My Foundation Routine: A Guide To Glowy Skin

HERE’S A SECRET…

I don’t have perfect skin.

I deal with hyperpigmentation, the occasional breakout and when I’m tired, it does show.

Generally speaking, I like to go for that “no-makeup makeup” look. I like my skin to look glowy and fresh, not like I just caked on three pounds of foundation and concealer. I love using makeup as a tool to enhance the aspects that I love about myself, and to cover up temporary blemishes. Over the past year or so, I’ve become obsessed skincare and makeup, and have mastered the illusion of healthy, glowy skin for the days when my skin is anything but that.

Recently, I’ve received tons of questions about my makeup routine, and specifically how I achieve a glowy look…

So, upon popular request, here is my quick and easy face makeup routine

Primer

After cleansing and moisturizing (updated skincare routine coming soon!), you’re going to want to start off by priming your face. I’ve tried tons of primers — both high end and drugstore — and I can honestly say that my favorite is the Neutrogena Healthy Skin Primer. This primer instantly evens out your skin tone, has a beautiful luminating finish, and unlike so many other primers that I’ve tried, it doesn’t clog your pores. A good primer will create a smooth surface for your makeup to go on top of, so don’t look past this crucial step.

Shop Now

If you want to achieve that glowy look, you need to start with a good primer. Look for a primer with a luminating finish. This will help your skin glow before you even put any makeup on.

(Sometimes I’ll even leave the house with moisturizer and a little bit of primer if I don’t want to commit to a full face of makeup, but still want to look a little bit more put together.)

$45

$22

$52

$45

Foundation & Application

Glossier, $26

Beauty Blender, $20

Éstee Lauder, $43

Now onto the foundation. Before you do anything, go out and get yourself a beauty blender. This small egg-shaped sponge seriously makes all the difference. I started using a beauty blender to apply my face makeup about five years ago, and I haven’t looked back since. Having the right tools to apply your makeup changes the way that the products go onto your skin.

Next, I use a combination of two foundations. I mix together the Éstee Lauder Double Wear Foundation with the Glossier Perfecting Skin Tint. I use a lot less foundation than most people (about one drop of the double wear foundation and two drops of the perfecting skin tint), but I really focus on blending it in. On its own, the Éstee Lauder foundation is super heavy, but when mixed with the Glossier Skin Tint, it’s perfect. I’ll usually mix the two foundations on the back of my hand. Then, using a damp beauty blender, I’ll start in the center of my face and pounce the product into my skin blending outwards. I always start with a tiny bit of product, and then build if necessary.

Quick tip: before using the beauty blender, make sure to run it under water until it almost doubles in size, and then squeeze out the remaining water. The beauty blender won’t work unless it’s damp!

Concealer

Another drug store find that is seriously amazing. The L’oreal Infallible Glow Concealer is one of my favorite concealers that I’ve ever tried. It’s super lightweight and has a nice dewy finish, but definitely does the trick in covering up.

Shop Now

I’ll apply a little bit of concealer on my problem areas, and then also use it to color correct under my eyes. If I’m really tired, I get bad rings under my eyes, so I use a warmer orange-y tone to cancel out the blue under my eyes, and then a brighter pinky color to brighten.

If I have a blemish, I try to only do one coat of concealer to cover it up. I find that anything more than that typically starts to look a little but cakey, which is not what I’m going for. Personally, I think it looks better (and way more natural) to sport a pimple as opposed to a cakey face — so bear that in mind.

Bronze/Highlight

Finally, I’ll add some bronzer or highlight (depending on how tan I am) to finish the look. A little but of bronzer adds a little bit of color back onto my face, and tops everything off with a really healthy looking glow.

Shop Now

At the moment, I’m obsessed with the Marc Jacobs Coconut Gel Dew Drops. I’ll take about a half a pump of this and apply it to the tops of my cheek bones with a beauty blender. Then, with whatever is left of my beauty blender, I’ll apply a tiny bit of the bronzing highlight to the tip of my nose, and up the bridge of it. I basically put my bronzer anywhere the sun would naturally hit my face in order to achieve a healthy, sun kissed glow.

If you’re going for that dewy makeup look, I recommend using a gel or cream product as opposed to a powder. They just tend to leave your skin with a more natural finish and look less cakey.

$26

$!4

$29

$24

And that’s it — my guide to healthy, glowy looking skin.

Overall, your goal should just be to keep it light and simple. The less product you layer on your face, the better and more natural it’s going to look. Start light and build up the product if necessary.

And remember… makeup is fun, but it shouldn’t be something that you rely on to feel beautiful. Use makeup as a tool to enhance the features that you love about yourself, not as a mask.

xx,

seb.