How To Find Your Perfect Foundation Shade

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For that flawless makeup look, you must learn how to find your perfect foundation shade. Choosing a foundation that suits your skins undertone be so frustrating, but knowing the basics can take the hassle out of it thus save you time and money.

Once you get your base right the rest of your make up and skin will look flawless.

Finding the right foundation involves 4 steps:

Finding your skin tone.
Discovering your skins undertone?
Choosing the coverage.
Choosing the finish.

1. What is your skin tone right now?

Your skin tone is the surface shade of your skin which can change dramatically with the sun (tanning). This is why some people often have two foundations, one for summer or when they wear fake tan and one for winter.

The three main skin tones are fair, medium or dark. Do not confuse this with your undertone which never changes.

2. What is your skins undertone?

Your skins undertone is determined by the colours underneath the surface of your skin. You can have a cool, warm, neutral or olive undertone. Packaging on foundation is usually labelled with undertone letters = C, W or N along with the shade number.

However, choosing a foundation for cool or warm skin tone may not always be best because cool toned may end up making your skin look too pink and a warm toned foundation can make your skin look overly yellow.

Cool toned foundation should look slightly pink in the bottle or slightly golden or yellow in a warm toned foundation. Don’t buy one thats very pink or very yellow and always get a sample to try out at home.

With olive skin, you may find that a neutral shade often works but you may need a slight gold tone to warm up the green undertone in your skin. Knowing your skins undertone is key to finding your perfect foundation shade. To help you discover your undertone click here.

3. Choosing the coverage you want:

Remember, the purpose of your foundation is to even out the colours in your skin and avoid very heavy foundations as you age as they just emphasise lines, instead just apply concealer to the areas where you really need it.

You can get a full coverage foundation or light coverage but the best one is a buildable coverage foundation. Therefore, you can just apply a little for a daytime look or build it up to full coverage for evening wear.

Only apply what you need and add more coverage just to the areas you need it e.g. redness or acne scarring, but leave the rest of the face sheer.

4. Choosing the finish you want:

Finally, you must choose the finish of your foundation:

Matte, oil free – perfect for oily skin as it dries matt, won’t cause break outs, keeps the shine at bay and stays on longer. It can make wrinkles appear more noticeable.
Dewy/glowy – dries with a dewy finish, hydrates so it is great for dry skin, doesn’t last as long as a matte foundation but looks fresher on the skin and the light reflective particles make lines less visible.
Satin finish for all skin types, it is between dewy and matte, it is long lasting and luminous which gives a smooth natural sheen and glow but not drying and poreless like matte.

Going Shopping – just a couple more things to bear in mind…

Best time to go try a foundation is midday and in natural sunlight.
Choose 3 shades that look closest to your skin tone.
Usually in the make-up industry we would apply them at the side of your jawline so that you can see the difference between how it looks on your face and your neck but if you have a lot of pigmentation or darker skin in that area then do the stripe test across your cheek area. The shade that disappears into your skin is a match.
If you find your neck is a lot darker than your face try matching your foundation to your cheek and the centre of your chest as the skin is less exposed to the elements and closer to the rest of your body.
Never match to your wrist because it can be totally different to your face.
Beware of oxidation; this is when your foundation reacts with oxygen after you apply it to your skin. It can also react with the oils in your skin meaning it can go darker or more orange after wearing it for a few hours due to the chemistry of our skin and exposure to air. It is caused by the oxides in some foundations which are used in SPF or for coverage to a foundation.
If you love the foundation but it oxidizes a lot then wear a good primer underneath to separate your skin from the product.

For these reasons, I always recommend you ask for a sample, take it home and try it on in good light and wear it for the day to see how your skin reacts to it.

Good luck finding that perfect shade xx