Do you ever find your makeup looking gray in certain spots?  Are your dark circles usually still visible? Are you thinking that it’s a problem that can’t be fixed?  Well, I have good news for you, it CAN!  Most of us have dark spots, hyperpigmentation or redness that can keep our complexion products (foundation/concealer) from looking their best.  Thankfully, there are color correctors!  I find most people don’t know what color corrector is and are definitely not incorporating it into their makeup routine.  I promise you, corrector is a product that you don’t want to be without if you have the discoloration issues I mentioned above.  Color correction is based on color theory.  So if you know anything about color theory and the color wheel, it will definitely help you in understanding this post.  For simplicity, I will save the in-depth color theory discussion for another post.  There are a few different color correctors; however, in this post I will discuss the two most popular.

First up is green color corrector.  Green is used to cancel out redness.  If you have redness in your skin, blending a bit of green color corrector onto those areas will prevent the redness from showing through your complexion products.  When you first apply the corrector, it may not blend perfectly into the skin, but the complexion products will cover that right on up!  The end result should be an even tone with no redness peeking through.
Secondly, there is peach/orange corrector.  Your skin tone denotes whether you will need to use peach or orange.  Peach is for light to medium tones and orange is more useful for dark to deep tones.  Peach/orange corrector is utilized to cancel out darkness and hyperpigmentation that is usually blue/purple in hue.  So let me give you a quick visual.  You got a pimple on your cheek and decided to pop it, which left a dark acne scar.  Now that it’s flat and not raised, you are doing your best to cover it so no one knows it’s there.  You pile on concealer but it never seems to be fully covered.  That, my gorgeous friend, is when peach/orange corrector comes to your rescue!  Completely cover the dark spot with the corrector first and blend out the edges.  Next, apply your complexion products.  PLEASE be careful not to apply the complexion products using swiping motions, as we do not want to disturb the corrector (see my post here on concealer application techniques).  We want it to stay in place and using tapping motions will ensure that it does.  Also, if your corrector is showing through your foundation/concealer, then something has gone awry.  Either the corrector shade is not right for your skin tone (most likely it’s too dark), you didn’t blend out the corrector enough, or you haven’t used enough foundation/concealer to cover it.  When covering the corrector, it should never be too much of a challenge.  If the shade is right for your skin tone, it should blend into the area you are trying to cover almost perfectly.  There should NOT be a strong orange cast after application.  Make sure you use natural lighting if you’re new to correcting.  It will allow you to see everything clearly.

Now, I’m sure you’re wondering what correctors I recommend.  Of course I’m going to share that with you!  The LA Girl Pro correctors are a great affordable option.  They have green, peach and orange in their line.  However, there is a disconnect between the peach and orange shades.  The peach can be used by light to medium tones and the orange can be used for deep tones.  However, it is hard for the medium/dark to dark tones (such as myself) to use a corrector from this line without having to mix.  For those tones, I recommend the MAC Prep and Prime highlighter in Peach Lustre (see swatch in first photo below).  It’s my favorite for my skin tone and I use it every single time I do my makeup.  Another corrector line that I love is by Lancôme – the Teint Idole Ultra Wear Camouflage Color Corrector, although my medium/dark lovelies may have to mix with this line as well.

All in all, I know corrector will be a GREAT addition to your makeup routine!  Please comment below with any questions and let me know your experience with correcting.

Photo 1: swatch of MAC Prep and Prime highlighter in Peach Lustre on my hand (the corrector I used in Photo 2 and Photo 3)

Photo 2: corrector under my eye on the left side; bare under eye on the right side

Photo 3: corrector and concealer under my eye on the left side; just concealer under my eye on the right side

Till next time gorgeous,

Sarah Robyn