Your concealer shade depends on its purpose: use one shade lighter than your foundation to brighten and highlight (especially under eyes) and a shade that matches your foundation (or slightly darker/color-corrected) to cover blemishes and redness for an invisible finish. Many makeup artists suggest having a few concealers: one for brightening, one for matching blemishes, and potentially a darker one for contouring, says Maybelline's website and L'Oreal Paris.
Ultimately, concealers are personalised products, so you have to think about your goals and needs. While under-eye concealer should be lighter than your natural skin tone (or red-orange if you're colour-correcting), you want your all-over concealer to match your skin colour as closely as possible.
To choose a concealer shade, match your skin tone for blemishes (blending seamlessly) and go 1-2 shades lighter for brightening under the eyes, always testing on your jawline or neck in natural light. For color correction, use peach/orange for blue/purple tones and yellow for blue/purple areas, then cover with a matching shade. Your skin's undertone (warm, cool, or neutral) is key to finding the right base shade.
Your concealer doesn't look good because you are using either too much OR the wrong color. Too light means your creases will look dark and enhance wrinkles. Too much and you look cakey. Wrong color and it will still look dark.
Using the Wrong Shade
If your concealer looks too obvious or off in photos, your shade might not be quite right. Under-eye circles usually need something just a touch lighter than your skin tone, while blemishes or redness are better matched exactly.
The "3-1-1 Rule" for makeup (and liquids) in carry-on bags means containers must be 3.4 ounces (100ml) or smaller, all fitting into 1 clear, quart-sized, resealable bag, with 1 bag allowed per passenger, ensuring security can easily see and access it during screening. This applies to liquid makeup (foundation, mascara, lip gloss) and other gels, creams, and aerosols, while solid cosmetics like powders or lipsticks in stick form are generally exempt.
The rule of thumb for picking your concealer shade is based on your foundation shade. Beauty experts advise that everyone should have two shades of concealer in their arsenal, one lighter and one darker since daily sun exposure means your skin tone shifts slightly all the time.
MYTH: You should always use a concealer one shade lighter than your foundation. Truth: If your goal is to brighten dark circles, then yes, choose a lighter concealer. But for blemishes or scars, you need a yellow-based shade as close as possible to that of your foundation.
Sun Exposure Test: Observe how your skin reacts to sun exposure. If your skin burns easily and doesn't tan, you have a fair skin tone. If your skin burns as well as tans a little, you have a light tone. If your skin tans easily but rarely burns, you have a medium tone.
Best Concealers
BB cream (Beauty Balm) offers light coverage, hydration, and skincare benefits for a natural glow, ideal for normal skin; CC cream (Color Correcting) focuses on evening skin tone by correcting redness or dullness with more targeted coverage, suiting those with discoloration concerns. Think BB for a sheer, healthy look and CC for specific color correction and a more polished, even complexion, though both provide lighter coverage than foundation and are skincare hybrids.
The best concealers for mature skin are hydrating, lightweight formulas with skincare benefits (like hyaluronic acid) that won't settle into fine lines, with top-rated options including RMS Revitalize Hydra Concealer, Tower 28 Swipe Serum Concealer, Kosas Revealer Concealer, and Maybelline Instant Age Rewind for budget-friendly coverage. For more coverage, the It Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye or Dior Forever Skin Correct are excellent choices, while NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer offers versatility. Look for radiant or satin finishes to keep skin looking fresh.
To choose a concealer shade, match your skin tone for blemishes (blending seamlessly) and go 1-2 shades lighter for brightening under the eyes, always testing on your jawline or neck in natural light. For color correction, use peach/orange for blue/purple tones and yellow for blue/purple areas, then cover with a matching shade. Your skin's undertone (warm, cool, or neutral) is key to finding the right base shade.
Use stick formulas for precise coverage on blemishes or spots, and liquid for blending out under the eyes or over larger areas. Powder lightly. A delicate layer of translucent powder secures concealer without making your skin appear rough, textured, or dry.
To find your skin undertone, try the vein test under natural light. Green veins suggest a warm undertone, blue or purple veins indicate a cool undertone, and a mix of both means you're likely neutral. You can also try the jewelry test - gold looks better on warm undertones, silver suits cool undertones.
Here's a quick overview of the correct makeup routine order you should follow:
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Most people use a peach color corrector for dark circles in your eye area or a green color corrector neutralize redness, as well as hyper-pigmentation. First, you need to choose the right color correcting formula.
Top Concealer Mistakes (And how to fix them!)
To use concealer w/out foundation, you want to use as little product as possible so it looks as natural as possible ie like you're not wearing anything. Go with a full coverage concealer if you can because you use less product. If you need it, use a colour corrector ....