Seven tips to keep your face on during the summer

Can you feel the heat and humidity dialing up every day? One of the most annoying beauty problems I have right now actually is keeping my makeup on in spite of the looming summer! I'm currently experimenting with several products to get the best, long-wearing combination - I will talk about them in a different post. For now here are some fool-proof tips on getting a face that will look fresh all day! 

1. Make sure your face is completely dry before putting any makeup on. Let your skincare absorb first, and remove any sweat you might have accumulated after. Why? Because if you apply makeup on a damp face, that wetness gets stuck between your skin and your makeup, which will then cause product to slide off or cake up quickly. 

We unfortunately live in a tropical country where we start sweating right after a shower! Hay. I always apply my makeup in an air-conditioned room to keep my face from sweating or oiling up prematurely. If this is not possible, I make sure I have facial tissues to wipe my face ASAP.

2. The less makeup you apply, the less of it comes off. Don't wear foundation if your skin is good enough to live without it. Seriously, what's wrong with you? I kid, I kid. Only apply the foundation and concealer where needed, and keep the best parts of your skin bare.

Use a sheer base if you want to enhance your complexion (i.e. brightening, color correcting). If you want to soften imperfections, apply a tiny amount of heavy coverage, long-wearing foundation/concealer where you need it. It's better to have a thin layer of the heavy stuff on instead of piling on the sheer stuff and making the texture too thick!

3. Prime it like you mean it. Use a thin layer of face primer wherever you get oily (typically the t-zone) to hold down the foundation in those areas. If you wear eyeliners and eyeshadow, use a primer on your upper and lower lids before putting on the eye stuff. Make sure the primer is completely dry before applying anything on top of it.

4. Always blot before retouching. Otherwise, you're just basically sealing the oil and sweat onto your face with another layer of makeup (see my note on #1)! No need to splurge on expensive blotting papers, cheap ones will do. If you forget your packet you can always use tissues! Paper towels and Starbucks tissue paper are the best for blotting. ;)

5. Retouch with sheer, oil absorbent powder instead of foundation. Sheer powders don't disturb the makeup you have underneath and are light enough to prevent caking. Try to look for loose formulas instead of pressed; if you find loose powder too much of a hassle to apply, find pressed powders that are loosely packed instead. These tend to absorb oil better.

6. Staining lip and cheek products last way better in hot weather. You want to get pigments that stain your skin instead of just sitting on top! You can also look for long-wearing formulas that set completely when dry. 

7. Go for waterproof products. Waterproof anything is such a hassle to remove but it's worth the effort if you want to avoid any makeup meltdown, particularly if you're extra oily. Just get a good waterproof makeup remover and all will be well.

Hope my tips help! Do you guys have any to share? ^_^