Sunscreen or makeup? Why choose when you can have both! Follow the advice of Magali Marx, Clarins makeup expert, to combine protected skin with a perfect complexion under the sun.
Whatever the season, a well-established beauty routine should always start the same way: a good skin cleansing to remove excess sebum accumulated during the night, an eye contour to wake up the look, moisturizing serum, and a day cream.
Depending on the program for the day and your desires, you may want to make up your complexion with a tinted cream, a foundation, or even a powder.
And if the weather is nice, sun protection is essential, whatever our skin color. Yes, but now, once you have a perfect complexion, how do you apply sunscreen and not ruin all your efforts? Advice from Magali Marx, makeup expert for Clarins.
Protect makeup skin when walking in sunny weather
“The perfect is to opt for a makeup base that also offers good sun protection,” says Magali Marx. At Clarins, she recommends the SOS Primer UV SPF30 which unifies and illuminates the complexion while protecting it from the sun but also from pollution, which is often high in big cities in summer.
Other brands offer primers with high sun protection, including Make Up For Ever (Daily Protective Primer UV Primer SPF 50/PA+++) or Charlotte Tilbury (Invisible Primer UV Flawless Poreless Primer SPF 50 /PA++++).
“In summer, you don’t really want to overload your skin,” notes the expert. If the face has a few small imperfections, it is better to correct them by applying a touch of concealer or foundation in a targeted manner to the capricious areas, rather than applying the product all over the face.
The result is very natural, and it avoids being afraid to move the makeup if you want to apply sunscreen afterward.
“As a consequence, we can avoid the allover powder stage,” continues the specialist. On the other hand, you can give a little relief to your complexion with sun powder by applying it with a light hand.
“If it has several shades, you can use the darker shade to sculpt, the pearly shade to illuminate, then the blush shade to enhance the cheekbones”, explains Magali Marx.
Protect makeup skin when exposing yourself to the beach
In the event of prolonged exposure such as on the beach or on the terrace, additional sun protection is essential. During the first outings on the beach, an SPF50 is de rigueur for all skin types.
“It is important to choose a sunscreen specifically dedicated to the face”, emphasizes the makeup expert. “Operating sunscreen for the body still covers the skin, but the surface is not at all fitting for the face and goes a smooth film: firstly, the makeup that you involve thereafter will carry much less well, and two, it may cause small spots to occur.”
She adds: “However, face sunscreens remain a little richer than classic moisturizers, which is why it is necessary to favor light makeup textures afterward so as not to create an overdose.”
For a barely worked natural complexion, you can mix a drop of fluid foundation with your sunscreen then cover the whole thing with a light veil of mattifying powder.
Also Read: Dry, Combination, Oily: What Type of Skin Do I Have?
Sunscreens being white, it is better to do a test with your usual foundation to see if the shade does not become too dull, or use a foundation a little darker than usual.
For a more unified complexion, a compact foundation is a good option due to its dry and solid texture. It is applied by tapping to superimpose it delicately and not to spin your sunscreen.
Some compact foundations have an SPF30 and may be enough to protect the skin when it is already well tanned or naturally dark. To accentuate the healthy glow effect, you can then place a touch of blush on the top of the cheekbones.
In both cases, it is necessary to reapply sunscreen every two hours to remain perfectly protected. So how do you preserve your makeup?
“I suggest placing a little bit of sunscreen in the palm of your hand, heating it between your hands, then, so as not to impact the makeup, positioned it on your face with the flat of your hands, squeezing slightly from the middle outwards”, clarifies Magali Marx.
Makeup at the beach: the right reflexes
Regarding the look, we rarely want very elaborate makeup to go to the beach. “An even complexion and a waterproof mascara is the right combo to show off a healthy glow in all circumstances,” says our specialist. In the evening, when the temperatures warm up a bit, it’s time to have fun with more pronounced eye makeup.
As for the lips, “they also shield themselves”, recalls Magali Marx. We, therefore, apply a lip balm with an SPF that we cover with lipstick if we want to give a nice color to our lips.
“It’s even prettier when the lipstick is on your finger,” points out the makeup professional.
At the end of the day, makeup removal is compulsory to remove all the impurities that have settled on the skin during the day: traces of makeup, residues of sunscreen but also sebum, perspiration, or dust.
Photo: Pexels/ Roman Carey
