To the Dopers who wear makeup: I need some guidance on good brands/products to try to keep my face both presentable and un-sun-burned for my outdoor wedding at the end of July. I don’t want to do the full foundation and powder experience, because it always causes my skin to break out, and at the same time I know that just sunblock will make me look closer to blue than pink, so tinted moisturizers with at least some SPF level seems like the best choice. Although I’ve heard that these BB creams can be good? I’m not looking for a heavy level of coverage- I’m not going to try to hide any zits or anything, I just don’t want to look anemically pale under the sunblock.
I live in the USA so I have easy access to these supermarket/drugstore brands- Maybelline, Revlon, Covergirl, L’Oreal, Almay, Physician’s Formula, Rimmel, NYC, Wet ‘N’ Wild, and Essence. I also have a Macy’s with several cosmetics counters- Clarins, Lancome, Origins, Estee Lauder, Clinique, Bare Escentuals, Shisedo, and Arden- and an attached MAC store. If there’s anything magically amazing that requires that I order online I’m willing to try it, but only if it’s really that awesome.
Outdoor wedding? I presume you will be having pictures taken? Sunlight can be very harsh- if I were you, I’d be hitting the Lancome counter and asking for the most experienced person they have and take all recommendations, fuck the cost. This isn’t something you want to skimp on or play around with. You don’t want to have to put your wedding pictures in a drawer for the next 50 years.
No professionals for day-of. I need to be on-site early in the day to accept the rental chairs and canopy, so all the hair and makeup is being taken care of by the bridal party. One of my bridesmaids and I are going to practice the makeup several times prior to the big day, to make sure we know what we’re doing.
Honestly I didn’t even wear foundation in my official engagement photos- full coverage is not my look. It’s the SPF I’m really looking for.
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As someone who is terribly pale, I just have to say - get yourself a good sunblock and apply it well, then cover with a tinted moisturizer.
I personally recommend Neutrogena’s Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunscreen. Get one with a huge SPF for your face, and consider their spray for body application. Make sure to reapply if you’re outside for a while, and seek shelter from the sun as often as possible. Their products go on very light, and you will know you have a real, effective sunscreen on instead of the sometimes-dodgy types found in makeup that may be too dilute to work well.
Mineral makeup. It’s easy to apply, is very light and unmakeuppy-looking, won’t clog pores and break you out, comes in every possible price point, and every brand I’ve looked at has had built in SPF of about 15.
I’ve got to vote against this one. IMHO, it doesn’t look good on most people. If it isn’t an **exact **skin tone match, it looks really makeup-y and contrast-y. Even if it is an exact match, it highlights fine lines and wrinkles and makes them stand out more than they do with just bare skin (or most makeup). It’s worth giving a try, and it does have SPF, but it’s often not a good look.
Go around the cosmetic counters and ask them about their makeup with SPF built in - most should give samples and you can try it for a couple of days to see how it looks.
I am the same way. I don’t like heavy creams, or foundations. It just doesn’t sit well on my face. I get a flawless, all day, very natural look from using the tinted moisturizer, followed by a light brush of the barely there powder.
I highly recommend these products. They look and feel light and natural. I also HIGHLY recommend that you and your girlfriends practice not only the makeup, but then taking pictures with it outside. Makeup artistry is a profession for a reason. I did my best friend’s makeup for her wedding. Outside and in natural light (where we did all our practice pictures) it looked stunning and natural. For the pictures we took inside her house (getting ready, playing with the flower girl and ring bearer) her makeup looked gloomy and weird.
Congrats on your upcoming nuptials, and good luck!!!
I use Neutrogena Pure & Free liquid SPF 50. It’s very watery, not thick and gross, and dries pretty quickly. You could put a lightweight tinted moisturizer or light coverage foundation over it.
Shiseido’s Sun Protection Liquid Foundation is also supposed to be very good, but I haven’t tried it personally. I believe it is heavier coverage, though. Their plain, non-tinted sunscreen is very good.
I don’t wear makeup usually, especially not foundation, concealer etc. I find they always look and feel unnatural. But my sister just introduced me to this stuff called Balm Shelter. It’s marketed as a tinted moisturizer with SPF, but in reality it’s more like a light foundation. It makes your skin look perfect in photos and in person, goes on creamy and smooth, and wonder of wonders, it seems to match just about every white girl’s skin tone - I can NEVER find products that look right on my light but golden skin with red undertones. It’s got just about the best reviews I’ve ever seen for a product on Amazon.com.
Oh and a way around that is to take some blush (you’ll know if the color is right for you if it’s the same shade you actually blush/flush) and gently sweep some where the Sun normally touches you - apples of cheeks, across your nose, then blend.
Thank you for all the info and suggestions! I really appreciate it.
ThelmaLou, I definitely will checkout makeupalley.com, although hopefully it won’t suck out days of my life at a time like TV Tropes can- darn addictive crowdsourced info!
Ferret Herder and Skypist- Sounds like I should lean Neutrogena on the sunblock, both from what I’ve read here and what reacts best with my mom’s skin- she has a ton more allergies/sensitivities/etc than I do and it gets along with her, so it should work for me with no trouble.
CrazyCatLady, Johanna- mineral makeup and I just don’t get along. amarinth makes an excellent point about color matching, but for me, the biggest issue is peach fuzz- I hate hate hate the way that the really fine hairs on my face attract absurdly large clumps of what looks like it should be perfectly fine powder. Also, amarinth, I didn’t even think about asking for samples! Excellent suggestion, thank you.
llcoolbj77, I knew there was a brand I was forgetting! Next time I’m at Target I’ll take a look for sure.
rhubarbarin, I’m a little concerned there’s no ingredients listing at all on the product’s web page. But I’m glad to hear it works for you!
Poysyn would you recommend a specific translucent brand or blush brand? And Katriona do you have any trick to it? Just lots of blending/buffing with a kabuki or powder sort of brush?
Do you have a Sephora store (they’re in a lot of malls and also inside some JC Penny stores). You can go in and try on any of the items they carry, although they are the higher priced brands. For a light foundation/tinted moisturizer/bb cream, the try on aspect is awesome.
If not, I have Maybelline’s BB cream and I like it. I also use Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation. It’s a very lightweight foundation, basically a step above tinted moisturizer but not as heavy as you think of “foundation”. I’d highly recommend trying it, department stores and sephora carry it.