Save vs. Splurge: Face Makeup Edition
The best products for a flawless base, no matter your budget
The key to an on-point makeup look is the base. Whether you’re trying for no-makeup makeup or a beat-to-the-gods face, your base can make or break your entire look. A good base will help the rest of your makeup not only last longer, but also look better.
We’re here to help you find the best face products—and like our Brow Products Edition, we’re giving you options from drugstore and premium brands to suit every budget. Read on for our face makeup must-buys!
Primers
If it isn’t already, putting on primer should be the first step of your beauty routine after your skincare. It will smooth and mattify your skin, reduce the size of your pores, and even out skin tone, and make your makeup stay in place the entire day. Look for an oil-free primer with moisturizing benefits for the perfect makeup base.
Save: Maybelline Baby Skin Pore Eraser
The Baby Skin Pore Eraser product really lives up to its name, and you can’t beat that price point. It blurs your pores and reduces redness, leaving a soft silky finish. Bonus: it’s moisturizing, so is an extra treat for those with dry skin.
Splurge: smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer
Smashbox is arguably best known for its primer, and you can’t go wrong with the OG Photo Finish Foundation Primer, beloved by professional makeup artists. It blurs pores and fine lines, smoothing and hydrating your skin so your makeup will look photo-ready all day.
Liquid Foundations
Liquid foundations are popular because they’re easy to apply and blend, are great at filling in fine lines, and have moisturizing effects. Look for formulas that are lightweight and oil-free to give your skin room to breathe and so that your makeup won’t slide off in the middle of the day.
Save: L’Oréal Paris Infallible Pro-Matte Liquid Foundation
Beauty gurus swear by this medium-high coverage foundation, and for good reason. With a demi-matte finish that’s both non-drying and impressively long-wearing, the lightweight, creamy formula will give you a flawless face without looking cakey. And since it’s matte, it’s especially recommended for oily skin types who might look greasy with other liquid foundations.
Splurge: Koh Gen Do Maifanshi New Aqua Foundation
Meant to give you the effect of a post-facial glow, this mineral foundation is full of light-diffusing minerals to smooth, hydrate, and brighten your face. It goes on a bit sheer, giving you a natural your-skin-but-better look, but is easily buildable for heavier coverage. Plus once it’s on, it won’t budge.
Concealers
While primers and foundations will reduce redness and smooth out lines, you might need heavier coverage for particular blemishes, like those ever-present dark circles under your eyes— and for that, you’ll likely need a concealer. Liquid formulas are the easiest to work with because they’ll work with almost all skin types and you can easily build the coverage. They’re also the least likely to crease or cake up.
Save: Maybelline Fit Me Concealer
Part of Maybelline’s beloved Fit Me line, this concealer has been hailed as a dupe for the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer. It’s oil-free and non-comedogenic, and packs a punch when it comes to pigmentation. The gel formula even has some illuminating benefits.
Splurge: ART DECO Perfect Teint Concealer
This concealer is lightweight and scent-free, and impressively long-lasting. Best recommended for use on undereye circles, the creamy formula with light-reflecting pigments will help brighten up your skin for a radiant glow. You can even use it as a highlighter!
Blushes and Bronzers
For a sunkissed glow, turn to blushes and bronzers. Sweep the bronzer on spots where they would naturally be tanned by the sun — basically, your T-zone — plus under your cheekbones and along your jawline for a subtle contour. A hint of blush on the apples of your cheeks will give you an appealing flush. Look for a blush-and-bronzer duo product for complementary shades and finishes and convenient packaging.
Save: blk cosmetics Contour, Blush & Highlight Palette
We’re big fans of the versatility of Anne Curtis’ makeup line, and this compact product is no exception. Use the matte contour or the highlighter for your bronzer, and the gorgeous blush for a natural glow.
Splurge: Benefit Cheek Parade Bronzer & Blush Palette
This palette combines Benefit’s famous Hoola Matte Bronzer with four other gorgeous bronzer and blush shades in a box that’ll last you forever. Bonus: it comes with its own brush.
What are your face makeup holy grails?
Let us know in the comments section below! Looking for a new favorite? Head on over to ZALORA Philippines to check out foundations, BB creams, concealers, and more face makeup.
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