Does your makeup turn cakey by noon? Find out how to solve this problem

After spending time to blend out your foundation and brush on your favourite colours in the morning, your makeup looks vibrant and flawless, and you’re ready to take on the world. But by the time you’re done with lunch, what you saw in the morning is no more; now, your makeup looks like a hot mess – quite literally.

Does this scenario sound familiar?

The hot and humid weather in Singapore is probably the worst enemy of makeup. But one product can save your day – a face primer.

Why is a primer important?

A base for foundation and makeup in general, a primer creates a smooth canvas that can smooth out imperfections such as visible pores and lines. At the same time, it holds on to makeup so that it can stay on for a longer time, and you can say goodbye to annoying mid-day cakiness!

How to apply primer like a pro

1. Don’t overdo it: Less is more! While we’ve established that primers are great for enhancing the longevity of our makeup, don’t go overboard! As a rule of thumb, approximately dispensing a size of a 20-cent coin will be sufficient. You can apply more on areas where makeup tends to cake up.

2. Dab and blend: The application method for a primer is simple. Dab it onto your forehead, nose, cheeks and chin (you can dab more on your T-zone if it gets oily faster), and then blend it out with your fingers or a foundation brush.

3. Choose a suitable primer: One product fits all? Not true! Everyone has different skin needs, and the best way to ensure that you achieve the best-looking finish possible is to choose a primer that addresses your skin colour concern in order to start with a flawless base.

What primer should you choose?

1. If you’re having a breakout

Red, angry-looking pimples are the most dreadful things we’d want to see on our skin, and piling on concealer on them only makes the rest of our makeup slide off faster.

We have a trick: Use a mint-coloured primer to help reduce the look of redness so you can go easy with concealer if you even need it at all afterwards! (Psst, understand how colour-correction works in our featured tutorial with celebrity makeup artist Clarence Lee. Open the article in a new tab and read it later!)

Try: ETUDE HOUSE FIX & FIX Tone UP (Mint). Providing a tone on tone effect on skin, this primer is in a mint shade that is formulated specifically to help reduce reddish tones. Apply it all over skin, with more focus on areas that are red.

What does “tone on tone effect” mean? This means that it has the ability to correct the original undertone of skin, giving it an optimal makeup effect, and even accentuate the original colour of your cushion and makeup!

2. If you have dull-looking complexion

Makeup tends to look less vibrant on dull-looking complexion, and we can understand how much of a bane that can be. Couple this with cakiness, it can even make the look seem “dirty”.

Piling on more products to fight cakiness will only leave your makeup looking heavy. Instead, use a brightening primer that lifts the radiance of your skin before you start on makeup to ensure you have luminous-looking skin all day long.

Try: ETUDE HOUSE FIX & FIX TONE UP (Lavender). This primer is formulated in the perfect shade of lavender that helps dull-looking skin look brighter and fresher. It also sustains the longevity of your foundation, which means you can say goodbye to heavy-looking makeup!

DV Tip: Apply this primer all over skin and lightly dab a BB cushion only on concerned areas such as the under eye area. It’ll give a fresh, dewy finish that will help you rock the no-makeup makeup look.

3. If your skin looks pale and lifeless

If you complain about looking “ill” without makeup, you have pale complexion. Avoid going for only brightening products that can add radiance to your skin but cannot give you a pinkish, healthy-looking glow. We recommend using a rose-coloured primer as a base instead.

Try: ETUDE HOUSE FIX & FIX TONE UP (Rose). This primer gives your skin an overall healthy-looking flush and improve the look of your makeup at the same time.

Did you know? All ETUDE HOUSE FIX & FIX TONE UP primers contains a triple-shield ingredient (viscous gel, matte powder, and skin shield fluid) that protects skin from fine dust, which is one of the culprits that hampers the adherence of makeup on skin!

4. If you have enlarged pores

The ridges formed by visible pores can be the reason why your makeup doesn’t adhere snugly onto your skin. Pick a primer that has the ability to eliminate the appearance of enlarged pores and create a smoother-looking canvas.

Try: ETUDE HOUSE FIX & FIX Pore Primer. In a gel-type texture that makes bumpy skin texture look smoother, this primer provides a matte finish; unlike many matte products in the market, it still feels comfortable on skin and keeps your complexion looking radiant, thanks to its special formula.

Enriched with skin-purifying ingredients such as moringa, tea tree leaf, and green tea seed, it further takes care of your skin by nourishing it and keeping sebum at bay.

*T&Cs apply.

This article is brought to you by ETUDE HOUSE.