How to Choose the Right Foundation Color for Your Skin Tone and Type

Foundation is the main player of a makeup game. If not applied the right shade, you’ll look like a glowing bulb. The availability of a plethora of shades, finishes, and coverages in the foundation makes it one of the toughest jobs to pick the best one. You need to consider the skin tone and type for a nice buy.

Surely, you wouldn’t love to get a mask-like foundation line on your neck. And, that’s possible when you fail to make the right selection. So, here’s all you need to know before shopping for a foundation.

How to Know Your Skin Tone?

You just can’t apply any foundation shade. Like knowing how to apply lipstick, applying the right foundation also involves a lot of steps. The ultimate goal is to find a shade that blends easily with your skin. Now, we’ll see how to pick the foundation shade that matches your skin tone the most.

The color of your veins in the wrist decides the undertone of the skin. Look at the chart given below.

Vein Color	Undertone
Purple or Blue	Cool
Blue-green	Neutral
Olive or green	Warm

Cool: Tint of bluish, pink, or ruddy skin tone. Platinum, silver, and white gold shades are best for you.

Neutral: Natural skin color. A peach foundation works well for neutral tones.

Warm: Golden, peachy, or yellow complexion. Warm beige, golden, and honey are the best foundation shades for this skin tone.

Not only your skin tone, but your skin type also plays a vital role. Understanding what your skin needs is the key to nail makeup like a pro. Every skin has its own needs. Once you know, you can easily pick the formula that will make you say ‘Eureka, I’ve got it!’

How to Choose Foundation Based on Skin Type?

Sensitive or Acne-Prone Skin

If you’ve sensitive skin, avoid bad skincare ingredients. Otherwise, skin irritation is likely to occur sooner or later. Also, maintain a wide berth with talc and mineral oil.

Mineral makeup is the ultimate solution for you. Buy a foundation that is free from paraben and other potential irritants.

Normal Skin

Skin having the traits of both dry and oily skin is considered as normal or combination skin. If you’ve combination skin, stay away from oil-rich or emollient foundations.

Any foundation will suit your skin, remarked Charlotte Willer, the makeup artist of Maybelline New York. To even out your skin and to look natural, go with tinted moisturized based foundation.

Dry Skin

Hydrating powder foundation is the solution for dry-skinned women. The creamy consistency of these types of foundations helps you to stay moisturized round the clock.

The pro makeup artist, Brett Freedman says, dry-skinned women have to boost hydration. Therefore, foundations containing glycerin and have anti-aging formula is good for them.

Also Read

Top 10 Bad Skincare Ingredients to Avoid

Oily Skin

If you’ve oily skin, the safest bet is to go for an oil-free liquid foundation or a powder foundation. These types of foundations absorb excess oil, giving you a glowing skin.

According to makeup artist Troy Surratt, oil-free liquid foundations having light-weight silicone is your best pick. They won’t clog your pores and cause your makeup to slide off.

Swatch Test for the Right Foundation Shade

Once you know your skin tone and type, narrowing down your choices will make the selection easy. You’ll now only have a handful of foundation shades. So, move on to the swatch test.

Pick any three shades matching your skin tone and needs the most. Then, dab each of these shades and apply them on your jawline and neck. Keep some gaps between the applied shades. Stand close to a window to check the colors properly in natural light. Harsh lighting may mislead you. Finally, choose a shade that blend seamlessly with your skin.

Stick to Dark When Confused

Are you still confused? Okay. Then, play safe and go with a dark shade. Dark shades may make you look tanned. But, it’s a failsafe bet. On the contrary, wearing a light-shade will make the makeup appear cakey.

What Type of Coverage You Crave For?

You cannot skip this factor. In fact, the coverage you want will make choosing job easy. Whatever your skin type and tone are, there’s the right texture for you at the market.

a) Light Coverage: Hides slight imperfections only. It is especially for women whose skin are near to perfect.

b) Heavy Coverage: Hides all imperfections on your skin giving an even appearance.

c) Medium Coverage: Hides only small flaws and makes the skin look fresh.

Different Foundation Type to Meet Your Needs

A wide array of makeup foundations are available at the market. They differ in texture and thus, the coverage they provide also vary widely.

a) Powder: Powder foundation can give you both full and light coverage. For a full coverage, use a soft and dense brush. Use a powder brush with loose bristles for light coverage. Opt for it for a natural finish.

b) Liquid: For heavy coverage, this type of foundation excels its counter types. It not only hydrates dry skin but also absorb excess oil.

c) Mineral: This powder based foundation is great for light to medium coverage. It is especially recommended for sensitive skin.

d) Stick: If you’ve breakouts and blemishes, pick stick foundation. Its texture is great for on-the-go touchups and works as a concealer. Whether you want medium or full coverage, it is your friend. Moreover, this foundation is outstandingly good for non-oily skin.

e) Tinted: Women use tinted foundation for minimum coverage. As such, you cannot hide major skin flaws using it. Use it during summertime to create a bright skin tone.

f) CC Cream: The main purpose of CC cream is to provide a light coverage with natural tint. It gives you a bright looking skin.

g) BB Cream: BB cream suits different skin types easily. Apart from hiding skin flaws, it is rich in antioxidants.

Do You Need SPF in Your Foundation?

The SPF in a foundation shouldn’t be your only source to protect your skin from harmful sunrays. Applying sunscreen is a must even if your foundation has a high SPF. The amount of foundation you apply is far more than the SPF protection you actually need.

Even then, if you’re not convinced and want to wear a foundation with SPF, check out this chart.

Dark	Light	Fair	Very Fair
SPF 30	SPF 50-100	SPF 50-100	SPF 50-100

Seek Advice of an Experienced Makeup Artist

Scheduling an appointment with an experienced makeup artist will give you almost 60% answer of how to choose the right foundation color. Discuss these points to find the best foundation for you.

a) Tell your makeup artist whether you’ve any allergy or not.

b) Show him or her a few pics of the look you want with the foundation.

c) Ask the makeup artist what makeup tools to use while applying the foundation.

d) Look for tricks to apply foundation like a makeup artist.

e) Tell your daily routine to the professional.

f) Do research prior to buy the cleansing products as per your foundation type.

Foundation Colors to Try for Different Skin Tones