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How To Prep Your Skin For Makeup Like A Pro: Step 1-3

By Sophie Joaman • July 20, 2024 • 6 mins read

Prepping your skin properly before applying your makeup is essential for achieving flawless and long-lasting results.

The process of cleansing, moisturising, and priming the skin not only ensures that your makeup looks smoother on the skin but also helps to keep it healthy.

Whether you have oily, dry, or combination skin, following a good, structured routine can make all the difference.

The best part is, you really don’t have to be a pro at makeup or skincare to do it, but with a few expert tips, you can learn to prep your skin for makeup just like the pros do.

Our step-by-step guide is the one you need in your life and will help you cultivate new habits in your daily routine.

Step 1 – Cleanse and Exfoliate

The very first step in any pre-makeup skincare routine is to thoroughly cleanse and exfoliate your skin. Cleansing removes dirt and impurities, leaving you with a clean canvas for your makeup.

Exfoliating helps slough off dead skin cells and unclog pores, making your skin look and feel healthier.

Without proper cleansing, impurities can remain sitting underneath your makeup, causing potential skin issues further down the road. Your skin needs to breathe, and cleansing is essential for allowing it to do so.

For this step, use a gentle cleanser to a cotton pad or clean hands and apply it all over your face, then rinse off with warm water. Next, use an exfoliating scrub specifically formulated for the face, gently rubbing it across your skin.

Finally, rinse your face thoroughly to ensure all product residue is removed, and pat your skin dry.

Step 2 – Moisturise and Prime

After cleansing and exfoliating, it’s important to moisturise your skin. Moisturising keeps your skin hydrated, ensuring your makeup looks flawless and lasts throughout the day.

Apply a small amount of moisturiser to your skin and massage it in well, allowing it to fully absorb before moving on to the next step. This helps maximise the benefits of your products and gives your skin the best chance of holding your makeup in place.

Next, it’s time to apply your primer. Primers create a silky base for your makeup, helping it glide on easily and stay put. They also work to blur imperfections and control oil, depending on your skin concerns.

Take a small amount of primer and apply it evenly over your face. Allow the primer to fully absorb into the skin, giving it the best chance to work its magic.

It’s worth noting at this point that you should also apply SPF to your skin. This is essential to help you avoid damage from UV rays.

Some people prefer to put SPF on before primer and some after, but either way, the main thing to remember is to use it every day, even on those cloudy days!

Step 3 – Hydrate Lips

Lip care often gets overlooked, but prepping your lips should always be part of your wider skincare routine.

To prep your pout for your lip makeup, start by gently exfoliating dry skin with a lip scrub and then hydrate with a lip balm.

This will remove flaky skin, ensuring that your lipstick or gloss goes on smoothly and stays looking fresh and hydrated for longer.

Proper lip care also prevents your lipstick from drying out and giving your lips a chapped appearance.

Beyond aesthetics, chapped lips can be painful, so giving your lips extra care will make you feel more comfortable in your makeup.

Prepping Oily Skin

For those with oily skin, it’s essential to use products that help control oil production and shine. Choose oil-free and non-comedogenic products that won’t add more oil or block your pores.

This is particularly crucial if you find that your makeup slips, melts, or transfers.

To prep your skin the right way, start with an oil-free cleanser that balances the natural oils on your skin and exfoliate regularly to remove any excess oil build-up.

Use a lightweight, oil-free moisturiser and a mattifying primer as well to help keep the shine at bay and lock your makeup in place for a flawless, gorgeous look all day.

Prepping Dry Skin

With dry skin, hydration is key. Opt for hydrating, moisture-rich products to combat dry, flaky, or dehydrated areas and keep your skin looking and feeling luscious.

You want to replenish moisture in the skin, not remove it, so avoid products that strip moisture. Instead, choose cleansers, moisturisers, and primers with glycerin and/or hyaluronic acid.

These ingredients create a smoother base for your makeup to glide over and work from under your makeup throughout the day to keep the skin from drying out and makeup from becoming dull.

Prepping Combination Skin

Combination skin can be trickier, as you will likely find that you are prone to both oily and dry areas of skin. Nevertheless, the solution is simple.

Opt for products that help to balance and even out your skin tone. For example, use a gentle cleanser and exfoliator to help even out the skin tone, then apply a lightweight moisturiser that won’t add too much extra oil to the skin but will keep it looking hydrated and luminous.

With a primer, it may be worth considering the type you need the most. If you have an equal split of oily and dry areas, then a mattifying primer might be better applied to areas such as the T-zone, while a moisturising one will target those dry parts.

However, if you prefer to use just one product, a lightweight, long-wear primer can work incredibly well to give you that balance.

Don’t Forget To Use Clean Brushes And Tools

Prepping your skin with all of the above advice is pointless if you’re using unclean brushes and tools. By doing this, you are transferring bacteria and dirt from your brushes to your clean skin, undoing all the effort you have just made to prep your makeup.

Regularly cleaning all of your tools is one of the most important things you can do to prevent infections and other skin issues.

While it can seem like a hassle, trust us when we say it’s so worth it to keep your skin healthy. So give your brushes a thorough and deep clean in warm, soapy water. Future you will thank you!

With these simple steps, you are on your way to happier, healthier skin, no matter your skin type.

By cleansing, moisturising, and priming, you lay the groundwork for beautiful, long-lasting makeup that looks amazing, helps you feel good, and prevents potential skin issues.

Author Image

Sophie Joaman

Sophie Joaman is a freelance writer with a real love and focus for fashion, beauty, lifestyle and culture. With a Master's degree in Journalism and Media Communications, Sophie is ​​currently an ongoing contributing freelance writer for Cohorted Cult-sister website of beauty subscription box Cohorted. She was also a contributing writer during London Fashion Week and London Fashion Week: Men's from 2015-2018.

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