The Best Concealer products are quality products designed to cover skin challenges such as the following:
- dark eye circles
- age spots
- large pores
- tiny spider veins
- red bumps such as cherry angiomas (non-cancerous blood vessel lesions)
- blemishes
Choosing the Best Concealer for your Skin Color, Skin Condition and Skin Type is Easy with a Little Knowledge.
Fun Fact: The First Concealer Available to the General Public
The first commercially-marketed concealer available to the general public was introduced by Max Factor in 1954. The product was called Erace. Originally, Erace was professionally created for the film industry to hide blemishes, lines, and shadows from the camera.
For fun, see more about Erace in Max Factor’s history: https://www.maxfactor.com/uk/our-story/our-heritage
For the Best Concealer – Quality Matters
Concealers are typically thicker than foundation. As a result, they may be used alone or with your foundation.
Poor quality concealers purchased from drugstores and grocery stores don’t work well. They cake, enhance wrinkles, irritate the skin and make the condition worse.
Furthermore, poor quality products result in wasted money. These products go unused. We store, hide or throw them out with frustration.
Therefore, using a good quality concealer or primer with the correct color for your skin condition is the answer.
Using Concealers and Primers
- Concealers can be used alone or with your foundation
- Concealers are available in liquid, stick, and powder forms.
- Apply stick concealers to small areas with a concealer brush.
- Apply liquid concealers (or primers) with a cosmetic brush.
- Primer versus concealer – primers are for overall color correcting, concealers are for small areas.
Choosing Color for the Best Concealer Choice
The ideal concealer color for a skin challenge is the opposing color. The opposing color covers and blends the color of the imperfection into the surrounding skin color.
Furthermore, concealers are heavier in pigmentation. This means they contain more of the desired color than your foundation color.
Choose the color which counterbalances the color of:
- dark eye circles (blue/purple)
- age spots (brown)
- large pores (brown or yellow or red)
- red spots (red)
- tiny blue or red veins (blue or red)
- and blemishes (red)
Desired Colors for Correcting
When seeking the best color to counteract and cover and diminish a skin flaw, refer to the Color Wheel.
Evaluate the skin flaw color. Then find the opposing color(s).
Note that the color may not be directly across such as Yellow and Purple. Consequently, the color may be one over such as Yellow Corrects Mild Redness.
General Guidelines for Color Correcting by Color
Yellow (all skin types):
Use yellow pigmented concealers for mild redness.
Yellow pigmented concealers work for purple or blue bruises, blue veins, mild under-eye circles or broken capillaries. Purple is diminished by yellow.
For mild redness, yellow is great for evening out the skin tone. This gives a bright base for your foundation. In this case, use a Primer.
Notice how yellow is opposite purple and red and blue on the color wheel.
Green (all skin types):
Use green pigmented concealers and primers for correcting intense redness.
Green concealers or primers are best for covering red. Good for conditions such as rosacea, mild sunburn, acne, dermatitis. Also helpful for birthmarks, reddish skin and rashes.
Use a green-based spot concealer to remove redness from zits or acne scars.
For overall skin redness such as rosacea, windburn or sunburn try a color correcting green primer. Like this mint green powder one from Pure Anada.
Notice how green is directly across from red on the color wheel.
Purple/Lavender (light to tan/olive medium skin/yellow toned skin):
Use purple/lavender concealers for dark under-eye circles and for brightening dullness.
Purple/lavender concealers are good for eliminating any unwanted yellow undertones. Best for yellow tones around the eyes or yellow spots on your skin.
Similarly, for overall skin yellowness, use a color correcting purple primer or lavender powder color corrector. Like this powder version from Pure Anada.
Purple is a popular primer for Asian skin tones.
Notice how purple is directly across from yellow on the color wheel.
Pink/Salmon (pale, fair to light skin):
Use pink/salmon concealer for dark under-eye circles and brightening pale, fair to light skin.
Pink and salmon colors are great at brightening.
Pink/salmon concealers work well to cover raccoon eyes. This color also gives sallow olive-tone skin a much needed radiance.
Pink is a tinted (white added) version of red on the color wheel. This is why pink corrects yellow.
Peach/Apricot (light to medium skin):
Use peach/apricot concealers for dark under-eye circles. Also good for covering hyperpigmentation, dark spots, acne scars or bruises on light to medium skin.
Orange/Dark Red (medium tan to dark skin – darker olive, golden, or almond shades):
Concealers of Orange/Dark Red cancel dark under-eye circles. They also cover brown spots, acne scars or (blue) bruises on medium tan to deep skin.
Orange/Dark Red is perfect for people with darker skin tones. Helps hide dark circles or other spots with deep discoloration.
For a fascinating look at how Orange/Dark Red work for these skin tones, check out this Marie Claire page
Blue (fair to light skin):
Blue concealers and primers brighten sallowness (yellowish) on fair to light skin.
Blue conceals dark patches (hyper-pigmentation) on fair to light skin.
Because fair to light skin can have some opacity using a blue tone balances yellows and browns. This is why blue helps here.
Product Suggestions – Signe’s Favorites!
PURE ANADA
Powder Color Correctors for the Entire Face. Lavender, Mint, Safron (fair to medium skin tones), Sunflower (deep skin tones)
Liquid Prime & Perfect Liquid Concealers by Pure Anada. FANTASTIC feel and coverage. They beautifully blend and go on seamlessly.
SMASHBOX Check out their Liquid Concealers, Color Correcting Sticks and Primers!
Liquid Concealer in 10 Shades;
Color Correcting Stick in 4 Shades;
Summary
- Familiarize yourself with the color wheel.
- Check the opposing color to the skin challenge you are having from the color wheel. (Example, opposite of a red skin condition (zit) would be green or blue.)
- Find a good quality concealer.
- For best practice, apply with a concealer brush. Article here on makeup brushes.
Let me know your favorites. Next, check out my Pinterest infographic on Using a Concealer!