Hands up if you’ve left the house with your foundation game on point only to find it MIA a few hours later. Your instinct may be to blame the product or the weather or Mercury being in retrograde (always), but consider this: “Makeup is only as good as the skin it’s on top of,” says Dermablend Professional national makeup artist and head of education Chelsea Bice. “You’ve
 got to give it a chance to look the best it can.” That means regular exfoliation and using moisturizers with ingredients that encourage skin-cell turnover, like retinol or glycolic acid, for a smoother, more even skin tone and texture.

Applying primer will also help to extend the life of face makeup. Primers contain ingredients to grip foundation in place, adds Bice, noting that it’s best to opt for non-comedogenic formulas, which are safe for sensitive, acneic skin. To increase staying power, she also suggests sweeping a generous amount of setting powder over foundation and leaving it to set for two minutes. (Don’t forget to brush off the excess when the two minutes is up.) Too big a commitment? Spritz setting spray on your face before running out the door. You can leave your foundation at home — you’ll never need those 
4 p.m. touch-ups ever again.

 

Here are six steps to long-lasting make-up. 

 

Step 1: 
Wash and moisturize your face. Your night cream contains a cocktail of ingredients to repair skin while you’re sleeping. But come morning, it can be too slippery of a base.

Step 2: 
Apply Dermablend Professional insta-grip^TM jelly primer.
 This silicone-free primer contains cork extract to smooth skin and naturally sticky panthenol (vitamin B5), which grips foundation in place. Apply one to two pumps — more if you have dry skin as this product contains hydrating glycerin — in upward and outward motions 
for added tightening effect and let set for 30 seconds. Bonus: This primer, like all Dermablend products, is fragrance-free and tested on sensitive skin, so it’s safe to use around the eyes.

 

 

Step 3: 
Fill in your brows and apply eye makeup.
 Your cat-eye should be complete before you put on foundation. Trust us, 
it’s inevitable that you’ll get some shadow on your cheeks.

Step 4: 
Apply foundation, then concealer. Dermablend’s flawless creator^TM  foundation drops contain 33 percent concentrated liquid pigment — the highest in the industry — for flawless, weightless coverage. But the formula is both water-free and oil-free, meaning it will mix seamlessly into your fave moisturizer or sunscreen on days when you’re feeling a more natural look. After application, you may find you don’t even need concealer. Pro Tip: “To find your perfect shade of foundation, always colour-match it on clean, makeup-free skin on the part of the body where you’re going to apply it. And test in natural daylight. If it looks good in natural light, that’s the most important thing,” says Bice.

 

 

Step 5: 
Set the look.
 Use a brush or a damp beauty blender to apply setting powder, using a pressing motion to work product into the skin. Or, if you prefer, spritz on some setting spray to set your look.

Step 6: 
Add blush.
 Apply blush after powder — otherwise it will be absorbed by your foundation and disappear by midday.