Concealer Explained

Recently, I found myself discussing foundation with a friend, and she was complaining about how her foundation didn't cover up her blemishes very well, and that she didn't want to use one that was heavier, because it caused her to get outbreaks (by this I mean breakouts, which for some reason, I seem to always subconciously call "outbreaks"...why? I have absolutely no idea)! Which is fair enough. But, the common problem here was that she had this set of multi-coloured concealers that she used "occassionally", and she didn't know what they all did.

I have to admit that I'm no expert either, and I very rarely wear concealer at all. But, it made me realise just how confusing concealers are. I mean, it wasn't until early 2009 that I even knew purple and green ones existed, and at the time of purchasing one from Virgin Vie, I too had absolutely no idea what they did.

So, I decided to offer a little guidance, to try to fathom out (partially for myself, partially for my friend, and of course, for you guys too!) what they all do!


Concealer

Concealer is probably the easiest to distinguish, and is most commonly known to come in stick form, although other varieties also exist, such as wands. It is used to literally cover up all those horrible blemishes that we hate, such as spots, light scarring, redness etc.

However, Concealer gets complicated when you start looking at the different types:

Skin Tone: This is the most well-known concealer available. It comes in a variety of shades designed to match your skin tone similar to a foundation. These can be applied before or after foundation, and are usually applied straight onto the blemish disguising it. A lot of people also use this type of concealer to hide dark circles.

Green: Green Concealer is becoming increasingly popular amongst Rosecea sufferers and anyone with red cheeks, chin and/or forehead. This is mainly because the green colouring counteracts any redness in the skin, so that the redness is far less distinct. Green concealer is applied directly onto the red areas and blended in. This is always done before Foundation is applied, because the green colour makes your skin look too pale. So, it's fair to say that if you use green concealer, then you will definitely need to wear foundation too!!

Purple/Lavendar (some people also consider this one to be pale pink!): To be honest, this is the concealer that I can almost never remember what it does, even though I own it. But, it is typically used to brighten up skin that is looking yellow, grey or particularly sallow.

Orange: I've never actually owned an Orange Concealer, or even found one in the shops (haven't really looked that hard!!), but I have seen Make Up Guru's use them, and they seem to be used for combatting dark circles under the eyes. I also wonder if this concealer would be ideal for covering bruising?

See. That's pretty simple isn't it? Even I might remember that! I do think that it's amazing how many different concealers there are, and what they can potentially do to make your skin look absolutely flawless.

So, if your foundation isn't doing a good enough job, try experimenting with concealers to target your blemishes, redness and dark circles!!