What was the last game-changer to your makeup routine?

While it could be an application/technique tip, type of product, etc. it was a specific product for me! Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter has become a real go-to for adding luminosity and extra slip to any foundation I reach for, so I think that’s about as game-changing as it gets–being something you’d use nearly every day!

— Christine

31 Comments

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Heather Avatar

I have extremely dark undereyes — just a function of genetics! — including prominent, visible, dark blue veining. I’d given up on ever concealing them and started embracing them… and then I discovered that undereye color correctors (the peach/orange/red kind) really do work. Who’d’ve thought? 🙂

I don’t use one every day (because I really did make peace with my undereyes); but when a concealed undereye is likely to flatter the makeup look I’m going for, now I have the option!

Demeter Avatar

Not who you asked but I have a couple of the Bobbi Brown ones and I really like them. Very creamy with a lot of pigment and a good range of colours and shades to pick from.

Heather Avatar

I’ve only tried two, so I’m not sure I’m the best person to ask! But I’ve had a great experience with the Urban Decay Naked Skin Color Correcting Fluid in peach. (I’ve also tried the discontinued Becca color correctors–not the new undereye ones that are light peach and only come in two shades; the old ones that came in purple and green and dark peach and red–but I didn’t like the texture nearly as much. They’re thick and sticky.)

The UD one has a beautifully fluid consistency without sacrificing coverage–it comes with a doefoot wand and I just dot it on the same way I would a liquid undereye concealer. It blends out beautifully, and then I usually just layer foundation on top (I only bother with a second concealer if I’m wearing a very sheer foundation).

Hope this helps!

Gilad Avatar

Ditto – very dark circles, so much better w/peach color corrector beneath usual concealer. Second game changer has been using contour. Third has been to use lip primer regularly to keep lip color from creeping into lines and make it last longer.

Celesta Avatar

Layering powder blush over cream blush has been a game changer for me! Blush always always ALWAYS fades on me, fast, but I started layering cream blushes, then powder over top and it’s magic. It doesn’t cake up or emphasize texture and I FINALLY get all day blush wear. It’s a dream. Same with highlights as well.

Maggie Avatar

Thanks for mentioning this! I was JUST scratching my head over what to do with my collection of cream and powder cheek products and thinking of packing some away but layering totally makes sense. (the feeling of–no way I’ll ever hit pan on all of these)

Liz Avatar

Agree. That Flawless Filter really is the best thing to come around in a while and I’m not a huge CT fan. It gives amazing incandescence.

Deborah S. Avatar

Probably the change that made the biggest difference is actually waiting for about 15-20 minutes after skincare and sunscreen before applying makeup. I use to always be impatient and would start before the skincare and sunscreen really had a chance to set. A lot of the time it was because I wouldn’t crawl out of bed in enough time to actually wait. I knew that sometimes I was compromising the performance of my sunscreen but that wasn’t enough to break the habit. When I added an oil as the last step of skincare I had to wait for the oil to set before makeup or I would end up with a cakey mess.

Ana Maria Avatar

Learning a few years back about undertones was definitely a game changer. With my yellow warm complexion is hard to find the proper shade that is natural, without being too yellow to the point I look sick. For years I used to use neutral shades and I cringe how unnaturaly pink I look in some college pictures. 😆

Liz Avatar

Always using eye shadow primer. It’s so amazing to have eye shadow last. A second one would be using an eyeliner brush and black shadow vs a pencil. I use a NYX brush and either Pat McGrath or Smashbox shadow. More precise and no raccoon eyes.

Ana Maria Avatar

A specific technique that has been a game changer for me and my face shape as I age comes from Wayne Goss and it’s applying blush/bronzer slightly higher up.

A specific item is the ABH Eye Primer. As a person with hooded eyes and oily lids, eye primer was always a must for me. I know many good ones (Too Faced Shadow Insurance, The Balm Put a Lid on It, Urban Decay Primer Potion), but since I tried the ABH one my eyeshadow looks have never been better.

Rachel R. Avatar

Getting older. If there was one silver lining to all the constant changes my skin went through during the last few years of peri-menopause, it was that I had no choice but to learn more about foundations, primers, and skincare. I had always only used one foundation at a time, and I had such oily skin that I could only use mineral powder makeup, as everything else oxidized and melted off, even over a primer. OPEC was considering me for membership, let’s put it that way.

It seemed like virtually overnight, I was needing a selection of foundations and primers. I felt like my face spun a roulette wheel every week to see whether it would be oily, combo with an oily T-zone, or normal with dry and dehydrated cheeks. Cystic acne breakouts were a regular bonus.

Thanks to there being more formulas with very fair color options, I finally get to explore different coverages, finishes, and combinations, and different tools/application methods. Learning new products and skill sets have been exasperating at times, but also interesting. I realized I could use more than one primer to address issues on different parts of my face. Then last year, I had to learn how to apply full coverage foundations all over again, as they started settling into the permanent forehead lines I was developing.

The changes forced me to stop being lazy about my skincare. (Shout out to Paula’s Choice for their free, in-depth consultation and product recommendations. ) For the first time in my life I had to deal with flaky skin making my foundation pill and look awful. I had to drink more water and find new products so my foundation wouldn’t look like crap.

TropicalCowgirl Avatar

I went the same route as Rachel. Mineral foundation and barely any products to drastic changes with the menopause journey. Leaving Florida…my skin seriously took a hit. I know people don’t like humidity but not me. After going there to desert conditions in Utah, my skin would tingle with delight every time I went back to visit. Texas has been a little better.

Behind the scenes bioidentical hormones! Huge game changer.

For me, after trying to find a foundation that was light enough to play with my skin, the CT flawless filter with Armani Luminous silk foundation blended together does the trick. I’ve yet to find a powder that doesn’t make me feel dry. But skin care has helped drastically and it all depends on my night routine. You can have the best foundation in the world but if your canvas is compromised, it won’t do a thing. I love the dewy look and the above combo is perfect.

Jules Avatar

I love the CT Flawless Filter, but I’m curious how you apply it — fingers, brush, or sponge? As a primer, mixed with foundation, as a highlight, or another use? Thanks so much!

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