Whats standing in the way of control?

The amount of people who come in to see a MAC artist to complain that they look shiney, and on perusal they do- but they may also have dry or dehydrated skin!

So many think that to combat the issue one must cake on as much matte foundation and powder as possible. And to be honest, nothing does worse things for your skin. We have to analyse our skins intensely for us to know that the product we require is going to give us an optimal finish. Firstly what type of skin have you got? Oily? Dry? Combination? Ok, combination? But what kind of combination? Is it normal to dry or normal to oily or oily with dry patches? The reason for the absurd amount of questions is because so many people think they need something but in reality they dont.

Ok so once you have anlysed your skin.. what have you got?

* If you have dry skin, you need to make sure your using emolliant skincare and makeup. Emolliants are products that will soothe and soften your skin. So using a moisturiser like Keihl's Ultra Moisturiser will help hydrate the skin and become a great base for foundation to stick to (as so not to allow your foundation to flake or become patchy). Then find a foundation that has a dewy finish, as it causes light reflectants on the skin to deflect off and create a smoother texture and softer finish. Use cream blushes to finish the look and really highlight the cheekbones.

* Have you got oily skin?

Righto, then you need to ensure your using silica based products. Silica in products sucks up any excess oil/moisture on the surface of your skin, so are very important! Great moisturisers are Oil Control by MAC, Simple Oil Balancing Moisturiser or most with a gel formulation rather than a cream. Use a primer, its so important!! If you dont have a primer down on the skin to create a barrier between the moisturiser and the foundation, the oil will cause the makeup to shift and move around- something which can be really annoying as it means your makeup lasts about 20 minutes before its all over your clothes!

Buy a foundation that has a matte finish (MAC's full coverage Studio fix powder or liquid is phenom.. and NARS Sheer Matte is lovely!) and then something thats extremely impoartant is using a powder to set it all at the end. This powder will also be the key throught the day to touch up your look with, to continually reduce any oil on the surface and to deshine you! For a more flawless finish, go for a higher coverage powder or if you dont want to pack on too much product, use low coverage products like MAC's Select Cover Foundation; which is water based, or for those who dont want any product on their face but need to deshine- MAC's Blot powder is amazing!! With only 2% pigment, all its really doing is taking away the oil and sweat...

Dark skintones in particular have a big issue with shine. I think, if managed well, dark skin looks amazing with a dewy finish. But so many of my brown sugared honeys hate it and opt to use Fix or Blot powder. Just make sure you dont use translucent powder if you do have a darker skintone, as it can make you look grey and ashy- and this is not a good look!

* I have combination skin! If you do, think about it. If its normal to dry, make sure you're using a good moisturiser and carry a powder with you, just in case you get shiney in the t-zone.

If you have Normal to Oily, again use powders. if its normal to oily, then I guarantee you that you will become shiney throughout the day.

And last but not least! What if you have shiney skin, but want a dewy finish? Great! These next few seasons are all about the sheer, dewy look. So just make sure you dont go for a full matte foundation, I personally LOVE MAC's Sculpt foundation. With a satin finish (not matte, but not dewy), it will give you what you need, without too much hydration. Then use a satin finishing powder. Again I heart MAC's Mineralised Skin Finish.. its made of minerals so has light reflecting micro particles in it to deflect light in a very natural way.



I hope you enjoyed this novel of knowledge! More tips coming over the next week...

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