Best Concealer of 2021: Your Guide to Hiding Blemishes
Your makeup routine can include primer, foundation, bronzer, highlighter, eyeshadow, and blush, but if you don’t have a concealer handy, you’re missing out.
Concealer is one of the most important items to have in your beauty arsenal. It can be used to totally hide blemishes, pigmentation, acne, scarring, and even tattoos, or it can be used to create a natural-looking facelift and brighten your overall complexion.
Having a concealer handy is vital. But how can you know what concealer to use? This guide explores what to look for in a good concealer, a few things to avoid, and how you can use concealer to hide blemishes!
What to Look for in a Good Concealer
Not all concealers are made the same. When it comes to finding the best concealers, here are a few factors to look for.
Level of Coverage
A good concealer is going to do what it does best—conceal. Concealer’s job is to completely hide blemishes and unwanted spots. Maybe you’ve got under-eye circles from last week’s lack of sleep. Maybe you’ve got a few pimples popping up.
No matter what you want to hide, concealer can get the job done. Because of its nature, most concealers are medium to full coverage. This being said, there are some ways to use concealer so you can still get that natural-looking finish.
A good concealer is going to conceal imperfections and match your skin tone. The best concealers will totally hide imperfections and seamlessly blend in, while being lightweight to create a natural makeup look.
So, when you’re looking for the best concealers, look for one with medium to full coverage that also has a lightweight, natural finish.
Lightweight
Having a lightweight concealer does more than just help create that no-makeup makeup look. It’s also more comfortable.
Life can get busy. You go to work, sit through meetings, get lunch with friends, go to the gym, and then have to get ready for your night activities. You need a concealer that can keep up! But one that weighs you down all day? No thanks.
Instead, look for a concealer that is lightweight. This will let your skin breathe throughout the day, even while hiding blemishes and brightening skin. A lightweight concealer will also help you forget you even have makeup on. Kiss that cakey baggage and weight goodbye!
Won’t Clog Pores
Another quality of a great concealer is that it doesn’t clog your pores.
This one is important. While makeup is rarely the main contributor to acne, it can definitely worsen breakouts if it’s a concealer that clogs pores. When your pores are clogged, your skin starts to develop microcomedones, or what we know as whiteheads and blackheads.
When this happens, the skin is clogged, and our pores become narrow due to built-up skin cells and oils. When our pores get narrower, oil isn’t able to drain out, and this leads to acne. Makeup that does clog pores is known as comedogenic.
It’s important to find a concealer that won’t lead to clogged pores and more breakouts.
Long Lasting
Another quality of the best concealers is that they last all day. Whether you’ve got a road trip planned, a day of relaxation by the pool, or need your makeup to keep up with a busy day at the office, your concealer should lift you up all day, not drag you down.
No matter what you’ve got planned for the day, it’s important to have a concealer that won’t slow you down. You shouldn’t have to stop every few hours to reapply or touch up, and you should be able to go the whole day with great coverage.
Look for a concealer that lasts around 12 hours. This way, it will last through your whole day, and you’ll be able to take it off at night.
Sweat Proof
Sweat happens. Even if you layer up deodorant, there are days that are just plain sweaty. Whether you live in the heat, work in the sun, or just sweat throughout the day, the best concealers are going to be able to stay on through it all.
Look for a concealer that’s waterproof. This means it’ll stay on no matter the sweat, weather, or humidity to keep hiding those blemishes no matter what.
Liquid, Stick, or Cream
When choosing the best concealer, you will also have to choose what kind of concealer you wish to use. As with other makeup products, concealer comes in different forms. The three most popular forms on the market are liquid concealer, cream concealer, and stick concealer.
Liquid concealer is the easiest to use and offers the best coverage. Especially if you have oily skin or want to cover up acne and blemishes, liquid concealer is the way to go. This is because liquid is less likely to clog pores and worsen acne than cream or stick concealer is.
Liquid concealers are also versatile and can be used in many different ways—not just to cover blemishes.
Cream and stick concealers can work well, too, if you know how to use them. Cream concealers are good options for those with dryer skin as they are packed with moisture. However, these can get a little tricky to apply and may look cakey if done incorrectly.
Similarly, stick concealers offer great coverage but can lead to creasing if you’re not careful. If you’re new to concealer or are looking to mainly cover blemishes, liquid is a great option.
Finding the Right Concealer
Finding the right makeup products can take some trial and error. You have to find the right shade match, ingredients for your skin type, and level of coverage you want while also making sure you have a concealer that will last you all day and still cover blemishes.
Finding the best concealer is vital to perfect your makeup look, but HIDE Premium Concealer can do it all.
HIDE offers a lightweight concealer for all skin types that will last you all day long—even through the sweat and tears. It completely covers imperfections with an undetectable finish to cover up even the darkest under-eye circles or the most inflamed breakouts.
Tips for Hiding Blemishes
Now that you know what to look for in a good concealer and where you can find one, let’s talk about how to use it!
Choose the Right Shade
First things first: you have to choose the right shade for your skin, especially if you’re trying to hide blemishes. Choosing a shade that’s too light can draw attention to the area instead of hiding it, and choosing one that’s too dark can throw off the rest of your makeup.
The undertones of your skin play an important role in what concealer shade you need. Warm undertones mean your skin has a red, yellow, or orange tint to it. If you have warm undertones, you probably look good wearing gold jewelry and earthy tones as opposed to silver and blues.
Cool undertones, on the other hand, indicated that you have a blue, purple, or green tint to your skin. In this case, you would look better wearing silver jewelry and blues or purples than you would wearing gold.
Once you know your undertones, you can pick the right shade that matches your skin perfectly. If you’re still having trouble matching your skin, try mixing two shades together.
Helpful tip: HIDE’s Premium Concealer and Foundation both come with a shade matching guide that explains the shade and what undertones it goes with.
Know How to Use It
Once you have your shade, it’s time to get to work. Here are some of our favorite strategies for hiding blemishes with concealer.
Strategy #1: Light to Dark
When using concealer to cover blemishes, one of the biggest rules is to match your skin. If you cover blemishes with a lighter shade, you will draw attention to your blemishes instead of hiding them. However, you can use a lighter shade underneath your natural shade.
This helps camouflage blemishes and makes them easier to cover up by lightening them first. Just be sure to cover them up with a shade that matches your skin.
Strategy #2: Light Dab
You can also use a light dab of concealer to cover blemishes. HIDE’s Premium Concealer comes with a built-in precision applicator for smooth application no matter what you’re trying to hide.
For blemishes, use the applicator to put concealer over the desired area. Then, take your index finger and lightly dab it to prevent creasing or cakey-ness and to increase smoothness. And voila! Let it dry for five minutes and then reapply as needed.
Summary
Acne can be frustrating to live with and even more frustrating when makeup isn’t covering it up. Luckily with HIDE, you can hide anything. From widespread breakouts to small pimples here and there, HIDE’s Premium Concealer can hide it all.
Sources:
Acne - Symptoms and causes | Mayo Clinic
What Is Comedogenicity, and What Ingredients Are Comedogenic? | Acne.org
The Best Clothing Colors for Different Skin Tones | Color Psychology