Perfect shade and texture

There is nothing worse than walking out the door and your face is bright orange in the sunlight.  Choosing the right shade and type of foundation for yourself is vital in how it will look and how long it will stay perfect for.

There is that many foundations to to take your pick from these days that you may find yourself stuck in a rut!  Tinted moisturisers, beauty balms, creamy foundation, liquid foundation, mineral foundation?  Too many to grasp a hold of.  Well no, it should'nt be, just follow these simple tips and you can't go wrong.

We will start off with choosing the right foundation for your skin type.

Oily Skin

If you suffer from oily skin a lot and your makeup is always very shiny and rubs off easily then you need to choose a foundation that states "oil free", "mattifying" or something along those lines.  These types of foundations have certain "oil absorbers" shall we say in them which helps soak up any excess oil from your skin and produces a smooth mattified look.

If you have oily skin i would recommend trying Maybeline pure liquid mineral foundation and pairing it off with a matt powder.

oil free maybeline pure liquid mineral foundation 

 If Maybeline doesn't take your fancy then why not try another cheap alternative, such as;

• Beverley Knight Light Coverage Oil Free Foundation 

  Stila natural finish oil free makeup 

  Infinite Matte by Calvin Klein Oil Free Foundation 

  Stila sheer cover oil free moisturiser

  All of the above foundations are oil free and are great for anyone who suffers with oily skin breakouts that makes there face shiny and there makeup easily wear off. 

  Once you have applied your oil free foundation try a powder on top to make the foundation last longer and for that wee bit extra mattifying look.

   I love this maybeline powder, it makes your skin silky soft and gives you that amzing flawless matt look.

   

  

  Maybeline dream matte pressed powder

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

   

   

    Dry Skin 

  Don't worry if you suffer from dry skin, there are a lot of products and methods out there to supplement the skin with the moisture it needs.  Try and exfoliate your face gently 2-3 times a week.  I use Aveeno facial scrub 3 times a week and i use an emolient based cream to wash my face the other 4 days.  Once you start using an exfoliating wash plus the emolient based cream your skin will start to build up the much needed moisture and will be soft to the touch.  Another secret of mine for dry skin is to wash your face before going to bed and rubbing in pure aloe vera gel to yor face.  I got severely sun burnt one time and i used aloe vera gel, it cleared it up in no time and ever since then i swear by it for my dry skin.  It truly is a god sent. 

   

   

  

  Aveeno exfoliating scrub wash

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

    

  

  Pure aloe vera gel for dry skin

  
  
  
  
  Ok so what about a foundation for dry skin? 
  
  
  Ladies that suffer from dry skin would need to choose a foundation that will leave a dewy finish, one that is light but will still give you full coverage.  For a very cheap foundation i would try collection 2000 sheer moist foundation.  It is very light and isn't too thick a foundation so can be applied lightly and it is full of moisture.  Alternatively i would apply moisturiser before i applied my foundation, but also i would mix some moisturiser into my foundation so that my skin has that little extra moisture to soak up when needed. 
  
  

  

  Collection 2000 sheer moisture foundation

   Why not try a BB cream? the right colour will give you just the right coverage you are after, if not then drop a wee splodge of your foundation into it and apply to your face.  Blemish/Beauty Balm is packed full of vitamins and minerals that help your skin a treat. Try Granier Nutri Miracle Skin Perfector.
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  Garnier nutri miracle skin perfector bb cream

   Of course your diet will affect what skin type you are, eating plenty of vitamins and nutrients plus keeping yourself well hydrated and cutting out on sugar and fats will help your skin too. 
  
  
  
  
  Blotchy and Uneven Skin 
  
  
  Having blotchy and uneven skin is usually a sign of being malnourished in one way or another.  Or it can be due to the fact of ageing, smoking, alcohol or even drugs.  Unfortunately washing your face alone won't really help your blotches or uneveness, try exfoliating whilst you wash your face, this will help to get rid of any dead skin cells that are lying around.  Be sure to moisturise, it is not enough to moisturise once a week or so you will need to get into a routine.  If your skin is really badly blotched and red then you may have what is called rosacea.  Rosacea is a skin disorder which has an unknown cause and unknown cure to it.  There are creams and things that can help control the symptoms though.
  
  
  When looking for a foundation for uneven skintone, blotchey/red or acne covered skin then go for one that offers medium to full coverage depending upon how bad your skin is, you don't want to go for a sheer foundation as this will not do you any good.  Ideally you are looking for a longer lasting wear foundation that will last at least 12 hours onwards that will also give you the coverage you are after.  I would recommend going for one like Beverly Knight full coverage oil free foundation, it is important to find one that gives you full coverage, but is also oil free, you don't want any oil in the foundation cloigging your pores and reproducing more spots or breakouts.  
  
  
  
  

  

  
  
  A great 24 hour foundation is Maybelines 24 hour superstay foundation, it is light enough for you to choose the coverage you require.  If you need a lighter coverage then apply one layer, if you need a little more coverage then wait for the first layer to dry and apply another layer all over the face or just where your trublesome areas are.  
  
  

  

  Maybeline 24 hour superstay full coverage foundation

  
  
  
  
  
  
   

    Sensitive Skin
  

   

A lot of females suffer from sensitive skin and can only use certain face washes, creams and makeup.  If you suffer from sensitive skin and you are scared to wear makeup then don't be.  There are millions of people out there with the same skin type.  There are many different types of sensitive skin, you may experience your skin coming out in a rash, being very irritable and itchy, red blotches occuring, very dry but sore, acne is part of the sensitive skin group too.  You may experience stinging or burning sensations too.  My skin is always changing, i can go months with my skin being ok then there are times where my skin will flare up wthout any warning signs. 

There is not one set explanation to sensitive skin and flareups.  There are a number of reasons that can cause different reactions to you; such as;

•  the weather, extreme weather changes can cause your skin distress.
•  stress, this can cause a number of different symptoms all over your body and a lot of the time is the reason for things that we would never have associated it with
• hairdyes, fragrances, creams etc...all of these can cause a reaction to your skin
• air conditioning, it sounds silly, but this can cause itchy eyes and dry skin as the air onditioning draws out the moisture from your skin
• having to many baths or showers can cause it too.
• age and or hormones, the more your skin ages the more it changes, along with age your blood changes every 7 years so in one period of your life you may have had bad eczema and the other period it may have dissapeared completely.  

People with sensitive skin should look for products that state "fragrance free", "skin kind",  "sensitive skin", "hypoallergenic" , "dermatalogically tested".

If you are someone that suffers from sensitive skin then you should be using a product that states one of the above phrases on it.  To moisturise you should get an emolient based product or aqueous cream. Using a cream like this reduces water loss from skin by putting a protective layer onto it.  This can be used as a face wash or a moisturiser or can be used in your bath to soothe the skin or can be applied before you shower to protect your skin from further irritation..  I would recommend products such as E45 cream or diprobase, these can be used as much as you need them.  I woul try and get an emolient based cream rather than an emolient based oil/ointment.  Emolient based ointments are greasy.  If you do not wish to use a cream or oil then you can choose doublebase gel, it works the same. 

diprobase emolient cream

doublebase gel

E45 cream