My Quest For The Holy Grail Of Facial Foundation

A friend had been harping about these newfangled “mineral” foundations that apparently cost an arm and a leg per jar, but has longer staying power than cream or oil-based ones (and consequently, less of the greasy feeling). I’m sure she knows what she’s talking about because she comes to work with a glowing, smooth face that’s a product of hours spent in front of her makeup mirror perfecting her skin tone with a liquid foundation. She’s got dry skin, she said, so an oil-based foundation works best for her.

Seeing as I was not a big fan of foundations and only put them on for special events, I had to take her word for it. I have oily skin, so her product is a no-no for me. I also shied away from the cream foundations my mom likes using, because I ended up looking like an actress in a Noh play after applying those. I once used a gel foundation in a tube, but apparently chose the wrong tint because I looked ghostly and pale. And I was going out on a hot date too, not participating in a Goth gig.

After several hits and misses, I realized that my boyfriend’s mom had given me the best foundation for my skin-type all along. It’s a compact foundation that has a little screen on top of the powder that you can swipe with a damp sponge, and when applied, gave my complexion a light and smooth glow. It doesn’t feel as artificially-applied as stick foundations (sorry, but I will always associate stick cosmetics for my lips) nor as heavy as cream or mousse ones, and it’s easier to re-apply should my sebaceous glands go on overdrive during the course of the day.

Another lesson I learned with my quest for the Holy Grail facial foundation was not to use my fingertips, no matter how tempting it is to forego the use of a sponge. Besides ruining the clean base I’ve created from cleansing, toning, and moisturizing my face, finger-applied foundation usually results in an uneven look. A cosmetic sponge is always best. After dotting foundation on the face, I blend it all over my face with a dampened sponge, taking care to blend in one direction to avoid getting a cake-y face.

That said, the only hurdle I had to take with my passive-aggressive encounter with foundations would be choosing the right tint for my skin. I discovered that my usual practice of dabbing eye shadow or rouge on my wrist to see if it’s the right color for me just won’t translate well with foundations. For one thing, my wrist is a lot paler than my facial skin color; for another, it’s also not as oily. My friend taught me to dab a small amount of foundation onto my jaw line under natural light, and then blend it well so it sort of “disappears” and doesn’t cause a demarcation line between the color of my face and neck. It took several tries, but I ended up with a natural beige color that I’ve been using most of the time. For a more dramatic effect, though, I bought another lighter color to use at night, with striking makeup.

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