When you walk into a room people must notice you and not your makeup. If they notice your makeup, your makeup is “shabby”. If however they notice you, your makeup is impeccable. This is the Sacha philosophy. Makeup should be used to draw attention to your best features and away from your less flattering ones.
When doing a painting, the artist first primes the canvas with a base color. This primer must have sufficient coverage to conceal the blemishes in the material and provide a smooth surface on which to work. It has to be a neutral color to bring out the colors the artist intends to use. This neutral primer used is white.
A makeup artist, as the name suggests is an artist. The “primer” used is foundation. When doing a makeover, you cannot of course use white, since it will result in a mask-like appearance. You must find a “primer” that matches your natural skin tone.
This “primer” must have good coverage and be neutral enough to allow your eye, cheek and lip makeup to highlight your natural beauty. The greatest challenge facing any makeup artist or makeup wearer is finding the right foundation!
The problem is, from the inception, foundations were not invented to perfectly match our natural skin tones. They were first developed for the movie industry by early cosmetics pioneers such as Max Factor.
These were the days when “white light” was used, causing actors and actresses to look “washed out”. To put color on their faces, cosmetic manufacturers developed foundations with a red base. This era of “pink” foundations dominated the cosmetic market during this period and still forms the basis of many brands today.
As the movie industry developed, natural light was introduced and there was no longer the need for “red” foundations. Manufacturers then began reducing the amount of red used in their formulations to better match various skin tones.
by Kamla RegrelloFoundations, for many years however, remained far too red. Later, manufacturers began adding more yellow to their foundations to alter the pink look. The “added yellow” however, gave foundations an unattractive orange look.
During this time, cosmetics manufacturers began recognizing that there was an emerging market for African American cosmetics. They took their existing “red” formulas, darkened them, and foundations for women of color were invented. They however failed to take into account that most darker women have yellow undertones and needed to wear foundations with a yellow base.
In his book “Making Faces”, renowned makeup artist, Kevyn Aucoin, states:“Years ago, foundation was used specifically to alter the color of the skin, re: ‘rosy glow’. But the trend of the last few years has taken us from what intentionally changed the wearer’s natural coloring to products that match the tones perfectly”.
He later adds:“ Still, if you choose to wear foundation, there are two important things to consider when selecting a product, the ‘look’ you want to achieve and that it matches your skin”.
At Sacha, we believe that a foundation should provide sufficient coverage to suit the individual’s need and yet remain natural-looking. Your foundation should perfectly match your natural skin color so you do not end up with a “ring” around your face.
From our experience, most Caucasian, African and all Asian and Latin women have yellow-based skin. Yet, most foundations have red or orange tones.
When women with natural yellow undertones wear foundation with a pink or orange base, they often end up with an unnatural looking hue. Women with darker skin tones often turn ashy. Darker African women often look at least one shade darker than their natural skin color.
by Kamla RegrelloBecause of this, until recently there had been only one “black” Miss Universe in the history of the Pageant. For over twenty years beautiful African delegates would walk out on stage, look ashy under the stage lights, and lose every chance of winning.
After developing our yellow-based foundations we felt that the best way to test them would be on African contestants in beauty pageants. We knew that if dark African delegates did not look ashy on stage then we had hit the jackpot.
And, so we did! The very first beauty contestant who wore our yellowbased foundations was adjudged 2nd Runner Up in the 1997 Miss Universe Pageant. The second one was crowned Miss Universe 1998, wearing our Perfect Copper foundation, and Miss Universe 1999 won the title wearing our Perfect Honey foundation. Our foundations matched their skin tones perfectly without a trace of ashiness.
After twenty years of not having a “black” Miss Universe, we had two in a row, both wearing the same brand of cosmetics - Sacha.If our foundations could work so beautifully on the most difficult skin tones, imagine how perfect they will be for you.
Foundation is the cosmetic product that women pay the most attention to. It can make the difference between having a natural, flawless finish or looking as if you are wearing a mask.
The foundation market today is saturated with many types and brands of foundations. At the cosmetics counter you are confronted with an array of choices - liquid, cream, oil- free, powder, allergy tested, cake, stick, stay-on, hypoallergenic, cream to powder, non-comedogenic and camouflage foundations. It is indeed quite a mind-blowing experience, especially if you are a first time buyer.
To make it easier for you to determine the type that’s best for you, we have placed foundations into four major categories:by Kamla Regrello
Liquid foundations usually offer sheer coverage and provide a natural look. Most women prefer a liquid foundation because it is easy to apply and fits like a ‘second skin’. They are available in water-based and oilbased formulas.
Sacha’s “Stay-On Color” Liquid Foundation is oil-free and semi-matte. It provides sheer coverage. It is yellow-based and will perfectly match your skin tone. It is suitable for normal, oily or combination skin types.
Cream foundations are traditionally the number one choice of makeup artists. They are usually available in compacts or sticks, and provide very good coverage. Foundations of this consistency provide a creamy flawless finish and are easy to apply.
Sacha’s Cream Foundation will perfectly match your skin tone with a flawless, natural-looking finish. It is ideally suited to women with normal, dry or combination skin.
This is the type of foundation most frequently used by our Sacha Makeup artists at international beauty pageants.In today’s fast paced world, the modern woman is always in search of a “quick fix”. To her, time is precious, yet she needs to look great in seconds. Many brands offer their solution to this - cream to powder, dual activ, three-in-one - basically a multi-functional product.
Sacha’s Dual Activ Foundation, as the name implies, is a foundation and powder in one. It provides the easy application of a powder with the excellent coverage of a foundation. The outstanding feature of this foundation is that it begins as a powder and ends as a powder. It is exquisitely yellow-based and ideal for normal to oily skin
by Kamla RegrelloThe very first step in selecting your perfect foundation is assessing your skin type, to determine the type of foundation that would work best for you.
Selecting the right shade of foundation for your skin tone is critical. Most women have yellow-based skin and need to wear foundations with a yellow base. All Sacha foundations are yellow-based and progresses in steps from the lightest to the darkest shade.
If you need to identify the shade of foundation which is perfect for your skin tone visit us at http://www.sachacosmetics.com/skintones.htm . Follow the simple instructions and identify the shade of foundation which will perfectly match your natural skin color.
Use cosmetic sponge for even application.
Prepare your face with the appropriate cleanser and toner. Follow with Sacha’s Daily Moisturizer which is an excellent under makeup base. It improves the application of your foundation and adds to its wearability. It is a must for all women especially those with dry skin.
by Kamla RegrelloLiquid foundation should be blended in a little at a time until the entire face is completed.
Cream foundation should be applied to the face in long sweeping motions using your cosmetic sponge. Blend evenly until you create a smooth flawless finish. A powder foundation should be applied as you would your normal compact powder.
Remember proper blending is the key - blend your foundation under the jawline, into the hairline, on the ear lobes. Pay special attention to the corners of the nose, corners of the mouth, over and under the eyes. If you need to retouch a particular spot, re-apply lightly and blend. Lightly powder with a translucent powder to set your foundation.
TIP: Test foundation along your jawline - not on your hand and definitely not on the inside of your wrist. View it under different light settings. It must match the natural color of your neck.
TIP: For easy transition from day to night makeup, touch up with Sacha’s Dual Activ Foundation. If will provide the finish of a powder with the coverage of a foundation.
TIP: Dampen your cosmetic sponge to create a sheer finish.Concealers are of a denser composition than regular foundations and are generally available in sticks, tubes, pots, and creams. Concealers can be used to cover blemishes, dark spots, ruddy areas, marks, veins, freckles or under eye circles.
Your concealer should be one shade lighter than your foundation (and only in extreme cases should you use a concealer two shades lighter).Using a concealer that is too light or too pink will give the appearance of ‘owl eyes’. In other words, it will emphasize the dark area instead of concealing it.
by Kamla RegrelloAlways set your concealer with a sheer, translucent powder to prevent creasing.
TIP: Be sure to cover the inside of the nose bridge and the outer corner of your eye where we tend to get dark areas.
TIP: You can remove years from your face by applying concealer to the little downward turning lines at the corner of your mouth.
It is important to set your foundation with a loose powder. This helps to keep your foundation in place. Compact powders should be used for touch ups.
Sacha’s Translucent Powders are light in texture providing a sheer, natural finish. They are lightly tinted and work best with Sacha’s yellowbased foundations.
The basic idea is, if you use a translucent powder over your foundation or concealer, it will set your makeup without adding too much extra color.TIP: For warmer climates or in the summer, take special care to set your foundation with a loose powder, as heat tends to create slipping or running of your foundation. This is especially so in the case of cream foundation as they tend to have a higher oil content.
If you have extra oily skin, try our Ultra-Matte Translucent Powders in Light, Medium or Dark shades. These powders were first developed for the Miss Universe Pageant 1999 to keep the delegates shine free during long days of shooting. They are sheer and contain loads of oil natural absorbers.
Complexion powders on the other hand, have a greater degree of color and because they are more opaque, can be used alone. They can also be used with your foundation to set, adjust or enhance.
Some women wear foundations that are too pink and try to neutralize the redness by finishing with one of our yellow-based powders. We strongly advise against this since this will result in the color of your makeup turning orange. Remember red plus yellow equals orange!
by Kamla Regrello