Lose the Facetune: five steps to faking Insta-worthy skin
Preparation is key: Get the foundations right if you want your base to look radiant, smooth and poreless: there’s no point in meticulously applying a great foundation to skin that hasn’t been properly prepped. Double-cleanse to remove all traces of make-up and oil and then exfoliate. Products containing lactic acid and glycolic acid will work like natural exfoliators, stripping the skin of dead cells and allowing follow-up products, like serums, to properly work their magic. Spend a good five minutes massaging in your moisturizer, to boost circulation and natural glow, and for added oomph pick a cream that contains skin-plumping hyaluronic acid. Charlotte Tilbury’s Magic Cream, £70 is our most recent had-to-have-it purchase that we think justifies its (let’s face it, pretty hefty) price tag.
Tools at the ready: When it comes to applying your base, if you want to compete with an airbrushing app there’s only one thing for it: a flat-tipped brush. The make-up artists’ swear-by tool, this shape of brush will give your foundation that seam-free finish, nicely blurring imperfections. Want to know how those in-the-know ‘warm up’ their brush? They swirl it on the back of your hand before dipping it in the foundation. Bizarre but true: the increased movement between the bristles allows for better placement of product. They then buff the foundation in to skin using a circular motion.
Build the foundations: For skin that looks like it’s been filtered, choose a liquid foundation that balances coverage with glow and has a light, yet matt, finish. Urban Decay’s Naked Skin Weightless Ultra Definition Liquid Makeup, £28.50 ticks all our boxes: its demi-matte finish and light-diffusing spheres help blur imperfections and makes skin look like it’s been professionally retouched.
Conceal the deal: The delicate skin around your eye needs a hydrating concealer, one that is light but still provides coverage. Whenever skin's in need of an extra boost of moisture we used to mix our concealer with a smidge of eye cream, which gives a super-hydrated finish, but since discovering the Ellis Faas Concealer, £22* we no longer need to. Our new go-to wonder wand is packed with vitamins C and E, so while it reduces the appearance of dark circles, pigmentation and blemishes, and leaves skin looking polished, it does it while giving a hefty anti-aging and moisture boost. For a truly seamless finish that helps ‘pull together’ the face, conceal the eyelid as well as the under-eye.
Dual benefit: Finish with a powder that is boosted with skin-nourishing ingredients. By Terry Hyaluronic Hydra-Powder, £42 controls shine without leaving skin looking dry or chalky – it’s packed with hyaluronic acid microspheres, which attract moisture to ‘fill’ fine lines and wrinkles. Skin is left looking flawless – like a real-life Insta-filter.
* Included in your July Roccabox
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