How To Concealer

Make-up Concealer 101

30 Days of Beauty, Cover Up Imperfections With Concealer

Concealer is one of those necessary evils in most women’s make-up routine. ‘Evil’ because it is so difficult to get right in every light. What looks natural in outdoor lighting can look incredibly noticeable in fluorescent lighting and vice versa. There is a certain skill in choosing the right concealer and in applying it correctly.

CHOOSING A SHADE

Concealer should to even skin tone in areas where skin is, for whatever reason, darker than in other areas. That is to say, one should choose a concealer that is the same shade as their normal skin areas. Do not choose a shade that is lighter than your skin tone. As Moxie from Moxie Reviews notes:

Don’t use concealer that is too light. The point of concealer is to draw attention away from the area; choosing one that is too light for your skin tone just calls attention to it.

Even if the concealer is applied underneath foundation, the lighter tone will pop out under the foundation. Although it may seem counterintuitive, choose a shade that is slightly darker than your own skin since concealer goes on lighter than it looks on the stick or brush.
Jenn from: Canadian Beauty and Fashion Blog- Spiced Beauty gives these simple tips for choosing a concealer for under the eyes

Do you suffer from dark under eye circles?
If you are of a lighter skin tone opt for a yellow based concealer.
If you are of a darker skin tone opt for a orange based concealer.

CAN I SKIP CONCEALER?

Concealer works with other make-up to help hold the other make-up in place. Foundation, eyeliner, eye shadow and blush all stay in place longer and stronger with the help of concealer. Many people use concealer only around their eyes to hide dark circles. Covering dark eye circles is certainly achieved by using concealer, but that is not the only reason to use it.
Do not skip concealer if you want, or need, your make-up to stay in place for more than five hours. While it may seem like an extra and unnecessary step in your make-up routine, applying it along with foundation and eye make-up will keep you from having to touch up your make-up all day long.

HOW TO USE CONCEALER

Besides using concealer on and under dark eyes, use concealer anywhere that you wish to have more coverage. Some of these areas include:
· Pimples
· Birthmarks
· Scars
· Freckles
· Dark spots
· Bruises
Apply concealer after foundation using a brush or fingertip. By apply after your foundation, the concealer is not worn off by the foundation application. to the extent the concealer looks slight off shade from the foundation, blend slightly and consider choosing a different shade of concealer.
Be careful to avoid an over-layered look that is a typical trap when using concealer. To avoid this, do not apply pressed powder over foundation and concealer. Skip the pressed powder until later in the day when your forehead begins to shine. In addition, only use pressed powder on those shiny areas and not all over your face.
Go light and consider also trying an illuminator. Cindy Bokma of Hello Dollface follows this procedure:

I touch up any blemishes or imperfections with concealer, lightly dabbing this with a finger or brush. I use a light application of an illuminator around my eyes to lighten dark circles and make my eyes look bright.

Teri Cosenzi of Beautiful Makeup Search provided this great tip for concealing the under eye area:

Mix a small amount of your eye cream with your concealer. Not only will it apply easier, it will look better and last longer. Especially as you age, it is important to not only conceal your under-eye area, it is important to hydrate it. Mixing the two instantly plumps the area, plus it brightens and fills in the lines as it conceals.

Here at Beauty and Fashion Tech, we prefer thicker cream concealers for their staying power and are a fan of Laura Mercier products for concealer. But there are numerous quality choices and concealer tends to be a product that is good across most brands.