Foundation Matters

Let’s admit. When it comes toskin, everyone wants a flawless, glowing and baby smooth soft skin especiallyon our faces. And, whenever we talk about faces, make-up becomes a fundamentalpart of it. You don’t need rocket science in order to know that make-up isn’tcomplete without the perfect foundation. As we all know, there are numerousbrands of foundations across the globe with varying textures, tones, brands,purpose and of course, prices. So, it’s up to us to select the perfect stufffor our skin.

A perfect foundation can onlybe perfect when you know 2 things. 1) your skin type and 2) your skin tone .

THE SKIN TYPE

In choosing the rightfoundation to buy, one must remember that skin type varies from one person toanother. Skin type is one of the most important things to consider before youpurchase. Now, the question is, whether you have an oily skin, dry skin,combination skin or the sensitive skin type.

• Dry skin
• What:A skin that looks stiff.  It easily getsreddish or peels when subjected to bad   weather.
•  Use:Cream foundations are the best. Also try the water-based foundations.
•  Oily skin        
• What:A face that looks shiny and most of the time greasy.
• Use:Matte and powder finish. Best also to use those mineral based makeup to blotoil.
• Combinationskin:
• What:One of the most common. T-zone (nose and forehead) are oily and cheeks are dry.
• Use:Moisturing make-ups and liquid foundations are most likely to fit you.
• Sensitive skin
• What:Easily gets break-outs or tends to go reddish easily when a product is applied
• Use:Mineral make-ups are your best option. Although, I would also recommend non-comedogenic,fragrance-free and oil-free products.

THE SKIN TONE

It’s always crucial to knowyour skin tone before deciding on which product to use on your skin. This is usuallya common mistake for some. If you do not get this part right, you’ll probablyend up with a flat, lifeless skin. Many of you might think that sometimes, asimple foundation looks gray or dull in you after an hour or so. Honestly, havingan acidic skin is not the only culprit. Another reason for this is actuallyhaving the wrong shade of foundation. Foundations should always be somethingthat is nearest your skin tone. It should mimic your skin tone, not too light,not too dark. Although sometimes, you have to check if the product will oxidize(becomes darker) on your skin. Skin tones are generally either cool or warm. Inorder to check your tone, simply look at your wrist and see if the veins yousee are blue or green.

                Warm – Green veins (morena or dark skinned)

                Cool -  Blue veins(fair skinned)

TIPS before purchasing a product:

1.      Ask your friendly SA’s if you could test drivethe product first on your skin prior to your purchase. (Some brands can evenprovide free samples of the product) Leave the product to your face for like30mins to an hour to see if it will oxidize.

2.   If you have sensitive skin and you doubt about acertain product line, well, do the sensitivity test. Apply a generous amount ofmakeup to your jaw area. (Albeit there’s this one book I read that says, “There’sno such thing as allergy to make-up” and “Break-outs are a product of skinabuse” I believe, PREVENTION is still better than CURE)

3.      NEVER rely on the MIRROR inside that make-upcounters you go to. These mirrors together with the store lighting tend makeyou look beautiful, radiant and glowing no matter what. So I suggest, you tryto look at yourself outside that store, where the lighting can’t be toodeceiving.