Foundation is the fundamental of a makeup look – forming the literal foundation to build on other colors, form and textures. It has a long placement in human history, founded back to the ancient Egyptians, using white lead or chalk to make their face ‘fair’ and was seen as a marker of wealth and success. Across the globe, centuries onward, almost every culture has some form of ‘face painting’ - to obtain smoother, glowy skin. 

In the modern era, foundation is no longer about unnaturally changing skin color – it's about complementing natural skin tones to elevate facial features. But, if you’ve looked across different makeup brands – there is an unreasonable amount of different color scales, coding and letters to wrap your head around. Luckily – in Korean makeup brands, the majority stick to the single system. It is unanimous to the point where, once you know your individual skin tone, you can almost confidently buy across a range of brands.

Due to their audience, Korean foundations and BB creams had a limited shade range (originally designed for their prime audience in Korea), but newer brands have far expanded this to include a better range for a global audience. Brands such as Heimish and TirTir have introduced products with far greater ranges (from 13 to 55), although really good, darker shades are still not always available. 

Majority of Korean makeup starts at the low end with number 13 for pale, almost white skin. Pale shades continue from 13 to 17.

It then moves up the gradient in 2s [13 to 15 to 17 to 21 to 23 to 25 and so on]. The most popular colors used in Korea range from 21 to 25 for light skin with soft undertones.

For more tanner shades the scale moves up to 25 to 30, so if you have lighter skin but have been in the sun or have a recent tan, this is more your area. 

For bronze to brown skin, the range is 33 to 40, containing deeper shades of coffee, hazel and ginger. 

For darker skin, the options are much fewer and far between in the range of 40 to 55 (with only 3-4 shades available in total). 

A newer trend to help pick and curate colors and shades to suit you best is known as color season analysis. It assigns people a palette to pick from based on eye, skin and hair color and determines your tone (warm, neutral or cool). 

Ever wondered why foundation colors often have a letter assigned to them (i.e. 23N or 42C)? These are W (for warm tone), N (for neutral tone) or C (for cool tone). The best way to determine your type is finding what colors have always suited you.  

Try picking your favorite outfit from your wardrobe. What colors do you gravitate towards and have always suited you? If you love a warm brown, reds, yellows or greens – you are likely to be a warm season (autumn or spring palette). If you gravitate towards blues, whites, blacks and greys – you are more likely to be a cool season (summer or winter).

Eye and hair color are important (and if you change your hair a lot, your season can change too!). Think bright blue eyes, dark black eyes or cool grey eyes – with brown, black or bright blonde hair are like to be cool seasons. If you have brown, green, hazel or warm grey eyes – with brown, warm black, orange or warm blonde hair, you are more likely to suit warm seasons. 

Another way to confirm skin tone is how your skin reacts to sunlight – do you get a bronze tan (warm season) or is your skin more likely to get a red sunburn (cool season)? 

If you are really struggling to pick your tone (loving both warm and cool colors, having a mix of hair/eye types or just overall confused) - don’t be too stressed, there’s neutral too! This suits both warm and cool types and gives you a variety of colors to play with the find what you love best. 

Like all Korean skincare, there’s a variety of ‘effects’ that come with foundation. There’s a lot more than what’s here – but this is a few of the most famous that you are likely to come across. 

Matte – creates a smooth, curated look. This is ideal for oily, damp skin types to change skin to look velvety and non-reflective. In the right skin type, it provides a uniform, flawless cover – but if you have dry skin, you will notice flaking and dry patches, especially around your nose!

Satin Finish – similar to ‘glowy’ or ‘dewy’ finish. This is ideal for dry or combination skin, to provide a soft, radiant look. It is perfect for glass skin – creating a uniform, dewy look that is soft and lightweight. Not recommended for oily skin type as it can feel greasy and accentuate pores.

High Coverage – are a thicker, creamier foundation that helps fill in cracks or uneven-ness in skin to provide a perfect, smooth skin. Is lightweight and easy to build off of, to create careful layers of make-up (can come with either satin or matte finish). 

Tone-up – brightening effect that brings a shine to dull skin. Ideal in uneven or dry skin tone to provide a paler glow. This effect is mostly found in primers and sunscreen, but can be found in a variety of foundations, too. This effect is more ideal for paler skin types, as it can cause a dreaded ‘white cast’ effect on more tan and darker skin.

This comes generally down to preference and what suits your skin type.  
 
Dry skin - If you have dry skin, liquids such as BB creams tend to be light weight, spread better and provide a nicer coverage. BB cream is a hydrating foundation that moisturizes, primes and often has good SPF coverage all in one. This prevents you from having to paste layers and layers upon your skin and, instead, gives you a smooth topical glow. 

If you are looking for a perfect Korean BB Cream – our top recommendation is the Missha Perfect cover range. It’s the top selling BB cream in South Korea, with a 30hr coverage, deeply hydrating with hyaluronic acids and ceramides to plump skin and has an SPF of 42, which is ideal for daily wear. It also has alpha arbutin, which helps revive skin and soothe blemishes. It is an important mix between skincare and makeup – where you don’t have to sacrifice your skin’s healthy glow to look good. It is a thicker cream (due to the SPF coverage), so can cause breakouts, especially in oily skin types – but is generally really well tolerated in sensitive and dry skin. 

Oily skin – If you have oily skin that melds improperly with a liquid foundation, give the famous K-beauty cushion foundations a try! These come in a soft palette with a handy applicating cushion that provides a feather light powder. This provides a soft, matte look that can be carefully built up to the ideal coverage. It also comes in a neat compact that you can re-apply on the go! 

If you are looking for a perfect, oily-friendly coverage that lasts up to 72hrs and can be topped up on the go, look no further than the diverse TIRTIR Mask Fit Red Cushion range. They have other cushions, but this one provides the best coverage, whilst absorbing sebum and preventing you from feeling oily and shiny throughout the day. With hyaluronic acid and botanical extracts, it’s not overly drying and most importantly breathable for skin and provides a gentle glow. It’s hypoallergenic and non-irritating – making it a wonderful choice for acne-prone and sensitive skin. 

Combination skin – if you are struggling to determine what foundation is right for you, it’s important to prioritize the issue you are experiencing. If you have skin like mine, you’ll find that even an expensive, quality cushion does not adhere to the dry parts of my skin. Within an hour of application, it is flaking off parts of my skin and making me look like a crumbly ghost. This means that a liquid foundation (like a good BB cream) suits much better – with a dab of finishing powder over the top of my oily zones. My go-to is the Heimish Moringa Ceramide Setting powder as its gentle on my acne. 

If you have more oily zones than dry, you can reach for a cushion – but make sure you have a good, oil-friendly moisturizer carefully applied to your dry zones. This means that the cushion will adhere well, creating a smooth look that doesn’t look patchy. 

It’s easy enough to suss out what your general color is – but everyone knows, there is nothing worse than putting on a brand-new foundation only to find it’s too light (and you feel clowny) or too dark (yikes). Once you’ve figured out which range of shades you fit into, it’s time to narrow down to your perfect match. 

The easiest way to test this is with in-person product, drawing a line of your three closest shades, just below your jaw (on your neckline). It’s important not to try color match off your face, as often (due to products, sun exposure etc) our face can actually become discolored. A tan or moisturizing cream can adjust our tone day-to-day and thus, picking a color based off our face can be deceiving. 

If you don’t have the product on hand, it becomes harder. Try searching for online skin swatches; to show the dried product's effect on skin (the color is different inside the bottle and often lightens when dry!). This allows you to compare to your own skin and try to narrow down the shade. 

If you still feel lost, try walking into your local makeup store and most workers there are happy to pick out the perfect shade for you. Even if they don’t have your favourite brand on site, you can find an equivalent that matches your color – then visit Findation.com, which helps color match between different brands online! 

Applying foundation perfectly is a bit of an artform – and requires good practice and understanding of your skin.  

(1) When to apply: It’s applied after a good cleansing step, serum and moisturizer – with hydrated, soft skin.  

(2) Priming your skin: It’s good to start with a primer – to help smooth out your skin and fill in cracks or pores. Then start applying foundation (small at the start and then build up) - to the center of the face. If you feel like you need to cover your whole face, you likely don’t have the right shade for your skin type. 

(*) Important to be aware of what your foundation does – i.e. a lot of BB creams act as their own primer and don’t require an extra product. This will cut down on feeling like you have too much product on your face and reduces acne risk. 

(3) Applying: Slowly work your way from your nose to your cheeks, forehead and chin. Always start in and work outwards. Don’t forget your ears, too! Don’t rub in foundation, just lightly tap cushion against skin in repetitive, soft motions. Apply a second coat over any blemishes or discolorations that remain and wait a minute to set.  

(4) Finishing: Complete your look with a soft finishing powder, set your look for the day and wear it without clumping or loss of color. This is more necessary in a cushion, rather than a BB cream, which acts as its own setting powder. Finishing powder can be considered if you are trying to achieve a matte look, if you are finding your foundation is too shiny. 

Finding a good foundation is the starting point to a popping face of makeup. It’s important to make sure you have the right coverage and type for your face, important to have the right shade and important to make sure you are applying it correctly. Experiment, explore and have fun – as that’s what makeup is all about! 

How do I ensure I’m picking the right foundation colour? 
It can be the hardest task to ensure you have the right foundation colour. It’s important to only choose from dry foundation, always check your appearance both in natural and artificial light to confirm and do thorough research before settling on a single colour. If you’ve had a few close misses – always feel free to visit your local make-up boutique and they are more than happy to help you out! 

Why do I get flaking around my nose? 
These dry patches show your foundation is not sitting right on your skin. It can be worth adding extra moisturizer to these spots or switching to a more moisturizing liquid foundation. 

How do I stop getting foundation on my clothes and smudging? 
Sounds like you need a good finishing powder! Most BB creams are designed to set on their own, but if it's smudging or spreading to other surfaces, invest in a finishing powder. It settles lightly on the face and will maintain your look throughout the day!