure which to match. Although some people are adament that ‘foundation must match the face’, others are equally certain that it must match the body. There are no rules with makeup, only guidelines (despite what some commenters on youtube et al seem to think) and it is really your call if you are in that position. The benefit of matching the body is that you don’t get the ‘mask’ effect, however – put on a foundation that is too dark for the face and you’ll look caked in mud; too light and you will look ashen. I personally prefer to match the face, and work with overlaying products to ensure a match (i.e. using bronzer to darken either the face or the decollete as appropiate).
Now that you have come to a decision on that score, you must now analysis your undertones – yellow, pink, olive or neutral. Lots of people give advice based on the colour of your veins, or what colours you suit – but frankly these are unhelpful at best. The general principle is that if the veins on your wrist appear green, your skin is yellow based, while blue indicates a pink based skin. I dislike this method as unless you are at the extreme ends, your veins looking ‘kinda turquoise-ish’ isn’t going to get you very far. Look carefully at your skin, ignore any facial redness (having red cheeks does not mean you have pink undertones), make sure you examine your skin in natural daylight – the type of bulbs you use can do all sorts of funny things to your undertones.While I hate to give gross generalisations, it is likely that if you are from northern european stock you will have pink undertones, those from the med are more likely to be olive, while asians tend to have more yellow undertones – also, please do not confuse a tan with ‘olive’ undertones.
Those with neutral undertones are the lucky ones – a perfect balance between yellow and pink means that they can have any hair colour, and never look washed out by the colours that they wear.
Once you have sussed your undertones, now you need the appropriate language to go foundation shopping – most brands will have a mixture within their range of ‘cool’ and ‘warm’ foundations, cool foundations are for those with pink based skin, warm is for those with yellow based skin (a famous exception is Bobbi Brown who only use yellow foundations, treating pink skin like a disease that needs to be covered up). Sadly, very few brands label these differences clearly, if you want an easy purchase try MAC. They have a coding system for their foundations which lets you easily select the correct undertone. N for neutral, NC for *warm* foundations (yes, confusing, but that’s the way the do it) and NW for *cool* foundations – got that? If in doubt – ask, counter girls (and guys) tend to be very well educated in their brand, and will know what undertones they cater for.
While I would always recommend matching your foundation to your undertones, you may wish to do the Bobbi Brown thing of calming pink tones in your skin with a yellow based foundation. If that works for you then great, but it runs the risk of looking masky in real life. Try a colour corrected primer (green or yellow for pink skin, lavender or pink for yellow) or a setting powder (T. LeClerc’s or Pure Luxe’s are both magic).
Other than undertone you have got to find the correct shade of the foundation. Most people will know what range they fall in (pale, light, fair, medium etc) so select three or so foundations within that colour range and try them out. Smooth a small dab onto your jawline of each of the colours – your correct shade should just melt into your skintone and not be visible. Do not attempt to change your skintone with your foundation – want to go darker? Use a darn bronzer, changing your foundation colour will not look natural. If you are at an extreme end of the scale (i.e. very very light, or very very dark) and are unable to find a match, consider getting your foundation custom made, or mix it up yourself. Buy the lightest or darkest colour in your favourite formula then mix with a white or black product to darken or lighten as required. Lightening is easy – just buy goth white foundation, darkening is harder and may require venturing into proffesional products – try Ben Nye or Makeup Forever flash colour pot in black.
Application
There are many methods of applying foundation, and again – none of them are ‘right’ or ‘wrong’, whichever method works for you is the correct one.
- Fingers – If I hear one more person say ‘ewww’ to this ‘use a darn brush, that is so unsanitary’ I am going to scream (it may seem like an extreme reaction, but I get this a lot). Fingers are about as ’sanitary’ as you can get. Even clean brushes are left out in the open for some time (or even worse…in a case) and get covered in dust (or nastier if left in the bathroom) especially while they are drying, hands however can be freshly washed and dryed at a moments notice, with as much anti-bac as you can lay your hands on. Fingers can also give the most flawless finish if you are not used to using tools – why? Because your fingertips are smooth, brushes are not, and without careful blending using a foundation brush can lead to streaks. They also do not waste product (foundation doesn’t ’sink in’ to fingers).
- Brushes – Brushes are great…but only if you know how to use them properly. Foundation brushes are typically synthetic, if you are going to buy one make sure it is reasonably stiff and doesn’t have much give or movement to it. Dab a little foundation onto the back of you (clean) hand or pallete, then dip the brush into it, a little at a time. Start in the center of the face and work your way out. Move the brush in many directions to ensure that any streaks are removed.
Another brush you can try is an air brush (otherwise known as a ’stippling brush’ or a ’skunk brush’) these have fine white synthetic hairs that are widely spaced, they are held upright and apart by being surrounded by black hairs that are shorter than them. Using this brush will provide a more natural coverage. Use a light touch, and a mixture of a stippling action and circular movement with the brush to get a flawless finish.Some counters try to sell brushes under the reasoning that they don’t waste product – please do not get motivated by this, if you have ever washed a foundation brush then you will know that a heck of a lot of foundation comes out of these (from between the bristles), and potentially a lot more than with any sponge.
- Sponge – Sponges are great, you can stipple your foundation with them, blend it easily and are very very hard to missuse. If you are worried about wasting foundation with them, soak the sponge first in water, squeeze out the excess then put foundation on it, this will stop the foundation sinking into the sponge.
Some people don’t like reusing sponges, but really they are no different from brushes (if brushes were 50 per £10 then the same people would be throwing them out after every use). If you want to do that, then that is fine, but really they can be washed quite easily with your brush cleaner/soap/shampoo/facial cleanser. If you wish to sanitise them, you can boil them or soak them in alcohol after you have cleaned them.
The Chicken or the Egg
So which comes first? Foundation or concealer? I think this depends on the foundation that you are using. If a powder foundation, I think it is better to apply concealer first, concealer (creme or liquid rather than powder in this case) applies better onto ‘moist’ skin, and may not blend properly over powder. Putting the powder second will also set the concealer. Lastly, a creme concealer over a powder base may stand out as shiny and different to the rest of the skin.
For creme or liquid foundations I would recommend putting the concealer after. Applying a liquid foundation after the concealer may rub it off or cause it to smear. Also, foundation provides a level of coverage, therefore adding the foundation on top may be overkill. Using the foundation first allows you to gauge how much concealer is actually needed.
Getting your Foundation to Last
No one likes looking in the mirror three hours after they applied perfect makeup only to find that their foundation has either gone completely, oxidised (turned orange) or has gone cakey.At this point I cannot fail to mention primers. Primers tend to either be of the powder variety (for mineral foundations) or silicon. Either way, they sit right on the skin directly over you skincare and before your foundation. They provide a barrier between your skin and the makeup – meaning that less oils can pass through (less chance of oxidisation) and less foundation to sink into your skin (less chance of your foundation disappearing throughout the day). If you need it, there are some great ones on the market (Paul and Joe’s is very lightweight and great for summer, Smashbox’s offers colour correction and really helps create a flawless base).
Setting powder is shunned by some because they think it’ll make the face appear dry and matte whereas they want glow. If this is your issue you can try applying loose powder all over your face to set your makeup, and then spray over it with a glycerin based spray (like MAC’s Fix + or The Body Shop’s Vitamin C Energising Facial Spritz , or alternatively make your own), water spray (evian) or something like witchhazel or rosewater. The spray with meld your makeup together and reduce powderyness. The glycerin sprays are best if you want real ‘inner glow’. Then, throughout the day, only apply powder to your t-zone (brow bone, nose and chin), the ‘glow’ with remain on your cheeks, but you will keep your skin from getting greasy throughout the day.
Powder can either be translucent (appears white but contains no pigment and therefore looks invisible once applied – though colourless it’s really no recommended for super dark skin), colour corrective (blue for light, pink for radiance, green for redness etc etc) or can match your skintone. It is worth experimenting with them to find out what you like. As with foundation formulas vary between brands, you can even get some with antiperspirant in them (Ben Nye Neutral Set – designed for theatrical use), but I recommend looking for very fine powders as these will appear the most flawless.
Don’t want to spend a lot of money but still want great results? Head over to TKB trading and get a big bag of one of their cosmetic powders, put them in an empty powder pot and you’ll get something better than what you can buy at most counters. Silk powder is great for oily skin, Pearl powder is supposed to give radiance and have the benefit of being good for you, Kaolin clay if you are very oily and want a matte look and Silica for ‘airbrushed’ perfection.
Still not lasting? Head over to a theatrical shop and try out the makeup setting sprays. While not recommended for every not, once dryed you makeup will not be going anywhere. The industry favourite is Ben Nye’s Final Seal, spray in the air and let in gently fall to settle on your face (if you spray directly you’ll end up with shiny splotches). It contains alcohol and is therefore very drying, but for brides it is a must have.
And there you have it, my treatise on foundation. If I have left anything out, or you have a question then feel free to contact me. Go to thevanity.co.uk to find my email address, or alternatively leave a comment :o)
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