You may have your own “if I was stuck on a desert island and could only have two items of make-up” staples, but would they be the same ones you grab in the back of a taxi with two minutes until you reach a hot date you are late for? Or the ones you keep in your desk drawer in order to create a look of ‘polished professionalism’ when a short-notice meeting pops up? Or the ones you put in your eeny-weeny clutch when you are dressed to kill with a dramatic face on? No?
To be honest, I think your choices in this are pretty much based on what your perceived “problems” are. If like me you have fairly dry skin, you will want your face to be moisturised, possibly even shiny, you will fear the flakes and shun powder. On the other hand if your skin is naturally oily and prone to blocked pores you will have a morbid dread of shine and avoid moisturising products. You will strive for a matt face which will not budge throughout the day. If your skin is sensitive or prone to redness, your essential products will be of the inert variety – those which do not interfere with the workings of your skin. Anti-aging products which contain retinol can cause major flare-ups for example. You may aim for a neutral face without rosy cheeks, you may over-compensate for your perceived redness and treat any colours which enhance the pink in your face as pariah. These things also apply to your hair type and body shape. Do you get where I’m coming from yet?
It is important to find the products which suit your type of “problem” and create an effect you are happy with, without allowing your problems become sore points and stand in your way. For example, I happen to think that a bit of shine in the right places makes everyone look good, based on the laws of aesthetics and the principle that healthy skin will be a bit shiny. I also think that a bit of colour in your cheeks is a very sexy thing, provided it looks natural and is accompanied by a bit of shine. (This principle is what the entire cosmetic empire BeneFit is based on, in my humble opinion, their best-sellers Benetint and ??? are one of the most expensive ways of achieving this effect but have now been widely copied.) But people with oily skin avoid shine and people with rosacea, thread veins or general rosyness avoid blush! Why shoot yourself in the foot? It breaks my heart! The flat skin! The un-enhanced cheekbones, the unhealthy pallor, the uniform face, oh dear, oh dear!
Here’s the thing, you CAN actually have it all. Once Miss Oily has mattified her face, she can brush on a little highlighter in all the right places, the powder and light liquid formulas won’t interfere with matt foundation. If she powders her whole face she could try to avoid the cheekbone area and powder it with a highlighting powder instead. After powdering her nose she could add a stroke of highlighting powder down her nose. Don’t be scared Miss Oily! It makes you look healthy and a little bit fresher.
Miss Rosy can get her rosyness under control with a good coverage foundation or concealer, (or used some of that green stuff that neutralises the red) she is so relieved to have gotten rid of the lollipop cheeks that the thought of putting on more colour on top gives her the collywobbles. I’ll say it again, don’t be scared! All that rosyness Miss Rosy is so sensitive about is hidden away, nobody knows it’s there. She can dust on a little blusher or even (if she’s really clever) a little cream or gel blusher which will dissolve and mix with the foundation in the areas she chooses letting a little of her natural rosyness shine through while she retains control of how much.
Sorry if that sounded patronising, but it was written in the style of a BeneFit catalogue which is full of quirky girl-talk and attitood which grates on my nerves considerably.
So desert-island product wise I would choose blusher and Vaseline. I can imagine some of your pupils going wide with unabashed horror as you read that imagining a neon greasy faced madam typing this blog, but I would like to reassure you that I don’t often just wear blusher and Vaseline. But for touch-ups nothing is more useful. I put a little Vaseline on my eyebrows to keep them tidy, on my cheekbones, down the middle of my nose and on the cupids bow of my lips. My favourite blusher of the moment is Clinique Touche Blush in petal cream which is sort of a light mousse and doubles up as a matte lip colour too, although obviously a spot of Vaseline will make it sheer and glossy. And although I wouldn’t recommend this unless you have no eye make-up on and no plans to put any on, Vaseline is also great on your eyelashes and eyelids.