How to apply concealer for beginners

There are two main types of concealer that you can use: liquid and cream. They each have different functions, but generally, liquid is easier to use, because the fluidity allows you to spread it under the eyes and on blemishes. Cream concealer is sometimes too drying for under the eyes and can look cakey. However, I’ve found that adding a drop of beauty oil makes it easier to blend.

When concealing under the eyes, I recommend going one to two shades lighter than your skin tone to create a brightening, highlighted effect.

It’s best to work on a hydrated surface, so prep the area with eye cream, preferably one with caffeine if you’re dealing with puffiness.

Once it’s absorbed, you can apply your concealer in a “V” shape under the eyes. For maximum coverage, I recommend just leaving your concealer unblended on your skin for a minute. This lets some moisture evaporate from it, so when it’s time to blend it out, you get more concentrated coverage. You can blend with your clean fingers, a synthetic brush or a dampened beauty blender, depending on your preference.

If you want to conceal a blemish, be sure to moisturise, prime and apply a layer of foundation to your face first. If you still feel like you need coverage, apply your concealer using a small synthetic brush. You can pat it in with your fingers or a damp beauty sponge.

Set your face makeup by pressing and rolling a loose powder onto the skin with afl uffy brush. Don’t swipe, because this might actually remove some makeup.

It’s your preference whether you do foundation or under-eye concealer first. However, when it comes to concealer on blemishes, I recommend doing it after foundation. This allows you to use less makeup, and sometimes you’ll even find that concealing isn’t even necessary, as your foundation covers adequately. Additionally, if you buff foundation over concealed blemishes, you might end up removing some in the process, so it’s generally smarter to do it after. Just ensure that it matches your skin tone perfectly, and you’re not using the same concealer as your under-eyes.

If you have very oily skin that causes your concealer to crease, I recommend baking your makeup. This simply means applying a heavy amount of powder to areas of your face that you want to set, and leaving it for a few minutes.

Think of it like cooking your face, since you’re allowing your body heat to interact with the concealer and powder, to perfectly seal in your makeup.

Once you’re done baking, simply dust the excess powder away with a fluffy brush, leaving you with a smooth, crease-free finish.

So, what else can we use concealer for? If we want to get technical, we can use it to highlight and contour the skin. You can do this by applying your concealer that is one to two shades lighter than your complexion to the centre of your forehead, down the bridge of your nose, on the cheekbones and on the chin to brighten the face.

Follow by applying a concealer one to two shades darker than your complexion to the hollows of the cheekbones, sides of the forehead, under the jaw and optionally, down the sides of the nose to sculpt and de_ ne the face. Blend the concealer into your skin with a foundation brush or beauty sponge until it looks seamless. This can create a pretty dramatic effect, so unless you’re relatively skilled with this technique, I’d save it for night time, where any unblended mistakes will be more forgiving.

You can also use concealer to perfect your lip line, which can prevent your lip colour from feathering. Using an angled brush, simply trace around the lips and blend away any harsh lines with the warmth from your fingers. Similarly, you can use this technique to perfect your winged eyeliner, or clean up any mistakes you might make while filling in your eyebrows. Just be sure to set the concealer with powder to prevent it from smearing.

These steps can become quite harsh and dramatic if you’re not careful, so I recommend skipping these steps unless absolutely necessary.