The Mistakes You’re Making With Your Beautyblender—And How to Fix Them
Is there any product quite as iconic as the beautyblender? Bring up the hot pink sponge in a crowded room of beauty junkies and all ears will be on you. In case you’re unfamiliar, this weirdly-shaped sponge that helps you apply your foundation, BB or tinted moisturizer absolutely flawlessly every time. We ourselves are total converts; nothing else compares to the beautyblender.
But like any product, cult-status or not, you’ll only get prime results if you use it the right way—and it turns out that an awful lot of people are making some critical beautyblender mistakes. Ready to ditch your 16-piece foundation brush set for this little sponge? Just follow these pro tricks that we picked up from makeup artist and founder of Elcie Cosmetics, Lilit Caradanian.
Don’t use it dry!
If you took a look at the product’s how-to, you’ll see that it’s suggested to be used damp—but too many women skip this stage completely, then wonder why they have the heaviest foundation of their lives. “When used dry, your product will go on heavier,” explains Caradanian. “When damp, the product will go on lighter in layers and leave a very airbrushed effect.”
Caradanian suggests quickly running it under the faucet for about 20 seconds while simultaneously squeezing it. “Once the sponge gets bigger and fluffier, take a towel and soak up the excess water,” she notes. “This consistency is perfect—not dry and not too wet.”
Don’t cover the entire beautyblender in foundation.
You’ll make less mistakes with foundation if you apply a little at a time. Pour a little foundation on either the back of your hand or a hard surface you can wash. Next, Caradanian suggests using the tip or the sides of the blender to pick up a small amount of product and then layer as you need. The brand uses the word “bounce” to describe how to apply product to your skin. Unlike stroking product on your face with a brush, you’ll use a dabbing or stippling method—which makes it way easier to use less product.
Don’t stress mistakes.
Make a foundation mistake? You don’t have to wash it all off and start again—which many women still do—because there’s an easy trick to repair any skin flub. “If you feel you have added too much product on your face, use the back of the beautyblender—where there is no foundation—and just tap around on your face as it will pick up excess product,” Lilit says. The beautyblender is super absorbent and has a big surface area, unlike a brush, so it’ll pick up that foundation without leaving you with weird lines or unevenness on your skin.
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