All About Face Primers

April 13, 2018

All About Face Primers

Being the complete beauty addict that I am, I’m always looking for new products, tips, and tricks that are going to make my makeup look as completely flawless as possible. There’s constantly new products being released and new trends going around. I always do my research and figure out what would work for me and what I should pass on. One thing that caught my attention very easily years ago were face primers. It just made sense. We prime our nails, our walls, and so much else it would only make sense to prime our face too. Now primers are so popular and there are so many of them, it can get very confusing about which are used for what purpose.

For the most part, there are really only silicone and water based primers. There are a very few oil based primers, but those are typically hard to find. To know whether you’re working with a silicone based or water based primer, always look at the ingredients list. If you see any words ending in -cone or -siloxane, that means it’s silicone based. Most all primers will have water as a first ingredient, though, so don’t let that throw you off. They all need water to make them more blendable. Some water based primers will also have silicone ingredients, but they will be at the bottom of the ingredients list meaning there’s not much of it in the product.

There are also creams and lotions, which tend to be a little bit thicker in consistency and have more moisturizing claims. Creams are the thickest and best for dry skin, whereas lotions absorb more quickly and feel more lightweight on the skin making them better for normal/combination skin. Those are just based on consistency, you still need to look at the ingredients list to see what the product has the most of.

Silicone primers are best for oily skin and are definitely the most common primers available. They have a more smooth, slippery consistency and you’ll usually be able to tell as soon as you feel it. Silicone primers are also better for blurring pores and filling in fine lines. Some examples of silicone based primers are the Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer, Covergirl’s TruBlend Face Primer for Oily Skin, the Nip + Fab Viper Venom Micro Blur Fix, Dr. Brandt Pores No More, and Garnier’s 5 Sec Blur. I’ve mentioned all of these primers (which I have linked accordingly) before and love each one of them, with an exception of the Viper Venom.

Water based primers are the second most common primer available on the market, although they do tend to be a little more rare than silicone primers. You’ll know you’re working with a water based primer when it doesn’t have any silicone ingredients, or at least very minimal at the bottom of the list...obviously. The only water based primer that I have in my collection is the Becca Ever-Matte Poreless Priming Perfector, which I actually don’t like very much. Other examples of some popular water based primers are Kat Von D’s Lock-It Featherweight Primer, the Makeup Forever Step 1 Skin Equalizer, Too Faced’s Hangover Replenishing Face Primer, and the NYX HD Studio Photogenic Primer Base.

No matter what primer you’re using, there are a few things to keep in mind during application. Make sure you’re only using a little bit and tapping it into the skin. Using too much primer will not allow the base face products to adhere to the skin. Tapping and pressing the primer into the skin will help to get the most pore blurring and line filling results possible. After primer application, allow enough time for it to set completely. Not doing so will move the primer out of place while blending in other products.

Whatever primer you decide to use, make sure you’re applying similar base face products on top. For example, if you’re using a silicone based primer, pair it with a silicone based foundation. Same goes for water-based primers and foundations. Products with similar ingredients work better together and provide a more flawless finish. Lastly, remember skincare and prep are always the most important! So don’t forget to apply moisturizer and your daily SPF before anything else.

If you found this post helpful, please feel free to share it using one of the buttons below. If you have any other questions, leave them for me in the comments! Do you prefer silicone or water based primers? What’s your favorite face primer?