Face Basics | Steps to a Flawless Base: #1 Moisturise

Hi guys! I thought I would do a small series of blogposts going over how to prepare the skin and get a good base before all the blush, highlighting and contouring begins. Often we see a picture in a magazine of an amazing smokey eye or chiseled bronzed cheek and focus on achieving that, but to be honest, none of that will look half as good if the base itself isn't immaculate!

Here are some of the products I use to help me create a flawless base:

#1: Moisturiser

This is largely dependent on your skin type - for dry skin go for a moisturiser that is creamier in consistency, richer but not containing oils prior to applying make up. Save the oils for night time when your skin can repair itself and soak up its goodness, using it prior to makeup means it may not seep into the skin and cause the foundation to slide. 

For oilier skin, try a gel based moisturiser as creamier ones can mix with the oils on your skin and not absorb as well. Also, go for ones containing Zinc - this helps absorb the excess oil and minimise shine - look for 'Shine Control' on the bottle - a lot of the acne face wash brands like Clean & Clear, Clearasil and Dermalogica provide mositurisers for such skin types.

I enjoy using this 'MONU Revitalising Moisturiser' that came in the November (I think..) Glossybox (shown in pic above) and it's lovely for normal to combination skin. It has a really fresh, cucumber scent which isn't too heavy or lingering.

It contains cucumber, elderflower, mallow and Arnica. Arnica is known for its healing properties and is often applied as an anti inflammatory - making this great for the troubled, acne prone areas of the skin, whilst the cucumber and elderflower cools and hydrates the skin simultaneously. It also contains glycerin and coconut oil, that's why its great for dry skin and despite containing oil it absorbs quickly and leaves no greasy residue which I love pre-makeup as you can get on with the next stage pretty quickly.

In my train case...

I recently purchased the 'Johnsons Daily Essentials 24 hour Day Cream' for normal skin. It contains SPF15 which is low but too high an SPF can cause flashback in photo's leaving you looking ghostly and washed out - so to avoid that go for a low or zero amount of SPF.

'It lasts 24 hours'...It lasts a long time, 24 hours is a bit of a stretch and that is probably dependent on the skin type but using a moisturiser that lasts will mean as you get towards the end of the day the skin won't begin to crack and the little dry patches that can appear after a busy day wearing heavy make up will be kept at bay!

This also absorbs quickly, is suitable for sensitive skin and has that signature Johnson's mild scent to it! Currently on offer in Superdrug where I picked it up.

Step 2: Primer coming up!...