I don’t know about you but my tastes in foundation seeem to change from time to time. I go through phases of using cream foundation and liquid, as my consistency and coverage needs vary from time to time.

Foundation is a great way to cover blemishes and even skin tones, giving you a fresh canvas upon which you can create your make up look. But what if your foundation could do more? What if it could hydrate and firm your skin, protect it from harmful UV rays and give it a radiant glow?

Maybelline’s Instant Age Rewind is a foundation designed to give your face the boost it needs, regardless of the season.

Instant Age Rewind is a formula with avocado that restores moisture to your skin, essential in the drying days of mid-winter. It also adds caffeine to awaken and firm tired skin. Ultra-fine micro pearls help brighten skin for luminous, radiant coverage while SPF 18 protects skin and prevents new signs of aging.

Instant Age Rewind comes in both liquid and cream formulas, so you can choose the formula and coverage that’s right for you. There is even a concealer formulated with caffeine and silk to give a lift to the under eye area while hiding dark circles. The concealer comes in fair, light, medium, dark and yellow shades. The foundation is available in 12 shades that range from Porcelain Ivory to Cocoa.

Blemishes are never welcome. There are plenty of treatments available to help clear blemishes more quickly and a myriad of concealers to cover them. But blemishes have a tendency to show through the concealers and their surface texture makes them more difficult to cover smoothly.

Clean & Clear® Advantage™ Invisible Acne Patch both treats the blemish and helps your makeup conceal it better at the same time.

Apply the liquid to the pimple and it forms an invisible layer to make it appear smoother and allow your makeup to go on more smoothly. Meanwhile it has an acne fighting medication that treats the pimple.

For the past two weeks or so I have been using Max Factor’s Erace Secret Cover-up. I have the Medium shade although I generally use one of the lightest shades in any collection and the funny thing is that I think I like this shade much better than my usual. In any case, I notice I use it every day and have just about abandoned my Avon concealer wand.

I think it does an excellent job of covering up dark shadows and discolorations under my eyes. I notice a difference right away and the slightly salmon tint of the concealer makes me look more natural, rather than having raccoon eyes that I have to put foundation over to even out. In fact, one day my concealer was as far as I got in my makeup routine and I got an unsolicited compliment from a coworker who said I looked really good that day.

The concealer is designed like a lipstick which does make application fairly simple and the formula is creamy, not thick or dry. It is easily blended even if you don’t put your foundation over it, but if you do, be prepared to notice how flawless your complexion now looks. And of course, my favorite new foundation is my Max Factor Pan Stik.

When you think of green makeup you probably think of Frankenstein’s monster, but there are times when you might consider using green-tinted makeup on your face (and no, it’s not on Halloween).

Your regular concealer is no match for red splotchy patches, blemishes or acne. You need to apply a color corrective under your foundation to hide the angry red and give yourself a flawless and even skin tone. A concealer with a green tint will correct the redness. Apply over the blemish, then apply your foundation. You can even apply the concealer again over your foundation and blend for a more complete coverage.

If the problem is more than a few blemishes with red splotches or rosacea (see our article on rosacea) then a product specifically designed for rosacea will be more effective.

Brenda Christian’s Rosacea Eraser is a multi-toned powder of Italian pigments micro-filled with Jojoba and Vitame E. It will neutralize red tones and soothe and protect skin.

Available at our Beauty Store