* As a rule the fairer the skin is, the lighter the shades of glimmer you should use.
* Most Indian skins do well with a medium shade of browner ( here the one shade darker than your skin rule holds, good) & a pearly pink highlighter unless you are an adventurous teenager.
* Darker skins can take a bit of moisturizer applied over the highlighter to accentuate the gleam.
* The darker the skin, the more oily it tends to be. For staying power powder blushers & highlighter's work best.

Anyone with less than perfect skin knows that concealer is an essential make up purchase. Hiding spots, blemishes & dark circles requires an excellent product & a good technique - or the original flow will only look worse. Even when you're blemish-free, there are places where concealer works miracles: under the eyes to cover dark circles, on the outer corners of the eyes (where it's often reddish or dark), around the nostrils, and in the dark bluish spots where each eye meets the bridge of the nose (check your face in this place, as most of us get a bit of a dent there). A dot on either side keeps the eyes looking brighter. Basically, concealer is a slightly heavier version of foundation. But finding the idea formulation is not easy. A lot of women choose inappropriate shades, texture or formats.
Concealer are now available in shades to match every skin tone, as well as with advanced blemish- fighting ingredients, protective sun filters & water proof properties.
The choice of formulation is just as wide stick & pot concealer offer the greatest coverage as they are thicker & contain more pigment. Tubes are less opaque, lighter & more easily blended - so they make a better choice if you wear a minimal foundation, tinted moisturizer or no make up.

The only drawback with concealer is that they can be more difficult to blend . To overcome this, work the stick up and down the back of your hand. The product will warm up, making it more pliable and so easier to use. Apply it with the fingertips so that It literally melts into the skin. Those with dry skin will need a concealer with emollients to counteract dryness, while those with oily, problem skins will need a concealer which stays put, is oil-free and contains antibacterial ingredients to help treat blemishes and spots.

APPLY CONCEALER  

If your concealer dries and cakes In fine lines and wrinkles around the eyes, try using an eye cream under the concealer; make sure you use only a small amount of concealer and opt for one with a matt finish to create the illusion of smooth skin. To prevent the concealer highlighting a problem you're trying to hide, apply a light moisturizer as an undercoat. Allow It to soak in and then dab away any excess with a tissue. This will make the skin soft and more even to work on. For extra staying power, once you have applied concealer, especially over pimples, set with a light dusting of sheer powder. If concealed areas dry out and start to flake throughout the day, gently pat on a small amount of moisturizer.

Too much can make the skin look creepy. Dot concealer sparingly on the area you 'want' done & blend. Do not rub or drag the product over your skin.
Use a long lasting creamy formula that is not too matte ( it cakes on dry skin) & not too greasy (it slides off the skin.) . Moisturize first to make application easier & to prevent concealer setting into fine lines. Wipe away any excess. For a longer lasting matte finish, makeup artists suggest blotting concealer with a tissue to draw out the oil, leaving behind only the pigment.
As a guide to color fair skinned women will find that a yellow based product counteract bluish shadows; olive or dark skinned women are better off with a slightly pink concealer. And for a perfect finish that also brightens the eye area, apply product to the upper lid & the outer corner of the eyes as well.

 

Yellow	Corrects Purple Tones
Yellow Red	Corrects Blue Tones (undereye shadows)
CONCEALER COLOR	RESULTS
Green	Corrects Red Tones/Blotchiness/Blemishes
White	Lightens and Lifts
Purple	Corrects Yellow Tones/Sallowness
Pink	Adds Warm Tones
Blue	Adds Cool Tones
Yellow Brown	Warm Tones for Darker Skin
Blue Red	Cool Tones for Darker Skin

The challenge is to find a product that hides spots, dries them out & stays in place. Green based concealers, which counteracts redness, require a lot of blending, but can be applied underneath your base. Look for non oily products that are matte & contain spot zapping ingredients, such as salicylic acid. Finally set the concealer with a yellow based, pressed powder (pink emphasizes any redness) to guarantee day long coverage. Remember to powder very lightly & pat off excess powder immediately because residue will tend to sink in & deeper the tiny lines under your eyes.

What Kind?

Choose a make up concealer that is lightweight yet creamy. A stick concealer provides direct on-the-spot application. A quality concealer is texture-free, virtually invisible and vitamin-enriched. The best concealer will brighten and lighten dark areas, erase spots and even out skin tones.

Quality concealers make skin flaw-free. Most concealers, including under eye concealers, can be used under foundation or on their own. Find a concealer that is water-resistant, fragrance-free and non-comedogenic.

HOW TO AVOID PICKING THE WRONG CONCEALERS TO DARK CIRCLES

The light around the store counters is being designed to make your skin look healthier, brighter and prettier. It does not give you’re the true realistic look on the makeup on your face. The best practice is to check the make up under natural lights. You can go inside your car and look at the make up in the mirrors or you can just wait until you go home and check. Then only if you satisfied with how you look, you can always go back the next day to buy the concealer.

Always choose concealer with one skin tone lighter than your foundation. Two skin tone lighter in some special cases.

Using a concealer that is too light or too pink will give the appearance of `owl eyes'. In other words, it will emphasize the dark area instead of concealing it.

Can't find the right concealer?
Don't worry, simply do what the makeup artists do, use the slightly drier bit of foundation that collects around the neck of bottle of the foundation and inside the cap. It is denser than your foundation, just the perfect consistency and the color for you to use as a concealer.

RULE OF THUMB

 Pat, don't rub. Blend concealer by patting it into your skin with your ring finger. Rubbing to blend rubs the concealer right off your skin!

 Splurge on concealer. Investing in a department store product guarantees you'll get help in choosing the right shade.

 Keep concealer clean. Because you use concealer under your delicate eyes, keep fingers out of the jar or bottle (use a cotton swab instead) and be sure to re-cap it tightly.

Next comes the brown pencil or powder which serves to shade those parts of the face you do not want played up or showing prominently. Features like a wide nose, heavy jaw & chubby cheeks (a vertical absence of a cheekbones) can be made to look good with artful application of the blusher.
Here again, a brown blusher in pencil form - choose a soft tipped type or it will drag on your delicate facial skin - is good for an oily complexion while dry skin will benefit from a cream blusher.
The areas to apply the blusher are generally the sides of cheekbones .
Apply highlighter after you have made up your face. Apply with a brush if it is a cream highlighter or stroke on with a pencil & than blind with a fingertips.
The areas to highlight are under the brow bone, in the centre of the top eyelid, down the bridge of the nose, the top of the cheekbones, the corners of the mouth & the cleft of your upper lip. these are the places which catch & reflect light most flatteringly. Highlighting is better done for an evening rather than as a daywear accessory.