6. Foundations
For every person who sits down in your chair—whether you are working on a film, designing elaborate characters for theatre, creating an image for a photo shoot, or skillfully applying a beauty makeup for television—you will need to know that person's skin tone. If you do not get this part right, your makeup will appear dull, gray, and lifeless. One of the things you'll learn as a Makeup Artist is how to be quick and to think on your feet. In many cases, we do not have the luxury of time to work on a person—everyone from the director to the crew is waiting on you. Train yourself on the steps to analyzing skin tones, and you will be a better Makeup Artist. This would also include makeup effects. Makeup effects deal in great length in the art of skin tones and color layering.
The primary function of the skin is to protect, and to regulate heat. Differences in skin color are due to the amount of melanin activated in the skin and the way it is distributed. Melanin is the pigment of the skin. Melanin protects the skin cells from ultraviolet rays by absorbing and blocking UV rays through tanning, which is a reaction to sun exposure. UV rays have the greatest impact on how skin ages. Approximately 80 to 85 percent of skin aging is caused by the sun. Melanin in the skin is nature's sunblock, and the more melanin in the skin, the darker the skin tone. Scientists have estimated that people of African descent have some 35 different hues or shades of skin. Undertones that tend to dominate dark skin tones are yellow, orange, red, olive, and blue. You have to learn and really understand how to deal with all skin undertones. Do not rely on just looking at the surface of the skin—the undertones that are present just under the surface will affect the color you apply to the skin. This takes much practical experience and exposure to the wide variety of skin tones and different combinations as well as situations that you will encounter. Ethnicity, environment, and illness all play a part in a person's individual undertones, and in some cases are not easily recognized. Look at what happens to color when applied to the skin. Does the color enhance the skin tone, or is there a gray or dull quality? Unless the part calls for illness, your goal is a healthy tone to the skin.
Nancy Tozier, director of education and president of Take Up Makeup Cosmetics, says: “Learning color theory can help you change a good makeup application into a great one. By understanding color theory, you can take years off a face, make eyes show from across the room, create harmony, and change dull to outrageous, while always knowing exactly what you're doing.”
Tozier teaches throughout the United States and internationally. She specializes in teaching the artistry of makeup, color analysis, and skin care. The following outline will show you how to incorporate the color wheel to plot skin tones. You will also learn to custom blend foundations and powders with color to enhance or correct skin tones. Again, this theory in the use of color is a basic knowledge for all Makeup Artists. Nancy will guide us with her knowledge through color theory and mixing foundation.
She explains: “The key to understanding color theory is the artist color wheel.” (See Figure 6.1.) Nancy continues:
If you divide the color wheel in half from top to bottom; the colors on your right are the cool colors—blues, and shades of blue (blue green, blue violet, and raspberry). We associate these colors with the cold. The colors to the left are the warm colors. They contain yellow. We associate these colors with fire. The color at the very top of the wheel, red, can be warmed if a little yellow is added, moving toward the orange tones on the left. That very same red can be cooled by the addition of a little violet, moving toward the blue tones on the right. In the same way, green, at the very bottom of the color wheel, can be cool if a bit of blue is added to it, and can be warmed by adding a bit of yellow. You can see how very similar colors can be warm or cool depending on whether blue or yellow undertones are added.
How does the color wheel apply to custom blending cosmetics? In Chapter 3, we showed you the Real Color Wheel (RCW) for mixing pigments. Nancy uses the traditional artist color wheel for custom blending of cosmetics. The traditional color wheel primaries are red, blue, and yellow. Makeup foundations have these colors in them. To custom blend a foundation to match the client's skin perfectly, you must begin by determining whether the client is warm toned (with golden undertones) or cool toned (with blue undertones). People rarely look blue, so we say cool (or blue) undertones. A variety of brown shades can be made by combining the primary colors.
To intensify a color, you add an additional amount of that same color. To neutralize a color, we look at our color wheel and choose the color directly across from the color we want to lessen. For example, if a foundation is too yellow, if we look at a color wheel, we see the opposite color is violet. We add small amounts of violet until we reach the desired tone.
Here is a guide to determine which colors intensify a color, and which colors neutralize a color.
• If the person needs more gold, add yellow.
• If the person needs less yellow, add violet.
• If the person needs less pink or has rosacea, add green.
• If the person needs less peach, first add mint, then violet.
This method can be used with translucent powders as well. Most private-label makeup companies offer the tools to custom blend, as well as empty bottles or jars, and larger-sized foundation bottles to work from. Always mix your foundations in a beaker for accurate measurements. With practice, you will learn the exact amounts to add. If you add too much color to neutralize, you can always add back in some of the opposite color. Check your color wheel.

Color Theory and Mixing Foundations

By Nancy Tozier, Director of Education and President, Take Up Makeup Cosmetics
To custom blend a foundation that matches the client's skin perfectly, you must begin by determining whether the client is warm toned or cool toned. Does the client's skin have golden undertones or cool undertones? (Cool undertones are sometimes referred to as blue undertones, but because people rarely look blue; let's say cool.) Here's what to do:
1. If you have on hand different colors of cosmetic or barber caps or drapes, these would be helpful in determining skin tones.
2. Look closely at the actor's skin tone. Do you see any gold? Don't confuse a beige or brown tone with golden. Many people with different depths of color can be cool toned.
Make sure that the actor is seated in bright daylight so that you will get the best view of the skin without interference from other sources of color.
3. If you think the actor has a warm skin tone and their skin is fair, then light golden yellow, gold, or adobe would be good colors to place next to the skin.
If you think the actor has a golden skin tone but has darker coloring, burnt orange, avocado green, or deep gold would be good colors next to the skin. What you are looking for is if their skin takes on a healthy look.

Foundation Mixing

By Nancy Tozier, Director of Education and President, Take Up Makeup Cosmetics
Once you have determined the shades that are best suited to the person, you will begin the process of mixing foundations to correct or enhance skin tone.
First, be sure that the client is seated in good daylight, just as you did in the color exercise. You will need to have the following on hand:
1. Several shades of foundation that are close to your client's natural coloring.
2. Several shades of corrector in mint green, pale yellow, violet, and white.
3. A glass beaker in which to mix your new foundation.
4. A skin-care spatula for mixing.
5. An empty foundation bottle in which to pour the finished foundation.
6. Clean paper towels for keeping things tidy.
Select a color of foundation similar to the level of lightness or darkness of your client's skin. At this point, you also need to try to match the client's undertones. Does her face look golden, pink, greenish, or peachy? Look for a similar foundation color. Most custom-blend foundations come with the following additives: yellow, violet, green, or white. You may have to mix two different foundations if the client's coloring falls between the shades of foundation that you are using. Place a little less than two ounces of foundation in the beaker. Remember that you will be adding some color, and you want the finished amount to fit into the bottle.
Test the color on the client's jawline. You want to match the color of the client's neck. A foundation that matches the client's neck will give the most harmonious appearance. We've all seen too many faces that appear to be a completely different color than the person's neck. A sure sign of unprofessional makeup!
Now determine whether the foundation needs correction. If, for example, the client's skin is more golden than your foundation, you would add more gold. This is called intensifying a color. If your client's skin is less golden than your foundation, you want to lessen the amount of gold in the foundation. This is called neutralizing a color. If you add too much color, you can always neutralize it by adding some of the opposite color, easily identified using the color wheel.
• If the client needs less yellow, add violet.
• If the client needs less pink or is covering rosacea, add mint green.
• If the client needs less peach, first add mint, then violet.
This method can be used with translucent powders as well. Most private-label makeup companies offer the tools to custom blend, as well as empty bottles or jars and larger-sized foundation bottles to work from.
So, in review, to intensify a color, add more of the same color; to neutralize, add the opposite.

Special Foundation Needs

Nancy explains that sometimes a person's skin color presents a special problem. For example:
• A person with rosacea needs help managing redness.
• Some clients will naturally have so much golden (yellow) tone that they look sallow.
• Some skin tones have an almost greenish hue that can actually appear unhealthy.
Here are some techniques:
If a person has very red skin, find a foundation that matches the neck (which is usually much less red), and begin by adding mint green to it. The color of the foundation will begin to look dull, but when applied to the face, it neutralizes the unwanted color and gives a calmer, less red appearance.
For someone who is overly yellow, adding violet to a foundation that matches the neck will neutralize the yellow and look beautiful. In this situation, often the neck is yellow as well, so foundation should be used to cover the neck and be well blended at the base of the neck.
Nancy gives us valuable lessons and understanding on skin color analyses and foundation mixing. In today's fast-paced industry, we work with premixed foundations, as well as concealers, tinted primers, and camouflage creams to correct if we are not mixing colors. We also mix these “premixed” foundations together on palettes to get the match needed. You will be mixing and matching on your feet, and working in environments that require you to be time sensitive. You will be doing a practical color analysis of the skin by testing the foundation on the skin at the jawline to see if it matches with the face and the neck. You will be draping your actor with a barber's drape or hairstylist's cape. They come in several colors, but most Makeup Artists use black. If the actor is wearing clothing in a color that is not suitable for the color palette designed for the project or is not good for their skin tone, the drape or cape will help you neutralize this problem and let you see how your color choices are working with the individual's skin tone.

Foundations and Primers

Makeup foundation's cosmetic purpose is to even out skin tone, hide fine lines, and provide a base on which to apply makeup. Foundations also provide added moisture to the skin, protect from the environment, and, with some products, provide a light sunscreen.
Foundation or makeup base comes in a variety of textures and consistencies: tinted moisturizers, liquid, cream, cake, stick, cream to powder, and powder. You can achieve a different level of coverage with each type of foundation. Color, consistency, and coverage will guide you in choosing what foundation to use for different skin types and situations, and if you should or should not use a primer first.

Primers

Foundations

Concealers

Concealers even out skin tone, and cover blemishes, scars, bruising, discoloration, and circles under the eyes. They have a thicker composition than foundation, and are available in cream, stick, tube, pots, and liquid. Sometimes a concealer is the only product a Makeup Artist needs to even out someone's skin tone (see “Spot Painting” in Chapter 7). You will also use concealers on the body to cover any unattractive marks, bruises, or scars, or to cover tattoos. For the face and body (not the eye area), concealers with a high pigment are best for camouflaging because they provide complete coverage and last longer. You need to blend the concealer well into the skin so that it disappears, especially if you are not using a makeup foundation on the skin. You can apply concealer under or over makeup foundation.
Note that concealers are designed to be applied over the foundation if you are using a liquid or cream base. If you are using a powder or dry foundation, apply the concealer underneath the base. With the exception of dry foundations, most Makeup Artists do both, under and over, when applying concealer. Your choice will become part of your working technique and style. In difficult camouflage situations, you will need to apply both under and over the foundation to get the coverage needed. Try applying concealer both under and over a foundation for effect (Figure 6.3).
Industry Standards: KRYOLAN Dermacolor, Ben Nye, Joe Blasco.
Under-eye concealers come in stick, cream, or pot, as well as liquid. Look for concealers that are creamy in texture, with light to medium pigment. Remember that the skin around the eye is delicate, so the products you use to conceal around the eye area should be, too. If the product is too thick or uses a heavy pigment, you will have to work too hard to blend, irritating the thin skin tissue. Choose a concealer one shade lighter than the foundation that you are working with, and one that has moisturizing properties. A stick concealer offers more coverage but is more difficult to blend, so it can be hard on the skin around the eyes. To avoid irritation and to keep the stick sanitary, do not apply the stick directly to the skin. Do not powder under the eyes (Figure 6.4).
Industry Standards: Paula Dorf, Iman, Kanebo, LORAC, Touche Éclat (YSL), Valorie, smashbox, AmazingConcealer.

Highlights and Contours

Throughout the makeup world, you'll get different opinions on if or when you should apply the theory of highlights and contours. As lighting and film stock have evolved, so has makeup. Back in the day, Makeup Artists would “blank out” the face to start with a blank canvas, and use the tools of highlight and contour to literally paint the preferred features back in. Today, this technique of “blanking out” the face is rarely used, but there will be a moment in your career when you will need to apply it—a drag makeup, for example. Today, Makeup Artists use highlights and contours in a subtle way, without blanking out the features of the face first. We create dimension and highlight features, but with a realistic touch or aesthetic. Sometimes a Makeup Artist is using the technique of highlight and contour without really knowing it. Examples include applying a lighter color under the eyebrow (highlight), or adding a touch of shade under the cheekbone to sculpt out more definition (contour).
What are highlights and contours, or highlights versus shading? Highlights are lighter colors that are applied to any area the Makeup Artist wants to stand out. Contours are darker colors that are applied to any area the Makeup Artist wants to sink or set back. Although the face has shape and depth, there are certain lighting situations that can turn the face flat. The greater a three-dimensional effect achieved by the Makeup Artist, the better the makeup will be. That said, there is nothing worse than an overdone look when the director has requested a no-makeup look.
With blending, you can create beautiful, flawless makeup using highlights and contours with no one being able to see the makeup. There are many Makeup Artists who either highlight or contour, but not both. Think about it. If you apply a lighter shade, for example, on the top of the cheekbone, you will automatically create a sink or shadow right below there for your contour. The same can be said of the opposite. If you apply a contour or shade, for example, in the temple area, you will create highlights on the top cheekbone and outer upper brow bone. We'll go into more detail with the charts on what colors work well for both highlights and contours. In the long run, it is important for a Makeup Artist to learn facial structure and to recognize the importance of where light and dark fall on the features of the face.
Forward planes catch the light. Recessed planes recede.
—Gerd Mairandres, Wigmaster, San Francisco Opera

Highlights

The correct colors to use for highlights are important. If the highlight color is too light or too heavily applied for all media (film, TV, HD, print, and theater), your work will be seen as heavy-handed. Highlights in off-whites, cream, pinks, gold, yellows, or any color that is a few degrees lighter than the skin tone that you are working on will work best—except pure white, which in most situations is too harsh. Remember what you learned in Chapter 3—that white mixed with another color is a tint, so you can be as creative as you want to be.

Contours

Shades of darker makeup from blushers to pigments can be used depending on what type of makeup you are creating. Good colors are brownish pinks, reds, grays, oranges, and again any shade that is a few degrees darker than the skin tone you are working on. You should never use pure black to contour. Remember, if you go back to Chapter 3, you'll see six examples of mixing color to get neutral darks, and color pigments to make browns.

Blending

Blending is the art of applying makeup using your tools to achieve a smooth, seamless finish with no visible line or hard edge. A skillful balance of strong or not-so-strong colors can be blended together without seams to create contrasts or dramatic effects. In painting as well as in theatrical makeup, the technique of chiaroscuro is used to create a bold contrast between light and dark. Chiaroscuro, an Italian term literally meaning “light–dark,” originated as a term for a type of Renaissance drawing on colored paper. The artist worked from the base tone toward light and dark. It is also a term used in makeup to refer to blending from light to dark for a three-dimensional, seamless effect. It is very helpful for all applications of makeup to learn chiaroscuro. You use subtle gradations of color in light and dark shades to enhance the delineation of character for dramatic effect. Remember to blend to the end.
Any makeup can be bold as long as it is well blended.
—Gerd Mairandres, Wigmaster, San Francisco Opera
Note: Chiaroscuro is also a term used in cinematography to indicate extreme low-key lighting to create distance areas of light and darkness in film, especially black-and-white film.

More about Products

Eye Shadow

Cream Shadow: Cream eye shadows are used alone or with other eye-shadow products. They can come in tubes, pots, wands, and compacts. Cream eye shadows can have a dewy, glossy, or frosty appearance, depending on the product. Some are formulated to be waterproof or water resistant.
Cream to Powder: Cream eye shadow that dries to a powder finish. Can be worn alone or layered.
Gel: Found most often in pots, gel products are used as eye shadow or eyeliner. They are quick drying, easy-glide application, and long lasting. They can be used in combination with other eye shadow products. Gels also come in glosses that dry to a shine that gives the eye shadow an appearance of being wet.
Liquid: Liquid eye shadow generally comes in a tube, usually with a wand or brush attached.
Loose Powder: Comes in jars. It can be used wet or dry. Products are highly concentrated with color. They can be used alone or layered in combination with other eye products. They are messy—the loose powder tends to “float” everywhere. If using, do the eyes first, foundation last, to prevent shadow from dropping onto the foundation.
Pencils or Pens: Are highly pigmented, frosty or sheer. Some formulas are waterproof or water resistant in small or large pencil form. You will need special sharpeners for these.
Pressed Powder: Are usually in compact or drop-in disks to customize your eye-shadow palette. It can be used wet or dry.
Waterproof Eye Shadow Products: Are usually found in jars, tubes, or pencil form. They contain a polymer ingredient. They are formulated to not crease or fade.

Eyeliner

Cake: Applied with a brush that is damp. Cake eyeliner is great for smudging. Cake products usually come in compacts or jars, and are creams or powder formulas.
Gel: Used like a liquid or cake, but is easier to apply. It is long lasting. Gel is applied with a brush and usually found in jars.
Liquid: Adds drama to your look, and a must for many “period” looks. It is applied with a brush and is quick drying, but needs a very steady hand. “Painters” work well with liquids.
Loose Powder: Highly pigmented powder that can be used wet or dry. Use a sealer on top for longer wear. Loose powder can be messy.
Pencils: Easy application and blending. They can be formulated in waterproof and water-resistant products, and come in frost, kohl, and matte, with either a fine point or thick.
Sealers: Products used to protect any eye shadow or eyeliner from smudging, smearing, or lifting. Sealers are usually found in liquid form, and can be mixed with eye shadow (or product) in the application (think watercolors).

Mascara

Cake: Is applied with an eyelash brush or small fan brush. Cake mascara and a fan brush gives you a thorough coat on the lashes, with no “clumps,” and works great to get the base of the lashes, particularly on light or blonde lashes.
Clear: Comes in tubes and is applied like regular mascara. It gives a nice sheen to the lashes, and helps to show off definition and length in the “Natural Look.”
Fillers: Are found alone or combined into the mascara formula. They thicken and lengthen. They are usually made out of nylon fibers.
Top Coats: Applied to the eyelashes after mascara, they are used to add sheen and vibrancy to the lashes. They can also be used as a sealer for the mascara.
Primers: Act as moisturizers for the eye, and also prepare the lashes for mascara. They are helpful in creating a longer look and in protecting the eyelashes from mascara. Remember to apply first, before mascara.
Tinted: Colored mascara, usually in tubes.
Waterproof: Smudgeproof, creaseproof, and quick drying. You must have correct mascara remover in order to take off waterproof mascara. Primers can be used first, for ease of removal.

Blushers

Cream Blush: Can be highly pigmented. It can be used alone or with other products. Formulas come in cream to powder finish. Cream blushes come in jars, compacts, sticks, and liquids.
Pressed Powder: Can be used alone or in combination with creams. It comes in a wide range of textures and formulas in compact form. It is great for “on-set” touch-ups because it is pressed and not loose.
Loose Powder: Comes in a wide range of textures and formulas. It can be used alone or in combination.
Tints and Gels: Found in creams, gels, moisturizers, and liquids. Tints and gels are sheer translucent in color. Many are made to be an “all-in-one” product for cheeks and lips. Some are water resistant and oil free. They can be used alone or combined.

Eyebrows

Cake: Powder form, pressed or loose, and come in jars, compacts, and pencil form. They are the easiest and most natural way to define a brow. Cake eyebrow definer is most often used with a stiff eye brush. It can be wet or dry.
Gels: Usually transparent, but are available in tints. Gels can be used alone or after brow color has been applied. They dry quickly, are often waterproof, and hold the brow shape in place.
Pencils: Eyebrow pencils have an extra-hard point for drawing, shaping, and filling in brows. They are very pigmented, and come in assorted colors, and can be used in combination with other brow products.
Thickening: Eyebrow thickeners are like mascaras for the eyebrows. They have hairlike fibers that are suspended in the formula to add volume and coverage to the brows.
Wax: Used to shape, enhance, or fill the brow while holding the brow shape. It comes in different colors and can be combined with other products.

Lipstick

Cream: Contains moisturizing properties and is highly pigmented. Cream lipsticks go on smooth, and some contain sun protection and vitamins. They come in matte, shine, and frost formulas.
Matte: Lipstick that is flat with no shine. It tends to be very pigmented. It is great for creating “period” looks. Matte lipsticks are long-wearing because they are so dense.
Frost: Comes in lipsticks, pots, gloss, and tints, with different levels of frost or glitter.
Gloss: Sheer formulas with high-gloss or wet look. Gloss lipsticks can be used alone or in combination as a top coat to the lips.
Treatments: Balms, conditioners, and treatment sticks for the lips. They are available with sun protection, natural plant extracts, vitamins, and moisturizing properties. They soothe dry lips and can come in tints. They may be used alone or in combination.
Lip Scrubs: Treatment products to exfoliate the lips (get rid of dry skin).
Lip Plumper: Contains ingredients for plumping the lip area. Sometimes there is a tingling sensation when applied.
Lip Wax: Wax formula used before lipstick application to fill in lines and wrinkles. Lip wax also preps the lips for lipstick.
Lip Liners: Come in pencil, pen, or stick form. They are used to reshape and enhance the lip line before lipstick application, and can be used alone with a lip moisturizer (like a tint) or in combination with all lip products.
References
Internet Resources
Frends Beauty Supply, www.frendsbeautysupply.com.
Naimies Beauty Center, www.naimies.com.
Nancy, T., Take Up Cosmetics, www.takeupmakeup.com.
Sephora, www.sephora.com.