This is an age old question and honestly the answer will vary from person to person. Everyones skin, needs, and makeup preferences are all different so everyone’s makeup routine will be a little different. My job is to help you navigate to find the best makeup products and makeup routine to suit your needs, let’s dive in!
Foundation and concealer are very similar yet different at the same time, I like to describe them as cousins in the same family. Foundation and concealers both offer different types of coverage, but are worn differently. Foundation is typically worn all over the face as a base, or “foundation”, for the rest of your makeup. Concealers can be worn all over the face, but they are typically formulated with more pigment and coverage than foundation, therefore they might be a little thicker than your foundation. It’s usually best to use concealer as a spot treatment (under eyes, dark spots, etc.) on top of your foundation rather than applying it all over like a foundation, you will get a much more natural result this way. 🙂
But do you really need them both? Like I said, each person you ask will give you a different answer. My professional advice would be to look at your skin without any makeup on and make a mental note of what you’d like to camouflage, if anything. For example, if you have flushed cheeks and a blemish here and there, I would suggest to skip the foundation and just use a concealer to spot conceal where needed. Or if you are like me (acne-prone) and have blemishes all over your face you’d like to camouflage, I would suggest using a foundation all over and a small amount of concealer to spot conceal those stubborn areas, if needed. If you don’t have a lot of time in the morning and need to be out the door in 5 minutes, I would only use a concealer or foundation in the center of your face (under eyes and t-zone) to fool everyone into thinking you put way more effort into your makeup than you actually did. If you are having professional pictures taken I would do foundation and concealer so you’re more camera ready.
Those were just some examples, and as you can see the answer will be dependent on each scenario. Everyone’s makeup routine is different so don’t be afraid to try different things to find the best routine for YOU. I hope this helps! If you’d like more help, click the link to book a one-on-one makeup lesson with me. 🙂 https://meirabeautyllc.com/book-appointment/
xoxo,
Morgan