How to Get Started with Base Makeup

Hey guys! Within this "How to get started" series, we've finally come upon our base makeup post! Let's jump right in.

Base makeup refers to everything that might go on your face to fix complexion and essentially create a clean and smooth look to the skin. We're going to cover a couple different kinds of coverage and different types of products that anyone might be interested in!
Before Application
Before applying any sort of makeup. It's very important to prepare the skin well. Makeup can sometimes be damaging to skin if worn too heavy and too often so it's important to take good care of the skin when applying any sort of base makeup.

Make sure you skin is moisturized! This moisturizer is the Clear Complexion Moisturizer from Aveeno, here.

Also be sure always to apply spf. Some makeup includes spf in it as well. The spf on the left is actually a powder that you can twist and brush across your skin from Peter Thomas Roth, it's available here. The one on the right is a more traditional facial sunscreen from Boscia, available here.
Overall, good skincare will also lead to easier makeup application, so drink lots of water and be careful to get lots of vitamins and minerals. It's the best way to jumpstart skin.
Primers
The next step in preparing the skin would be a primer. Oftentimes they will be silicone based, so be sure to test your skin first with a primer sample before making a purchase in case of skin sensitivity.  

There are many different kinds of primers, all of which are supposed to help your makeup stay on your face longer. Some facilitate a glowier look, some mattify, and some do color correction. Find one that works for you! The two above are Smashbox's Photo Finish Color Correcting Primer which helps counteract redness, available here, and Benefit's Porefessional, available here.
Foundations
There are lots of different kinds of foundations. I will separate powders into a different section so we can cover more liquid and cream style ones here.
Firstly, there's the standard liquid or cream foundation. It can be applies with a brush, fingers, or a sponge... Really whatever you'd like! They range a lot in coverage and some may have ingredients that aren't great for your skin. I would recommend always doing a skin test for face makeup!

These foundations are Tarte's Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Full Coverage Foundation, available here, and Cover Fx's Custom Drops which let you mix your own color, available here.
There's also tinted moisturizers, that are generally a lot lighter in coverage and often contain spf. They're great for lazy days. BB Creams and CC Creams often fall into this category although they're a bit different. They're meant to also provide skin benefits as well as coverage. They're also often a lot more full coverage than a standard tinted moisturizer.

The tinted moisturizer on the left is from Juice Beauty, available here. Then, the one on the right is from Laura Mercier, available here.

The BB cream is Etude House's Precious Mineral BB Cream Cotton Fit, available here. There's not much color range for it though. The CC cream is Skinfood's Vita Water Drop CC Cream, available here.
Then, a type that's very trendy nowadays is cushion foundation. You press the applicator and it'll dispense the right amount of product onto the sponge, or puff, or whatever you're using. They come in many different finishes as well!

These cushions are from VDL, here, and Etude House, here.

If you're looking for a cushion from a Western brand, you can go for the Lancome, here.
Finishes for foundations come in big ranges, there's cream to powder, mattifying foundations, dewy finish foundations, oil based foundations, and much more. Find the type you're looking for and be sure to try it out first!
Concealers
Some people apply concealer before foundation and others will do the other way around. I think it's up to personal preference, although many do argue that it wastes less product to apply concealer afterwards.


It's important to pick a concealer that suits your skintone. Feel free to ask an employee at any makeup store for help matching your shade. Some people like to go a few shades lighter for a bit of a highlighting effect, but it's important to realize that using a highlight on a blemish might make it stand out more. 

The two concealers I've included here are Etude House's Surprise Stick Concealer, available here, and my personal favorite, Makeup Forever's Full Cover Concealer, here.
Powders
Some people will apply a powder over their makeup to set it in place and help it from sliding. Others opt over doing a powder at all. There are different kinds, some which will add more coverage and then some that solely help finish off the makeup.

Translucent powders are natural and meant to set the rest of your makeup. This is Innisfree's No Sebum Mineral Pact, which is meant to keep the skin less oilly, available here.

Powder foundations can be used with or without anything underneath, and help add coverage as well. This is Etude House's Precious Mineral BB Compact, here. Be sure to get the right shade for your skintone! This one has quite limit color selection. Bareminerals has a little more range, here.

Hope this post was helpful! If you have any questions feel free to comment below. Also let me know what you want to see next!
--Koko   See Also:  Nature Republic Botanical Green Tea BB Cream Review How to Get Started with Eyeshadow
How to Get Started with Eyeliner Tony Moly Bbo Bbo Lip Balm Review
Do not take without proper credit! 
Image Credits: minus, sephora, amazon, ulta, Etude Houe, BareMinerals, Innisfree, Makeup Forever, VDL, Lancome Juice Beauty, Laura Mercier, Tarte, Cover FX, Smashbox, Benefit, Boscia, Peter Thomas Roth, Aveeno