Shades, OCD! Going nuts

Wilmaflintstone · ‎03-24-2015

Hi. I wear the BM matte as I am allergic to bismuth so cannot wear radiance or warmth or blushes. Tinted MV does not contain this. Anyway, I have been told tons of different colors. Basically I am fair skinned with punk undertones. No neutrals work, I look to yellow. The best color seems to be fairly medium, but then later in day my cheeks look pink. Golden fair seems okay and covers the red somewhat but the fairly light actually covers everything and lasts but way too yellow. Use setting spray so that helps some. Can you mix colors that are cool and warm? Why would they tell you to wear a color with pink tones if you have pink tones, doesn't that bring out the pink? I use the neutralizing primer which works a little. The colors I own are golden fair, light, fair, fairly medium, medium and fairly light. You think one of these would work but I just can't seem to get the right combination. Any thoughts, mixtures or advice to cover the pink would be appreciated.

jaxs mom · ‎04-18-2012

Have you had a sales associate try the different shades on you in the store? I'm also wearing fairly medium ( for me medium is too dark and fairly light is too yellow). Are you trying to cover redness on your cheeks? Could it be that you need to touch up your foundation later in the day? I've never worn the matte so I can't compare it to the original.

Have you tried applying fairly light first and then fairly medium over it to cover the redness? I used to wear fairly light with medium over it but it was still too dark for me.

Don't Change Your Authenticity for Approval

SandyLouWho · ‎03-14-2010

I think there's a difference between having pink undertones in your skin, which we call a cool skintone and having surface redness that is unflattering. As you said, if you use a "neutral" or golden/yellow foundation to counteract surface redness, you end up looking jaundiced and sickly.

I am cool (with pink undertones) and have facial redness from the Lupus butterfly rash. When it flares up (stress, illness), I use Fairly Light as a concealer on the areas that are red, and then lightly buff Fair or Fairly Medium on as my foundation otherwise, lightly blending over the Fairly Light portions.

If you need more coverage, you could dampen your brush before applying the yellow tone (which is needed to conceal redness, so you could use the Golden Fair this way also), as that will make it more opaque and a bit lighter usually. This is similar to foiling an eyecolor or wetlining with a liner shadow.

Otherwise you might want to look at Bisque or Summer Bisque to use on the areas that are too red.

Have you tried skipping the Tinted Mineral Veil? These products often oxidize on my and end up looking more orange/brown/pink as the day wears on, which might also add to the ruddy cheek issue.

BTW, Original Mineral Veil doesn't contain Bismuth Oxychloride, either, so that might be a better product for your skintone. Zea Mays (Corn Starch), Corn Starch Modified, Zinc Stearate, Magnesium Stearate. May Contain: Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499)

Neither does Illuminating, which is my favorite ~ I often add a bit of this over my cheeks to offset the redness if I'm not using the other foundation shade. Zea Mays (Corn Starch), Corn Starch Modified, Zinc Stearate, Magnesium Stearate. May Contain: Mica (CI 77019), Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499)

Hope this helps some. You can mix the various shades to suit your individual skintone, so feel free to experiment or ask more questions. I'd love to chat with you further.

Wilmaflintstone · ‎03-24-2015

Sandy, I also have both bisques which do have bismuth but seems okay in small portions. Have not tried fairly light to cover red then fairly medium. Will try that. Setting spray works pretty well. I can't tell u how many different combos I have tried. And the amount of money spent. Even bought expensive brushes, my skin does not like goat hair in BM brushes. The pink and red is just in cheeks. It isn't horrible, just seems to show thru as day goes on.

Wilmaflintstone · ‎03-24-2015

Yes been matched at three different stores, told three different colors. The lighting is always deceiving.

SandyLouWho · ‎03-14-2010

Lighting is certainly an issue, and not everyone that works in a store has a good eye for matching foundation. And if you're not an exact match to one of the shades, then all bets are off. I do some mixing and blending myself, so I understand your frustration.

I never get rid of any of the colors that aren't a great match ~ I add a small amount of those to my daily application (or mix a bit into a jar) and use them up over time to avoid waste and save money. Or ~

If they are too dark, you can use them as a contour or eyeshadow base. Those that are too light can be used as concealers, eyeshadow bases, or soft highlights to give your face more dimension.

To get better coverage of redness, I now ask ~

Do you have any synthetic brushes, notably Taklon, those with often yellow bristles? I can't stand the scratchiness of natural/animal hair brushes and appreciate the softness and super efficiency of the synthetics, which are better at laying down a concealing layer. They don't have to be the expensive ones, either, but I will reference the BE items here to avoid issues with the forum host, but you'll know what to look for. Eco Tools has a concealer brush for under $5 (tan Taklon bristles) and ELF has some for as little as $3 (black Taklon bristles), if you don't have one in your stash, but this is the one that comes with many of the BE starter kits:

http://www.qvc.com/bareMinerals-Maximum-Coverage-Concealer-Brush.product.A41123.html?sc=A41123-User...

bareMinerals Maximum Coverage Concealer Brush

Wilmaflintstone · ‎03-24-2015

Don't use BM brushes. Use ULTA brushes that are like thirty dollars. Fairl light underneath fairly medium didn't help.

Catstamper · ‎03-10-2010

Have you tried the redness remedy? I can't get to it right now to check for bismuth, but it might be worthwhile if you have a boutique or a Sephora that carries it to give you a sample. If, of course, they still make it! I've had mine awhile. I was going to suggest Fairly Medium, but you've tried that. It's my best shade.