Colour me perfect: the expert guide to enhancing the nuances of black and brown skin

As a young teen with Ecuadorian roots, I remember the trauma of shopping for foundation and concealer, and never finding the right shade. The Clearasil cover stick came in one shade – beige – and left much to be desired. Today, as the world of beauty belatedly wakes up to a broader range of skin tones, the demand for guides on how to apply products grows. So I spoke to the experts for answers, to help us all kick our insecurities out of the bathroom cabinet and achieve that fabulousness locked inside.

Let's start with the canvas. The key to making foundation last is to take care of the skin and manage any skin concerns before covering them up. If your skin is dehydrated for example, this can cause a number of issues that simply daubing your face with makeup won’t solve. But dehydration is nothing to be ashamed of, and is in fact perfectly common.

“Black and brown skin, regardless of whether you are an oily or dry skin type, is prone to dehydration because naturally, it has a weaker ability to hold water due to lower ceramide levels. Your skin may appear dry and itchy, lined, wrinkled, and looking particularly dull and ashy,” explains Dija Ayodele, a skincare expert and author of the book Black Skin. “If you have dehydrated skin, your hyperpigmentation will also look worse."

One of the natural consequences of this is that foundation will not always do the job you want it to, says Ayodele. “Your skin will act like a sponge, drinking up anything you apply – serums, moisturisers, foundations. The latter will always end up looking like a patchy hot mess. Dehydrated skin is annoying but easy to treat; you need to help your skin maintain as much hydration as possible.”

This can be done by having a good skincare routine and applying products in the right order. Roger Dupé, founder of Swedish skincare brand Melyon, suggests beginning with a cleanser before adding other products from their range. “Follow with the Detox Serum, which absorbs fast as it firms and plumps the skin giving it a natural glow. For the final step, apply Night Cream, which strengthens collagen production during the night and removes dead cells,” he says. “You will wake up feeling hydrated and moisturised.”

As a makeup artist for more than 20 years, Gucci Westman has plenty of experience with such issues. The American cosmetics designer founded Westman Atelier to specifically address the “gap between luxury and natural products”, as she puts it. “We believe that makeup should do more than enhance. We work carefully to create nourishing and clean products that perform to the highest possible standard,” she says. “We recently launched the Vital Pressed Powder, which does more than just set your makeup. It is composed of micro-milled skincare ingredients such as Quinoa Seed Extract, Vitamin C and probiotics that protect from blue light and, over time, will help to control sebum and refine skin texture.”

So how would Westman apply a luminous summer look? “Start with an exfoliant, then cold rinse, serum, and your moisturiser of choice,” she advises. For more of a “just a facial glow”, Westman suggests using Westman Atelier Lit Up in Lit or Nectar under the eye, cheekbones, bridge of the nose, cupid's bow, tear duct area and lips. Then go in with your two shades of the restorative Vital Skin Foundation. Use one shade that matches your skin and a shade about two shades lighter as your concealer shade. This way, you can achieve beautiful looking skin instead of a beautiful foundation. Ingredients such as phytosphingosine soothe and calm redness and inflammation, while there’s also vegetable squalene for long term hydration, coconut oil (a huge cell regenerator) and camellia oil to protect against pollution. She uses Westman Atelier Powder Brush to apply the powder with a light touch.

When it comes to which shades to choose, Westman says the translucent powder works on all skin tones and is perfect for summer nights. Cafe is pigmented and will offer a sheer veil of beautiful velvety coverage, while Dune works on tan skin, offering a bit more coverage than translucent.

If you’re unsure about how such foundations will match with your skin tone, Stockholm-based makeup artist Nihal Mohammed recommends doing swatches on the neck. “You will need more than one shade to blend in and correct the difference as the body and face tones vary,” she says, adding that if the skin is dark, using a darker shade on the forehead to contour will add a realness to the finished look.

As black and brown skin tend to suffer from more pronounced effects of hyperpigmentation and ashiness, the urge is often to use heavy makeup to cover dark marks and scars. According to Nihal, this is a common mistake, and she recommends not using heavy foundations on scarring and pigmentation. Instead, she says, use a concealer and combine it with a darker foundation on the areas most affected, setting the look with a translucent powder.

When Nihal creates a look on shoots, she prepares the models' skin by hydrating and moisturising, which makes the foundation easy to apply. Blotting paper keeps the foundation on without adding flakiness to the t-zone. In her make up kit you will find Hourglasses stick foundation that can be used both as a concealer and base. She applies it with a light touch blending her way to perfection.

My mind wanders back to that spotty teen, and those years shaped my insecurities and self-doubt. Leap to present time, we now have expert advice just a google search away and can truly enjoy the art of applying make-up.