How to Match Foundation… in a Hurry!

In an ideal world, you go to the makeup store in search of the perfect foundation for your skin.

You are matched to a foundation and can apply it all over your face. You then add a little cheek and lip color on top to see the end result. You check the color out in daylight to ensure a good match to your skin. Perhaps you are given a sample of the foundation to try at home before making a purchase.

That would be great! But… most often we don’t have the luxury of that much time and assistance in finding the right foundation. For everyone wanting to know how to match foundation in a hurry, Here are some tips for you:

1) Know before you go. For anyone wanting to try a new foundation formula from a different cosmetic company, there is a great online service that helps you with the process… Findation.com. There are a few different other competitors on the market, but I find Findation to be the most accurate.

You simply enter your old foundation brand and shade. You then select the new brand and formula you would like to find and voila… your color match is given to you.

You can enter and save multiple foundation colors that you already use, which refines the search process for you. This helps to narrow down the selection process quickly and easily. It also takes the guesswork out of matching foundations. Here is a screenshot of the colors matches that were given to me after I entered the foundation shades I normally wear.

While the recommended foundation matches for you may not be the exact shades you need, it helps to give you a starting point. You can then go to the department store  and test out these colors right away before trying many others on, saving you lots of time.

2) Test the foundation on your jawline, on bare skin. Your face is really the only suitable area to get a true match for foundation. Our necks do not get as much sun exposure as our faces, and are therefore lighter. Our chests and the backs of our hands usually get more sun and are often darker than our faces. The only real place on your skin that you get get a true foundation match is along your jawline.

When you try different shades of foundation, you want to put them on bare skin to see what the true color will be. If you sample foundation colors on top of the makeup that you applied earlier in the day, it will cause the color to shift a little and you won’t get an accurate match.

Also, make sure that when you test a new foundation color, give it a minute or two to dry. Many foundations, especially water-based ones, will initially look a bit lighter on your skin, and then dry down to a different shade as the moisture evaporates.

3)  If you are really, really in a hurry then try this:  If you don’t have time to try anything on your face and simply want to know how to match foundation on the go, then try this quick trick: Swipe the foundation samples on the inside of your wrist. Then choose a shade darker than what matches your inner wrist color.

I hope these tips help! If you have any makeup questions I can help with, please visit my GetGlam page, or ask me at my Facebook Page!