Need to Conceal

I used to never really use concealers until I started blogging. I thought what for, I'm young, I don't have dark circles etc. Turns out you don't have to fall into either category to use concealers or at least this is what I believe. Using them can immediately make tired eyes look more awake and just make skin smoother over all when foundation alone is not enough. After I started blogging, I became such a devoted concealer-er that I even use different concealers for different areas on my face! Here are some of my favorites that I can never be without :)

   Benefit Erase Paste (No 2 Medium)

This is my oldest concealer which I thought was awesome until I discovered MAC's Studio Fix Concealer which I will get to in a second. I used to use Erase Paste for pretty much everything from brightening up my under eye area to cover up blemishes to my nose area. However after a while, I began seeing it settle in the fine lines I have on under my eyes even after setting with powder, which didn't look too pretty. I then started using it on blemishes but it wasn't such a great color match. There are only 3 shades of the Erase Paste and this was the closest to my skin color. I use Erase Paste down the sides of my nose because of all the 3 I have, it does the best job concealing there. I have realized MAC Studio Finish concealer makes my pores near my nose appear larger so I resort to Erase Paste which only conceals :)

    e.l.f. Studio Under Eye Concealer & Highlighter (Glow/Light)

I bought this elf concealer on a whim at Target before having tried any elf product, ever! Pretty bold purchase from a brand you've never used before huh? The fact that it was more liquid than I thought it would be kind of scared me in the beginning. Later I realized I just needed two little dots to have full coverage, so little goes a loooooong way! Don't be fooled by it's $3 price tag because it's just as amazing as high-end concealers if not better! In this case,we can apply the 'it's not the quantity, it's the quality' theory! It is perfect for my under eye concealing needs though I don't have that much to conceal. It really smooths out the fine lines without settling in them and creates such a flawless look. The concealer side alone does a good job brightening this area. However I also like to dab a bit of the highlighter side for optimum results. I did pick this concealer up in a shade lighter (Glow/Light) than my skin tone to achieve an obviously lighter look under my eyes. Therefore I can't really use it on other areas on my face because it would be just too light.

    MAC Studio Finish Concealer (NW 30)

MAC has done it again! I'm sure I'm one of the last people to use this concealer and I can't believe I have not tried it sooner. While at my local MAC one day, I had a make-up artist apply some on my face just to see what it's all about. She applied it right under my eyes and it was all good but after coming home I saw my under eye lines looking worse than they did before having this concealer applied. It has unfortunately creased! I knew it just wasn't going to work in this area. So now I use it on my skin discolorations, pimples and anything I want to conceal on the rest of my face. If the zit isn't a huge one, this concealer will make it almost invisible. If it's a huge one above the surface, obviously there is nothing that can be done about that, good luck to me! As I have mentioned above, it also does make my pores on the sides of my nose appear larger than they are, so it's a no-no for sides of my nose!

Hard to believe I'm using all these different shades of concealers!

For Erase Paste and MAC concealers I use my little elf brush you can see in the top photo. For elf concealer I just use my ring finger to blend it in.

I'm happy with all of my concealers! They all seem to do a fantastic job in their own little ways. I have yet to find a concealer that combines all three of them and does everything, does it even exist? I did try the Amazing concealer to see if it lived up to all the hype, and for me it didn't!

Do you use a concealer? If so, what's your favorite one?