Question by Bored: Makeup help?! Foundation, Concealer, Tinted Moisturizer, Powder? Where do I begin?
Let me start off by saying I’m a tight-wad. I love cosmetics, but I hate spending a TON of money on them, so I usually just stick to drugstore stuff. A couple years ago though, my mom got me the Bare Minerals starter kit and I loved it. I finally ran out of my foundation however, and instead of replacing it myself, I’d rather wait until Christmas when someone can gift it to me.

That leaves me stuck without a foundation for awhile. I’ve been looking at foundations and have no idea what to get anymore (I’m leaning towards things made in the Maybelline line rather than other brands) but this has also caused me to re-think my original assumption.

A little bit about my skin and my makeup routines:

I am a minimalist. My go-to routine is usually with my eyes: eyeliner, a swipe of color on my lids (very natural), and mascara. I may or may not add some chapstick or tinted lip balm, but other than that I don’t need to do much. If I’m really feeling ambitious I’ll use some old Cover Girl foundation as a concealer and dust some powder on my face to set it, although this hasn’t been working very well at all (too sheer and ends up fading by the end of the day). I’m very fair with pink undertones and I’m also acne prone. I would consider myself having combination-oily skin that is sometimes very sensitive. I also have occasional dry spots on the bridge of my nose, the corners of my mouth, and my chin. My main issue is acne scarring with more hypertrophic scars (raised scars) around my mouth, nose, chin and forehead. I also have large pores stemming from my nose going out towards the apples of my cheeks. My skin-tone is actually pretty even with the exception of the darker scars.

Now to my question(s):

What type of products should I get to complete my routine? I don’t want to be stuck in front of the mirror all day, but I also want something that will give me medium coverage and still feels natural and won’t make me break out. The combinations I’ve seen range from foundations + concealer + powder, concealer + powder, tinted moisturizer + concealer + powder, tinted moisturizer + powder. Based on what I’ve described above, which would probably be the best system for my skin type? What brands do you recommend?

Thank you!

Best answer:

Answer by Kandi(:
If you want full coverage I would go for a liquid foundation. Revlon Color Stay and Neutrogena Healthy Skin are my personal favorites. However, foundations are more likely to break your skin out if you are not careful. It sounds to me like you want something fast and light so I would go for a tinted moisturizer. My favorite is by Physicians Formula (pink/orange bottle). It gives a nice amount of coverage without feeling heavy or cakey. You should stay away from powder if you have dry spots. You should only use powder on oily/shiny areas (usually in your t-zone). I personally use a liquid foundation and just set it with a small amount of pressed powder. NYC Smooth Skin is a good one and it is super cheap. I would recommend looking into Rimmel Londons Foundation Primer (the one with the purple cap). It has a peach tint to it so it actual gives a nice amount of coverage for a primer. Hope this helps, and let me know if you have any other questions(:

Edit:

A good drug store concealer is the Sonia Kashuk Hidden Agenda Concealer Palette. It is $ 10 at Target.

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