Women with dark skin know the struggles of concealing dark spots and hyperpigmentation. Learning the right techniques to apply concealer and foundation on dark skin can help you easily hide skin marks that commonly appear on dark skin.
The best way to apply concealer and foundation on dark skin is to first color correct dark spots and hyperpigmentation with a full coverage orange color corrector. This makes it easier for your foundation and concealer to hide skin marks that are commonly associated with dark skin.
In order to bring you the best advice, I connected with professional makeup artists and asked them to provide me their best tips on this issue.
The first professional makeup artist I connected with is Valeria Heredia, Founder of Real Beauty School and Author of the eBook “Makeup Made Easy”.
Check out Vereria’s step-by-step tutorial below on how to apply concealer and foundation on dark skin. Vereria also provided tips on selecting the right concealer and foundation for dark skin.
Steps To Apply Concealer and Foundation on Dark Skin:
Step 1 – Prep Your Skin
Dark skin tends to be oily. If you have oily dark skin, apply a mattifying primer all over your face then apply a day cream for oily skin and eye cream on your under-eye area.
If you have a combination to dry skin, use a glowing hydrating primer instead!
Step 2 – Color Correct
The second step is color correction. Dark skin tends to have deep dark spots and hyperpigmentation on specific areas like around the mouth and chin. Under-eye dark circles are also common.
To cover everything well on dark skin, it is essential to apply a full coverage orange color corrector. Apply only in the areas where it is needed (like your dark spots) and blend it well with clean fingers or a makeup sponge.
Step 3 – Apply Concealer
Apply concealer with a makeup sponge on your under eyes, around your mouth, and on any other areas where you applied the orange color corrector.
Tap the concealer in with a makeup sponge until it is perfectly blended with your skin. You can also apply your concealer right in your cupid’s bow, chin, and forehead for highlighting.
Step 4 – Warm your Foundation
With clean hands, warm the foundation with your fingers for a few seconds before applying it. This provides better results because it helps to melt and mix the foundation ingredients for a flawless application on your skin.
Step 5 – Apply Foundation
Take 2-5 small drops of your foundation and apply it directly to your face. Make tapping motions with a makeup sponge then blend it into the concealer and color corrector.
Step 6 – Use Setting Powder
Using a banana powder instead of just white translucent powder. This will help you highlight some specific areas with a more natural tone.
Apply the banana setting powder with a big fluffy makeup brush under your eyes, forehead, and chin. Let it sit for a couple of minutes and then with the same brush, blend it all over your face to set the other areas.
Step 7 – Apply Setting Spray
To make your makeup look last longer, apply a setting spray to lock your makeup in place all day long.
How to Select the Right Concealer Shade for Dark Skin
This right concealer shade should be one or two tones lighter than your skin tone and must match your skin undertone. If you have neutral skin, select a neutral concealer.
How To Select the Right Foundation for Dark Skin
The right foundation shade and formula is based on skin tone, skin undertone, skin type, and desired coverage.
As a Makeup Artist, I recommend seeking a medium to full coverage Matte foundation that has buildable coverage.
The best thing to do for matching your foundation shade is to try the foundation shade between your neck and your chest (not on your arms) after you’ve applied your concealer. The foundation should have the same skin undertone as your skin and concealer.
If your foundation has a wrong undertone, you can fix it easily by following my guide on fixing wrong undertone foundation.
Difference Between Skintone and Skin Undertone on Dark Skin
Theresa Novicky, a Licensed Makeup artist from Southern Maine explains that skin undertone should not be confused with skin tone.
- Skin Tone – How dark or light your skin is depending on how much pigment you have in your skin.
- Undertone – The tinting just below the surface of the skin, most women of color have warm undertones
Cool and Neutral undertones can appear in women of color as well. For example, dark skin tones with cool undertones are celebrities like Lupita Nyong’o, Mindy Kaling and Octavia Spencer.
Celebrities with dark skin tones with neutral undertones are Kerry Washington and Selena Gomez.
It’s also a lot easier to find your shade if you purchase from a makeup line created for women of color, I love Iman Cosmetics, Mented, and The Lip Bar
