THE PERFECT SHADE OF FOUNDATION OR TINTED MOISTURISER

How to get your perfect shade of foundation or tinted moisturiser all year round!

The Happy Sage purchased the products mentioned in this article.

It can be extraordinarily difficult to find the right shade of foundation or tinted moisturiser for your skin, even on a good day with the right light. Add to this the fact that during the year, your facial skin is likely to change colour as well, then how do you cope with this?

Ways to get the perfect shade of foundation

Well I have tried just about every trick in the book with this little problem! Here are some of the methods I have tried:

1. The easy way to cater for this is to buy a different shade (lighter or darker) of your favourite foundation. This can work but sometimes the shading is not quite right even up or down one shade. This is also expensive and sometimes you can find your foundation has gone off when you return to it six months later when you need to change shades again.

2. You can buy two shades of your favourite foundation, a light one and a darker one, and mix them to try and get the perfect shade. I have had success with this method but only when using a tinted moisturiser, not a medium coverage foundation. I have found some medium to full coverage foundations seem to be different consistencies in different colours which make them slightly more difficult to blend and can leave an odd finish on the skin once applied.

3. You might wear sun block or SPF products on your face all year round and find that you can manage with the same colour foundation from winter through summer, but unless you treat the rest of your exposed skin in the same way, you can end up with your neck and hands being a completely different colour to your face, and yes, this looks weird!

4. You could try using fake tan on your face and going without foundation in the summer. This works well on holiday but if you are of more 'mature' years and prefer a little coverage on a night out to look your best, this won't go the whole way and you will have to buy a new foundation or tinted moisturiser to match your face colour.

5. You might ditch the liquid foundation in the summer and go for a mineral powder foundation. This can work quite well if you can get the right shade but even then you might end up with the mineral powder being a shade too light if you get a tan. You can also try blending different shades of mineral powder and I have found this to work quite well. The best results I have achieved have been by applying the lighter shade fiirst as a base layer and then applying a very light dusting of a darker shade over the top. This way you seem to be able to control the depth of colour a little better.

However, I did eventually find a great and foolproof way to my perfect foundation colour all the year round whilst still using the same shade of my favourite foundation! I also use this method with my favourite moisturiser too, so if you are a fan of tinted moisturiser instead of foundation, especially in the summer, then this method will work for you too!

I use Inika Organic Liquid Foundation in beige (YL6) - £42 for £30ml and available in 6 shades.

Read my review of Inika Organic Foundation.

I love this foundation. It suits my very sensitive skin and I have never had any reactions to it. It also contains the all important ingredient that I like in my foundation and that is hyaluronic acid. This great ingredient can hold a thousand times its weight in water which helps to really plump up the skin, and is great for keeping dry or mature skins looking fresh and dewy.

I adore the foundation but it is actually quite pale on me, even in the depths of winter. I did try buying a shade darker (Honey) but that colour was way too dark on its own.

I tried mixing the two together but even with different amounts of each shade, I could not get the right shade for my skin and the consistency of the 'Honey' seemed thicker than that of the 'Beige' and the end result was a bit of a weird finish.

Eventually I found a product that I can mix with my Inika Organic Foundation in Beige all year round and get the perfect shade for my skin, no matter how much or how little of a real (or fake) tan I have!

May I introduce you to Dr Hauschka's Translucent Bronzing Tint - £21 for 18ml.

the bottle shown here is actually a 30ml size

Mixing your own shade of foundation

Don't be too alarmed by the colour! It looks mahogany dark in the bottle but it is translucent so think quite 'see through' when used. The product is designed to be worn direct on the skin if required and just intensifies your own skin tone slightly, smoothing out any little blemishes and gives a bit of a glow. I find is very good in summer or when you are on holiday but I think you do need a bit of a tan to use it neat.

Take a look at some Inika Organic Foundation in Beige on the bottom, along with a squirt of Dr Hauschka's Translucent Bronzing Fluid above it.

You can see on the next photograph that I have spread the bronzing fluid out a little with my finger and it is quite translucent.

The photo below shows some of the foundation mixed with a bit of the bronzing fluid at the top. This is the shade I am wearing at the moment and it's just a touch darker than the original foundation colour.

Simply wash hands thoroughly then put a little bit of foundation and bronzing tint into the palm of your hand and use a finger to mix them, then apply to the face.

I usually apply a moisturiser prior to the application of the foundation/bronzer mix and let it absorb for a few minutes.

How to get the perfect shade of tinted moisturiser

You can also mix Dr Hauschka's Bronzing Fluid with your favourite moisturiser to get your very own brand of tinted moisturiser in the perfect colour for you! This is great in summer if you have a bit of a tan (or fake tan) and want a lighter or more natural look.

NOTE: The Inika Organic foundation does not have any SPF protection in it and neither does the Dr Hauschka Bronzing Fluid.

Best natural tinted moisturiser with SPF

If you want a tinted moisturiser with an SPF in then try Green People's Age Defy Tinted Moisturiser with SPF15. I have this in Light and Medium and use them with the Dr Hauschka's Bronzing Fluid as well as the light is very light on me and the medium is only good when I have a tan. The bronzing fluid mixes really well with these products.

The Age Defy+ Tinted Moisturisers contain sea fennel plant stem cells to stimulate cell renewal and increase hydration, Spanish Needle to stimulate collagen and promote skin rejuvenation, SPF15 and 98% ingredients are of natural origin.

Green People Age Defy+ Tinted Moisturiser (in Light & Medium) - £40 for 30ml.

mix the light and the medium tinted moisturiser together, or use with Dr Hauschka's Bronzing Fluid for the perfect colour match

The best thing about using the Dr Hauschka's Translucent Bronzing Fluid is that you can adjust the amount of liquid bronzer that you add to your foundation, moisturiser or tinted moisturiser during the course of the year to cater for your changing skin tone,- brilliant or what!

If you are looking for a great way to gently and naturally tan your sensitive skin then look no further than Green People's Liquid Gold Tanning Drops. These fabulous natural and organic unscented tanning drops just blend in to your normal face or body moisturiser and tan you gradually. You can adjust the depth of tan or how quickly you tan just by adding more or less of the drops. Read my review on Green People's Liquid Gold Tanning Drops.

Green People's Liquid Gold Tanning Drops - £36 for 30ml.

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