Finding a perfect foundation that is best for your skin type and skin tone can be a challenge. Foundation is tricky! It truly can make you or break you. Foundation is the most important step of your makeup routine, because every one will notice your skin first. If your foundation looks bad then your whole makeup look will most likely look bad! Every persons skin is different. What works for me could be a complete disaster for you! I encourage you to ask a professional for help before purchasing a foundation. Please don’t attempt to buy a foundation just because you saw great reviews when you’re in a rush. Finding the perfect one will take some time, so please be patient. It’s always best to start by giving the professional as much information about your skin as possible.

When searching for a foundation, here are the 4 steps that you should NEVER skip:

1. Inform the professional of any skin allergies that you have. I can’t stress to you enough how important this step is. The last thing you want or need is to break out in some wild rash and end up with scars from a tragic allergic reaction. As a makeup artist, skin allergies are always a major concern of mine. I never want my client to suffer from something that could have been easily avoided! Please don’t skip this step! When we are aware of your allergies, we can then rule out certain foundation options that could lead to an allergic reaction. Your skin is SO important to us!
2. Let the professional know if your skin is normal, oily, dry, or combination. If your skin is oily and you get your hands on a super moisturizing foundation that is not oil-free, things could get ugly quick! The same goes for if your skin is dry and you get your hands on an oil-free, mattifying foundation! We definitely want to avoid all of those things. When you purchase a foundation that is not made for your skin type, you’ll be frustrated and disappointed. It just won’t work no matter how hard you try which means you’ll have to return it.. and then you’re back to where you began! Foundations are returned every single day because this one very simple step is skipped. I would hope that your skin type is one of the first things a professional talks to you about. If not, you now know how important it is that you tell the professional your skin type from the beginning. Trust me, this step will save you so much time and unnecessary trips to the makeup store to return or exchange the product!
3. Let the professional know what type of coverage you are looking for. Most people are looking for either sheer, medium, or full coverage foundations. There are so many great foundations that fall under each of those 3 categories. Knowing what type of coverage you want is the key to finding a perfect foundation! Sheer is going to be a very light-weight, barely noticeable coverage. It isn’t intended to cover redness, acne, or scars. It pretty much just enhances your bare skin by giving it a slight tint of color. I am so jealous of you beauties who can rock a sheer coverage foundation. I dream of the day that my skin will be that great! Medium is going to give you a bit more coverage, but without being extremely heavy or thick. It will cover some redness and some acne. It is buildable which means you can start with a small amount and then add more until you reach your desired coverage. This type of foundation coverage is my favorite. I like the way it feels on my skin and the way it looks. It doesn’t look cakey and it doesn’t clog my pores. My daily routine is putting on a good concealer and a medium coverage foundation! Full is for those of you who don’t want any of your skin showing. Do you suffer from rosacea, acne, or scars? No more worries, this type of foundaton will literally cover any & everything!! *Praise hands emoji* These type of foundations tend to feel heavier on the skin and sometimes they can look cakey. Starting out with a small amount and building it up until you are satisfied is the best way to apply a full coverage foundation. BLEND WELL. Doing those things will help you to avoid cake face. Full coverage is great for bad skin days, photo shoots, pageants, prom, and any big event like that. This type of foundation truly is a miracle!
4. COLOR MATCH! Please, please, please NEVER purchase a foundation without having a color match. No one wants that dreaded makeup line from wearing a foundation that is way darker or lighter than your neck and the rest of your body. This mistake happens often! You always want your foundation to match your skin tone perfectly, that’s why having a proper color match is major. Please don’t ever grab a random foundation and buy it just because it “looks” like your color. Doing so will just lead to returning the foundation. Always ask a professional to do a color match. Some have devices that will quickly decide your shade, while others will apply small swatches of different shade foundations to your skin until they find a perfect match. If you’re in a rush or there’s not a professional available to help you, try swatching different colors on the inside of your wrists until you find the correct match. Anything is better than just grabbing a random foundation color and hoping that it will work!

 These 4 steps will help the professional decide which foundation is going to be best for you. Don’t ever be afraid to tell them these things and never be afraid to ask questions! That is what professionals are there for. It is what they are trained to do. A professional should always approach you and discuss these 4 things with you when you’re searching for a foundation. If they don’t, I hope that this guide gives you the correct information you need to ask all of the important questions that will lead to finding the foundation of your dreams!  🙂