Dab the foundation onto your face. Using your fingers or the brush, dab the foundation all over your T-zone—your forehead, nose, and chin. Then, dab the foundation onto your cheeks. You can also apply foundation to other parts of your face that might need extra coverage, such as under your eyes or around your lips.
Clean and Prep Skin: Foundation sets better when applied to clean skin. Use Clean Fingers and Brushes: Always apply foundation with fingers and brushes that are clean.
A brush is one of our favorite ways to apply liquid foundation. Be sure to find a duo-fiber foundation brush with synthetic bristles. Natural bristles can absorb a lot of your product before it even touches your skin, so stick with synthetic. Also, remember to find a brush with thin bristles.
Sponges work best, for instance, with lightweight liquid formulas or stick foundations. Creamy, thick foundations would be better served with a brush (so you can buff out the edges for a more natural finish).
If the skin is really dry, I only use damp brushes when applying. Generally speaking, sponges can give more coverage, while brushes can be more sheer.”
“Foundation should only be applied where needed. It should be used to even out the skin tone and applied directly to the areas of concern (redness, pigmentation, shadows and blemishes), then blended out across the good skin. It should also be thoroughly buffed in so that the texture of the skin can be seen.”
Using makeup brushes not only gives your foundation a flawless finish, it also keeps all the oils and bacteria from your fingers from clogging up your pores — provided your brushes are clean, of course.
Applying foundation first creates an even base to reduce overall redness, discoloration and minor blemishes. If you apply your concealer first, you may end up wiping some off when you apply foundation or using a lot more product than necessary, which can create a heavy, cakey look.
Start by applying your foundation in single pea-sized amounts to each area of the face you're covering: generally the forehead, nose, chin, and each cheek. To blend your makeup, use gentle dabbing motions and upward strokes that match the natural contours of your face to create the most even look.
Always Swipe Downward
When applying foundation, Littman says to always brush in downward strokes. "If you go upward on the face, it will fill in your pores and make them stand out," she says.
Primer helps to create a smooth, even canvas on your skin and helps extend the longevity of your foundation, blush, bronzer and other face products. When it comes to primer, there is no one-size-fits-all formula for every single skin type.
Don't apply foundation right after moisturizing.
Always give your moisturizer time (as long as 15 minutes) to absorb into your skin before applying foundation. Otherwise, you can end up with a streaky mess.
As Phillips mentioned, you want to wait a full minute or more to allow the primer to dry completely before going in with makeup, as this will help to curb pilling or patchiness.
This usually means your skincare products underneath are clashing. Always leave enough time for your serums and moisturisers to dry between layers. Applying hydrating serums to damp skin can also help. If foundation separation is your issue, try to use products with similar textures.
To avoid drawing unwanted attention to the area, many makeup artists would recommend not applying too much, if any, foundation around the eye. Instead, they suggest using a hydrating, lightweight concealer that has been designed specifically for the under eye area.
Moisturizer does two very important things: First, it smoothes skin's surface for a more even foundation or concealer application and can even help makeup to stay on longer. Second, hydrating skin underneath makeup will help skin to look less dull. Applying foundation on dry skin can cause it to look cakey.
Never put concealer or foundation on your eyelids as a base, it will cause your eye makeup to crease.
While you can apply your foundation with your fingers in a pinch, buffing it in with a high-quality foundation brush can instantly give you a natural, flawless finish. This is especially true if you're using a full coverage liquid foundation (which is thicker and harder to rub in with just your fingers).
Using your own fingers to apply foundation gives you the most natural skin-like finish because you really need to massage makeup into your pores (sorry, but it's true) with the warmth of your hands to melt everything in every crevice. You must become one with the foundation, in essence.
For a foundation brush to deliver an airbrushed finish it needs to be fluffy, not overly dense, not too flexible, if it's very soft and too flat it will not fit that purpose.