Covering the top concealer makeup no-no’s – some might surprise you!
Posted on October 22, 2019 Written by: 100% PURE®
If asked the secret to looking fresh and young, on any given day we’d probably answer: a great concealer and double espresso, in that order.
Alas, finding the right concealer for your skin or your complexion is no easy task. We looked back on our makeup from 3 years ago (okay, 3 months ago) and realized our concealer does *not* match. Are you making some of the same concealer mistakes? We’ll divulge some of the most common concealer pitfalls, and how to breeze right past them for better beauty every day.
What’s vibrant, glowing, and youthful all over? If you’re using the wrong concealer, it ain’t your complexion! We all have depth to our skin – whether it be deep or ivory – and we need to show it off. Color matching is essential for choosing the right concealer and bronzer shades, to bring out bone structure and luminosity.
There are a number of factors to recognize when color matching for concealer:
Undertone
When you’re looking for under eye concealer, you’ll need to focus on two major factors. The first: finding a shade that matches your skin’s undertone. The undertone is essentially the temperature of your skin. Depending on your complexion, this will cause your veins to appear either greenish (warm toned) or bluish (cool toned), or neutral-toned if you fall somewhere in between.
You never want your concealer to look too yellow, as that will result in a grey, ghoul-like cast over the concealed areas, so if you’re still feeling unsure its best to go for a shade on the warmer side.
Overtone
The second big deal for shade matching is the shade itself, and how it matches the overall tone of your skin (undertone included). The whole purpose of concealer is to conceal, meaning it has got to be a bit lighter and more pigmented, to hide those designer bags we’re carrying around our eye areas.
Look for a shade that is at least (1), preferably (2) shades lighter than your skin tone or foundation color. You should be able to wear your concealer alone, blended out over dark spots and discolorations. It should also blend well with your other face products too, so we don’t recommend going any lighter than (2) shades below your foundation shade.
Color Correcting
If you’re dealing with some serious blemishes, dark circles, or dullness, try adding a color corrector step in your routine. This step is essentially part 1 of your concealer strategy: before you apply your foundation or concealer, use color correctors to give you a leg-up on your complexion correction.
For neutralizing redness, blend the green color corrector over blemishes or rosy areas. The peach color corrector can be blended over dull, sallow areas to enliven the complexion. Yellow color correctors are ideal for cancelling out blue tones: you know, those pesky hues plaguing your undereyes! All color correctors should be applied to cleansed and toned, dry skin and should be allowed to set for about 1 minute before following with foundation.
Blendability
For a concealer that blends out easily, melts into your skin, and features the right mix of overtone + undertone, consider the fruit pigmented® 2nd Skin Concealer. This vegan concealer offers medium to full coverage, and is infused with coffee beans and black tea leaves. Caffeine in ingredients like these helps to increase circulation, therefore reducing dark circles around the eyes.
You can also rely on anti-aging antioxidants of the many fruits inside – like peach, raspberry, pomegranate, and more – to help with neutralize free radical damage. Free radical damage = fine lines and hyperpigmentation, so antioxidants can only help to brighten and gradually improve the complexion while you wear them.
Our motto in life is, ‘the more the merrier,’ but this isn’t necessarily our approach with makeup. Multiple layers of concealer or formulas that simply don’t vibe with your skin type will cause caking, greasiness, creasing, and all kinds of unsightly results that can leave you feeling defeated.
Instead of piling on the pigment, focus on adding a tiny bit at a time in pea sized dots. Blend it out by tapping with your ring finger. Then, assess the need for more product and adjust as you see fit. This is where our Long Last Concealer with Super Fruits really makes an impact.
This somewhat-tacky cream concealer comes in a small clamshell compact, has got full coverage and a natural satin finish. You won’t be tempted to add more and more, because 1) the tacky, full coverage texture won’t budge and 2) your first layer will look glowy and feel light as a feather on the skin. You can thank rosehip seed oil and lavender essential oil for the calming and depuffing effect this has on your under eye area.
Where does your concealer fit into your beauty routine? Don’t forget that skin care is part of a healthy routine; if you aren’t starting with cleansed and moisturized skin, things can only go downhill from there. Clean, hydrated skin should always be step one, or else none of your products will wear to their full potential.
Here’s a short guide of skin care → concealer steps in order:
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Cleanser, toner and/or serum, moisturizer
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Primer (optional)
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Color corrector (optional)
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Foundation
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Concealer, set
If you just realized that you’ve been applying your concealer under your foundation, now is the time to try it reversed! You’ll love how bright your concealer looks, and how much better it lasts on your skin if you apply it after your foundation product. Ingredients like rice starch and bamboo silica in your foundation can actually help grab on to your concealer, ensuring longer wear.
Another important tip for flawless concealer is remembering to give your liquid or cream makeup time to set, before layering on concealer. This includes moisturizer, primer and of course, foundation.
Let’s say you buff on a beautiful base of our Full Coverage Water Foundation. This vegan foundation comes in a whopping (19) shades and full, dewy-satin coverage. That dewiness comes from hydrating aloe juice and anti-aging acai oil in the formula – and if you don’t give it time to set, you’ll definitely disturb the finish of both pigment and coverage. Giving your foundation and concealer 1-2 minutes to set will help you achieve maximum coverage and the best finish possible.
Finally, the last layer in any respectable concealer routine is a dusting of translucent setting powder. Be sure to lightly sweep a tiny bit over any concealed areas, as this will help absorb any excess oil, prevent creasing, and keep you looking photo-ready all day.
Tell us if this sounds familiar: it’s T-minus 5 minutes before you’re really really late. You swipe a finger in your concealer, and smear under the eyes and over blemishes for a quick and dirty excuse for coverage. Hours later, the results aren’t quite living up to your standards: blemishes are peeking through and pigment isn’t blended.
With no time left to spare, we settle for these results time and time again – but not so fast, missy! There’s no need to sacrifice a beautiful result just because you’re running low on time. Here are some ways to apply your concealer quickly – and beautifully.
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Whether you’re applying with fingers or a sponge applicator, always swipe up instead of down. Applying your makeup in downward strokes just helps gravity do its job – NOT ideal for wrinkles and fine lines. Instead, move in upward tapping and sweeping motions to blend out your product. If you find you’re tugging or pulling the skin, you’re doing it wrong!
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Next, assess your tools. We’re a fan of blending and setting our concealer with the pointed tip of our Non-Latex Makeup Blender, but another favorite tool is the Flat Shader Brush. These both allow you to hit a wider surface area at once, causing less trauma to the skin and avoiding bacteria from nails and fingers. These tools also help to blend concealer pigment out quicker than fingers.
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On the topic of tools, never use a concealer brush or your fingers on the undereye area. As tempting as it may be to fall back on these trusted tools, the eye area is simply too delicate for that kind of direct pressure. Sponges are a much more delicate option!
Listen, we get that applying concealer can be tricky. That’s why we’ve got plenty more resources for you:
- Tags: October-2019
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The information in this article is for educational use, and not intended to substitute professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment and should not be used as such.
