Today I would like to share a little secret with you all. It’s about concealer. Oh how we love this magical product! Of course it is only magic if you do it right. Lucky for you, this particular magician goes against the code and reveals her tricks (like here and here.)
First, let’s get one little myth out of the way. While I know many of you will have been doing this for years, guess what – you DON’T have to apply your concealer first. Baffling, right? Here’s the thing, foundation is a complexion correcting product in itself, so give it a chance to do its job by applying first and then seeing where you need to go with further correction from there. This saves a lot of bother and product!
There are so many concealers out there, and lots of them work in very different ways. For my clients, I use a colour corrective palette. These concealers give me the ability to completely abolish dark circles, blemishes and inconsistent pigmentation. You can do this at home as well, and once you get the hang of how it works, it’s really not that difficult.
Firstly, thoroughly examine your skin and take note of where there are colours you would like to alter. The obvious ones will be any redness or blemishes and dark circles under eyes, but you may also have a particular beauty spot, freckles or pigmentation you would like to disguise as well. Really check out the colours, though. For example, if you have dark circles under your eyes, they could be a combination of redness, brown, purple, yellow and blue.
I like to use a concealer brush (small brush made of synthetic fibres – try Gorgeous Cosmetics Brush #19, $35.00) to apply sparingly and my finger to smooth out and graduate edges into the skin. Apply the right corrective product exactly to and only where it is needed. Here is a simple guide:
GREEN product disguises RED/PINK (typically found in blemishes, close to eyes and around nostrils)
YELLOW product disguises PURPLE (typically found under eyes or can be used for redness if you dont have a green product)
PINK product disguises BROWN (typically found under eyes, and with any moles, freckles or brown pigmentation)
ORANGE product disguises BLUE (typically found right at the corners of your eyes, on side of your nose)
PURPLE product disguises YELLOW (to be honest, I’ve never really found a use for this, but if you had some yellowing pigmentation, this would be for you)
Now, I know I certainly dont have time day-to-day for messing about with all of the colour correcting products for myself, so I have one really great, reliable concealer I use for everything. It is a medium-heavy coverage concealer and I love it because it is so versatile. I use Gorgeous Cosmetics concealer in Medium Neutral, $30.00, which has a yellow base, counteracting my pinky/red tones in my complexion, disguising the purple under my eyes and blending well with my medium-tanned skin.
If you would like some advice on which kind of concealer to buy as a cover all for you, or more tips on how to go all out with a corrective palette, leave a comment below. If you would like to purchase any of the Gorgeous Cosmetics products I have mentioned, email me and mention this post for a 10% discount!
Happy concealing, sisters!