My best makeup advice: Wear the correct shade of foundation!

Have you ever seen someone with a bronzed face and the neck of snow white? Take my advice; this is not a good look. Your foundation color should match your skin tone exactly. I am fair, very fair, and I would love it if I wasn’t the lightest foundation shade but I usually am. Because of this, I add pops of color to my face with blush and bronzer, not with darker foundation. 

Besides the obvious color difference between your face and neck, wearing foundation that is too dark can be aging. It draws attention to fine lines and wrinkles. Think about it, most of us wear makeup for at least 12 hours a day. You smile, you squint, you pucker up, you scowl, and so on. After time, makeup starts to settle into those fine lines caused by our facial movements. If that makeup is too dark, those fine lines look fierce and more obvious. It can even look dirty on your skin. It’s a huge no-no.

So how do you find the perfect foundation for your skin tone? I am going to give you a little color matching 101. 

1. First, you will want to determine your skin’s undertone (warm, cool, neutral). 

Warm- Your skin tends to look more yellow. Your veins tend to look green. The color gold makes your skin seem brighter and your eyes/teeth appear whiter. 

Cool- Your skin tends to look more pink. Your veins tend to look blue. The color silver makes your skin seem brighter and your eyes/teeth appear whiter.

Neutral- Your skin tends to have even amounts of yellow/pink. There isn’t one shade that stands out. Gold and silver look equally as flattering. 

2. Select 3-4 shades with the correct undertone that you feel might be a good match with your skin color. If the warm/cool/neutral thing totally baffles you, select any 4 shades that you think might match your skin tone. You can find a match by process of elimination, even if it takes 10 tries. 

3. Take a makeup brush or a makeup sponge and test each foundation shade by making a stripe along the side of your face. You will want to start this stripe on your cheek, bring it over your jawbone, and onto your neck. It is important to test each shade on all of these areas because not everyone has a perfect skin tone. My face is naturally lighter than my neck due to my obsessive use of sunscreen. 

4. Once you have your 4 stripes (or 10), look to see which one “disappears” into your skin. If you have a hard time deciphering where you made the stripe, then it is a good match! 

It really is that easy. If you are having a difficult time color matching yourself, ask for help. All stores, cosmetic counters, spas, etc. should have someone on staff to assist you. If not, contact me. I am always more than happy to help. 

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