Back to Basics: Foundation

Hey everyone!

This is a new series that I’m going to be running called Back to Basics! When I first started to get into doing makeup, it was really hard to find someone who was willing to explain the very basics and just the basics without jumping into a full-on face of makeup. So if you’re just starting out, or have been doing makeup for a while, here’s some helpful hints, one step at a time.

Today, I’m going to talk about shopping for foundation. There are a lot of them out there, and it can be frankly overwhelming to find the right one for you. So here are my quick and easy tips to remember on foundation, and finding the right one.

Make peace with your face

In this lifetime, you only get one face, so you may as well love it. If you have acne, wrinkles, scars, whatever, it’s still fine as long as you think that your skin is great. And it is! Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

Decide what kind of coverage you will be looking for.

If you have a lot of things that you want to cover up, even after you’ve made your peace with your skin, you’ll probably want something that has a fuller coverage. The same goes if you have enviable smooth and flawless skin: you can probably get away with just a tinted moisturizer. If this is your first time around, I suggest going for something with a buildable coverage that will start out sheer, but can be layered to provide a fuller effect. After you’ve been working with a good foundation for a while, you can really see if you need something a little thicker or not.

Research brands

Do a ton of research. It doesn’t matter if you’re after drugstore or high-end products. Do your research. Fire up the Google machine and look at all the reviews and all of the facts that you can. Once you’ve done a little research on things that are within your price range, and generally what you are looking for, you can narrow down the brands of foundations that you are seriously considering. It’s important that you have two or three different brands that you are interested in. You can do this by searching for coverage, or for something you can wear to a certain event; that sort of thing.

Match your color!

If there is one thing that you are going to take away from this article, let it be this paragraph. Your foundation needs to match the color of your skin. This is why it is important to be thinking about a couple of different brands. Once upon a time, I really wanted a MAC foundation, and I was really stuck on that brand, and that brand only. Unfortunately, MAC simply does not make a foundation that matches my skin. It’s just not meant to be. So try a different line. I have nothing against MAC, and I still like their foundation, but if the color is wrong, you shouldn’t wear it. So now, go try out the foundations that you have decided on. I find the best place to try it out is on your jaw. That way it matches well with your face as well as your neck. Test out a patch of each kind of foundation in the color that you think matches you best. Then choose the one that does match the best. It helps if there’s someone else to help you decide. If you go to a high end beauty counter or Sephora they will match you there!

Take it home and apply to your face!

Once you get home it’s time to put it on! There are a ton of tutorials on a ton of different ways to put on your foundation. I prefer to start at my nose and work my way out from the centre of my face. Don’t forget your neck! And blend it really well. You don’t want any harsh lines.

Rock that fancy face of yours!

Everyone looks ten times better when they’re confident in how they look. You look great, so make sure everybody knows that from your attitude!

I hope this helped you guys a little bit. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to drop me a line!