I'm not usually one to hop on YouTube trends, but lately I've seen a spike in "no foundation" look tutorials, and color me intrigued. I'd love to not use foundation. Since my skin's been sort of behaving lately, I've given it a go and have fallen in love with the result. It's not exactly easier than wearing foundation, but it looks a whole lot fresher - perfect for these hot summer days.
On a day to day basis, I normally forget primer, but for a no-foundation look I want my skin to look as perfected as possible before putting any kind of coverage on. My go-to has been the Cover FX Calming Primer - my main issue with my skin is redness, and this soothes my skin and calms any redness right down. It also helps to hydrate and plump the skin, making the following products go on much more smoothly.
If I'm skipping out on foundation, I usually go for a mix of two concealers. I start with the Milk Makeup Flex Concealer on areas where I need the most coverage - this is under my eyes, on and around my nose, and on some spots/marks on my chin. Once that is all blended out (always with a Beautyblender), I assess the situation and go in with the Glossier Stretch Concealer over larger areas of redness if necessary. Every once in awhile only my left cheek will be super flushed and red for no reason, so a teeny bit of the Stretch Concealer bopped on with that same Beautyblender does the trick. I use to be a concealer hoarder, but now that I've discovered how much my skin loves these two beauties, I don't think I'll be straying any time soon.
I use a no-foundation look as opportunity to really amp up my cheek products to help disguise that I'm not wearing foundation. I use a little more bronzer than usual, striping the Milk Makeup Matte Bronzer on my cheekbones, temples, nose, and jaw and blending with a Real Techniques Sculpting Brush. This blends out super easily and leaves a really natural bronze look to the skin. Once bronzer is done, I like to dab a little bit of the Glossier Cloud Paint* in either Puff or Beam or the Nudestix Gel Color Lip + Cheek Balm* in Rebel or Haven closer to the apples of my cheeks to add a little flush and glow. Speaking of glow, I still pile on the highlighter no matter what - I've updated my usual "Glossier Haloscope in Quartz everyday" look to a "Quartz everywhere and then Nudestix Illumi-Naughty on the highest points of my cheekbones" situation. I can't choose a favorite, so why not just use both, right? This combination looks extra glossy and glowy together.
To finish it off, and make sure the concealer stays put all day, my new favorite finisher is the Glossier Wowder.* It just launched yesterday, and I'm already in love - it sets makeup and mattifies unwanted shine without totally getting rid of the glow I've worked so hard to achieve here. I use it strategically only where I get a little oily and where my concealer wears off the most - under my eyes, around my nose, on my forehead, and on my chin and jawline. So far so good, my makeup has been lasting throughout the day!
Have you tried a no-foundation look? What are your favorite products for it?
*Products mentioned have been sent to me for consideration, but all opinions are my own. Please see my disclaimer for more information. This post contains affiliate links.
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